By John Kruzel
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court declined on Friday to restore the Green Party to the Nevada ballot, cementing a bid by Democrats to keep the party and its presidential candidate Jill Stein from competing in this battleground state in the Nov. 5 election.
The justices refused to halt a Nevada Supreme Court ruling that had barred the Green Party because it used the wrong form when collecting signatures from voters to qualify for a place on the ballot. The Green Party had argued the ruling by Nevada’s top court violated the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment guarantees of equal protection and due process.
Nevada is among a handful of states expected to decide the outcome of the U.S. presidential election pitting Republican Donald Trump against Democrat Kamala Harris. Democrats are concerned that the Green Party candidate could siphon support away from Harris, the U.S. vice president.
The left-leaning Green Party is represented in the case by attorney Jay Sekulow, who previously served as legal counsel to Trump, the former president.