Michigan Appeals Court agrees with lower judge: Cornel West belongs on presidential ballot

Independent presidential candidate Cornel West is eligible for Michigan's Nov. 5 ballot, the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled Friday.

The court's 3-0 opinion upholds a ruling by the Michigan Court of Claims, but reverses a ruling by the Michigan Bureau of Elections that West was ineligible for the ballot because of problems with an affidavit he filed with the state.

The case is likely headed to the Michigan Supreme Court for a final ruling early next week. The Michigan Democratic Party has been fighting to keep West off the ballot, as has voter Rosa Holliday, who is represented by attorney Mark Brewer, a former Michigan Democratic Party chair. The Michigan Department of State also appealed.

West is a civil rights activist and philosopher who has taught at Harvard and other U.S. universities. Politically, he has described himself as a "non-Marxist socialist." Though he has been polling at 1% or less in Michigan and nationally, that could be enough to have an impact in what is expected to be a close election between Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, and former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee.

Michigan Court of Claims Judge James Robert Redford on Aug. 24 ordered the names of West and his running mate Melina Abdullah to be included on Michigan's presidential ballot. Redford said they had easily met the requirement of filing at least 12,000 eligible signatures.

Finding no errors in Redford's reasoning, the Court of Appeals affirmed that opinion Friday.

Redford's order overturned a contrary ruling made by the Michigan Bureau of Elections under Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat.

Jonathan Brater, Michigan's elections director, told the West campaign Aug. 16 that he was disqualified from the Michigan ballot because of defects in his affidavit of identity, which was filed with the state along with the required number of petition signatures. Brater's letter said there were several defects in the affidavit, including unfilled blanks on the form, the notary's public stamp being sent on a separate sheet of paper and the notary failing to identify what specific notarial act she was engaged in.

But Redford ruled that under state law, West as an independent candidate was not required to file an affidavit of identity along with his signatures, making any deficiencies in that affidavit irrelevant.

Also on Monday, the Board of State Canvassers voted 3-1 to certify West for the ballot after hearing concerns from Brewer and others that thousands of the signatures West submitted were fraudulent. The board's vote upheld the position of the Bureau of Elections that West filed the required number of valid signatures.

The board did not weigh in on the affidavit issue Monday. The Bureau of Elections and the Department of State still intend to appeal Redford's ruling on the affidavit issue, department spokeswoman Angela Benander said after the board meeting.

Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or [email protected]. Follow him on X, @paulegan4.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan Appeals Court: Cornel West eligible for presidential ballot