Georgia Supreme Court rejects appeal from would-be presidential candidate

ATLANTA — The Georgia Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from a man who was 11 days late in an attempt to have his name included as a presidential candidate on Georgia ballots.

In a ruling Wednesday, the state high court said that Roque “Rocky” De La Fuente’s independent candidacy was rejected by Georgia’s chief elections officer, Secretary of State Brian Kemp, because De La Fuente submitted his nomination petition to Kemp’s office on July 12, missing a July 1 deadline. Kemp also rejected the petition because it included only 2,964 verified signatures, less than half of the 7,500 required by the state to validate a petition.

De La Fuente challenged Kemp’s ruling in Fulton County Superior Court, asking that Kemp be ordered to add him to the ballot. The Georgia Supreme Court summary said the Fulton County judge granted Kemp’s motion to dismiss the case, a decision the high court upheld.

He also filed suit in federal court, contending that Georgia’s statutory deadline for independent candidates to file notices of candidacy is unconstitutional. The state Supreme Court summary said the federal district court denied De La Fuente’s emergency motion for mandamus and injunctive relief, and his appeal of that denial was pending in the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Read more: http://www.albanyherald.com/news/local/georgia-supreme-court-rejects-appeal-from-would-be-presidential-candidate/article_386fe5ec-dd6a-5066-94e5-fe59909efa9a.html