Rhode Island Secretary of State Says Three Independent Presidential Petitions Have Enough Valid Signatures

The Rhode Island Secretary of State has determined that three independent presidential candidates have enough valid signatures. They are Rocky De La Fuente, Gary Johnson, and Jill Stein.

Rhode Island has three ballot-qualified parties: Democratic, Moderate, and Republican. The Moderate Party has no presidential nominee.

Candidates who use the Rhode Island independent petition procedure may choose a party label. De La Fuente’s label is “American Delta”; Johnson’s is “Libertarian”; Stein’s is “Green.” If any of these get 5% of the vote, that will cause that group to become ballot-qualified.

Evan McMullin did not petition in Rhode Island because the state requires independent presidential candidates to have their presidential elector candidates file a declaration of candidacy in June. No one has ever sued to overturn this law.

Lynn Kahn, an independent presidential candidate, and Darrell Castle, the Constitution Party nominee, filed the paperwork in June but then did not actually gather the signatures, or at least did not gather enough.