Alabama notifies Democrat Party that Biden won’t be on November ballot if party misses deadline

From Tribune staff reports

MONTGOMERY — Unless Democrats can find a solution to certify presumed nominees Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as Democrat nominees for president and vice president before the state deadline, the pair may not appear on Alabama’s ballot for the November presidential election.

Alabama Secretary of State wes Allen notified Democrat officials of presidential certification
ballot deadline.

Alabama Secretary of State Wes Allen has notified the Alabama Democratic Party and the Democratic National Committee via letter that they must provide a certification of nomination for President and Vice President of the United States no later than August 15, 2024, to appear on Alabama’s general election ballot.

“It has recently come to my attention that the Democratic National Convention is currently scheduled to convene on August 19, 2024, which is after the State of Alabama’s statutory deadline for political parties to provide a certificate of nomination for President and Vice President,” Allen wrote in a letter to Randy Kelley, Chair of the Alabama Democratic Party. “If this Office has not received a valid certificate of nomination from the Democratic Party following its convention by the statutory deadline, I will be unable to certify the names of the Democratic Party’s candidates for President and Vice President for ballot preparation for the 2024 general election.”

The Democratic National Convention is slated for Chicago at the United Center on August 19-22, 2024.

Allen said Alabama code dictates he required dates. His letter to the Democrats cited Alabama code section 17-14-31(b), which states that the parties must certify their candidates “no later than the 82nd day preceding the day fixed for the election.” Because the general election for President and Vice President will be held nationwide on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, the 82nd preceding day would be August 15, 2024, four days before the National Democratic Convention is scheduled to begin.

According to Allen, the dates for certification have been posted on the Secretary of State’s website since June of 2023.

“If those certificates are not in my office on time, there will be no certification and no appearance on the Alabama general election ballot in accordance with sections 17-13-22 and 17-14-31(a) of the Code of Alabama,” Allen said. “With this letter, we are providing ample notification to the leadership of the Democratic Party at the state and national level that the burden of providing those certifications by the statutorily set deadline is a requirement that they must meet.”

The Republican National Convention is scheduled for July 15, 2024 and is expected to conclude on July 18, nearly a month before certifications are due to be submitted to Allen’s office.