The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the state of Utah to respond to an appeal by the Utah Republican Party that seeks to overturn a law allowing candidates to qualify for the ballot by collecting signatures and/or by using the caucus-convention system. The party says the court’s request shows it is taking serious interest in the case and in the argument that the state should not be able to tell the private organization how to select its nominees. The state last month filed a waiver saying it did not plan to respond to the GOP’s petition asking the high court to hear the case unless requested to do so by justices. On Tuesday, the court did just that.
“We are grateful the Supreme Court is taking the case seriously and requesting the state of Utah to respond,” said Don Guymon, spokesman for the Utah Republican Party Constitutional Defense Committee.
“It was disappointing that the state decided not to respond to this serious question of constitutional law on its own,” he said.
The party argues in its appeal that the 2014 law, called SB54, interferes with its constitutional right of association to select nominees as it chooses — and it prefers to use only the traditional caucus-convention system.
Full Article: U.S. Supreme Court orders state of Utah to respond to GOP lawsuit challenging election law – The Salt Lake Tribune.