Judge: Iowa Democrat Candidate Abby Finkenauer Cannot Appear on Primary Ballot

Iowa Senate Democrat candidate and former congresswoman Abby Finkenauer, looking to unseat the Republican incumbent, cannot appear on her party’s June 7 primary ballot after failing to meet the signature requirement, a judge ruled Sunday.

A judge ruled on Sunday that Finkenauer cannot be on the primary ballot after a state panel last month found the Democrat did not meet the requirement of submitting enough valid signatures on her nominating petitions.

A pair of Republicans — Kim Schmett, a former chair of the Polk County Republicans, and Leanne Pellett, co-chair of the Cass County Republicans — filed several objections to her nomination petition with the secretary of state office, claiming she did not meet the requirement under Iowa law to collect over 3,500 signatures of “electors” with at least 100 of the “electors” from at least 19 different districts in the state.

“The Court takes no joy in this conclusion,” Polk County District Judge Scott Beattie wrote. “This Court should not be in the position to make a difference in an election, and Ms. Finkenauer and her supporters should have a chance to advance her candidacy.”

The Republicans argued some of the signature lines on the nomination petition were missing information, meaning Finkenauer did not have the mandatory 100 signatures from 19 counties, even though she submitted over 5,000 signatures total.

Schmett and Pellett noted that the Democrat only filed 101 signatures from Cedar County, and two of the signatures from the county were petitioned for having the incorrect date on one and no date filled out on the other, meaning if they were not counted, Finkenauer would not have met the requirements.

In conclusion, the judge noted the panel was wrong to say Finkenauer met the requirements to be on the ballot last month because they allowed three signatures — one from Allamakee County and two from Cedar County — to be counted that should not have. Therefore, without those two signatures, Finkenauer is under the required number needed.

“However, this Court’s job is to sit as a referee and apply the law without passion or prejudice. It is required to rule without consideration of the politics of the day. Here the Court has attempted to fulfill that role,” Beattie continued. The judge added that the panel’s decision to allow her on the ballot was reversed because she “failed to submit at least 100 signatures from at least 19 counties.”

“Ms. Finkenauer’s name shall not be included on the primary ballot for the Democratic Primary for U.S. Senate,” Beattie added.

Finkenauer on Monday said she would appeal the decision to the Iowa Supreme Court, stating the decision was “deeply partisan”:

In a massive gift to Washington Republicans, this partisan decision overrules both the Republican secretary of state’s office and the bipartisan panel, ignores decades of precedent, interferes in the electoral process, and makes a mockery of our democracy.

Republican groups from the state and federal levels piled on the Democrat’s “Epic Ballot Failure.”

In a press release from the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), the spokeswoman Katharine Cooksey said, “Abby Finkenauer is no stranger to being fired by Iowans, but she at least made it to November last time around.”

Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Jeff Kaufmann hammered the panel’s efforts to keep Finkenauer on the ballot, saying the two Democrats “should be ashamed of their hyper-partisan actions and have more respect for our election laws.”

Noting that the “Democrat establishment is in disarray,” Kaufmann added, “Not qualifying for the ballot is a complete and utter embarrassment. Finkenauer should have spent more time collecting signatures over going to high-class dinners with D.C. elites.”

The case is Schmett v. State Objection Panel, No. CVCV063390 in the Iowa District Court for Polk County

Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter.