MEMORANDUM OF LAW IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS' MOTION ...

District, like those across the state in districts where the incumbent is running for reelection,will once again be denied the ability to participate in their party’s nominationprocess.Similarly, Pamela Byrnes, from East Lyme, has been deterred from trying to gainaccess to the Democratic primary ballot for the 37 th state House District because theburden on a candidate like her trying to gain ballot status to challenge an incumbent is toogreat; it is nearly impossible. See Byrnes Decl. at 11. Byrnes believes it is futile for herto try. Id.D. Connecticut is Alone Among the 50 States in Denying its Voters aDirect Primary for Most State and All Federal Offices and in Establishing aDual Ballot Access System That Imposes Starkly Different Burdens onCandidates and, thus, Voters, Depending on Where They Live.Forty-four states and the District of Columbia require the major political partiesto use primaries to nominate their candidate for the general election for most offices. See50-State Chart. Among these states, the vast majority have simple qualifyingrequirements that include filing petitions with a reasonable number of signatures orpaying a simple fee. See 50-State Chart. 9Connecticut, for its multi-town districts,however, imposes a more cumbersome system that includes a convention requirementand the de facto requirement of a pre-primary primary to secure a delegate vote just to geton the real primary ballot. Indeed, just one small step in Connecticut’s primary ballotaccess requirements for multi-town districts, petitioning to force the pre-primary primary9 In Tennessee, for instance, candidates for governor, U.S. Senate, U.S. House, and statelegislative office need only submit a petition with their signature and that of 25 voterseligible to vote for the office. Tenn. Code Ann. § 2-5-101(b)(1). In Maryland,candidates can gain access to the primary ballot for governor and other statewide officesby paying a $290 filing fee; candidates for other offices pay smaller fees, and an indigentcandidate may seek a waiver of the fee. See Md. Ann. Code art 33 § 5-401.17