Thread by @protctdemocracy

Today, we sued the South Carolina GOP on behalf of Republican voters, including @bobinglis, for illegally cancelling the party’s presidential primary. Read the complaint here: bit.ly/2mDqs7W
#scpol #sctweets

South Carolina election law makes it illegal for party leaders to break their own rules to cancel an election just because they believe one candidate is more likely to win or because they prefer that candidate. #scpol #sctweets

So it violated party rules *and* state law for a small group of South Carolina Republican Party insiders to cancel the Republican primary. #scpol #sctweets thehill.com/homenews/campa…

Note: This is different from past primary cancellations. In 2007 & 2013, GOP-led SC legislature changed state law to make it harder to cancel a primary. So the cancellations in 1984 & 2004, when Reagan & Bush were running, happened under entirely different laws. Current rule:

A small group of SC GOP insiders has chosen a nominee by fiat, effectively disenfranchising hundreds of thousands of Republican voters—and denying them their voice in shaping the Republican Party and what it represents. #scpol #sctweets

Don’t take our word for why this is bad. In 2014, SC GOP unanimously resolved that “spirited & competitive primaries are a healthy way to grow the Republican Party” & any perception of unfairness could “irrevocably damage the integrity of our primary[.]” #scpol #sctweets

And in 2015, SC GOP said that failure to hold a primary would cause “irreparable harm” because “the citizens of South Carolina deserve an opportunity to vote on the Republican nominee for President of the United States.” So true! bit.ly/2nt2756

So today, Plaintiffs are asking the Court to protect their core democratic rights. Voters must have a voice in shaping their own political party. Voters must be able to vote for the presidential nominee of their choice. We’ll keep you posted. #scpol #sctweets