Richard Lee Winger (born August 27, 1943) is an American, political activist and analyst. He is the publisher and editor of ''

Ballot Access News ''Ballot Access News'' is a United States-based website and monthly online and print newsletter edited and published by Richard Winger of San Francisco, California. Winger is an expert on ballot access law in the United States. History Published ...

''. He sits on the editorial board of the ''

Election Law Journal ''Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed law journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. covering legal issues related to elections and voting rights. It was established in 2002 with Daniel H. Lowenstein ( ...

''. Winger publishes analysis, statistics and legal information and supports expanded access to the ballot for

minor parties A minor party is a political party that plays a smaller (in some cases much smaller, even insignificant in comparison) role than a major party in a country's politics and elections. The difference between minor and major parties can be so great ...

Overview

Winger is widely regarded as an expert on

ballot access Elections in the United States refers to the rules and procedures regulating the conditions under which a candidate, political party, or ballot measure is entitled to appear on voters' ballots. As the nation's election process is decentralized b ...

and

election law Election law is a branch of public law that relates to the democratic processes, election of representatives and office holders, and referendums, through the regulation of the electoral system, voting rights, ballot access, election managemen ...

, as well as on the topic of third parties in the United States. Though not a attorney, Winger periodically testifies in court cases and legislative hearings and is a source for both the media and political organizers. He has been published in ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'', ''Journal of Election Law'', the ''Fordham Urban Law Review'', ''American Review of Politics'', ''California Journal'' and other publications. He has appeared as a commentator on ballot access on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

, ABC,

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

, and

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

. Since 1985 Winger has published ''Ballot Access News'', a monthly newsletter covering developments in ballot access law and among American minor parties generally.

Background

A lifelong

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

n, Richard Winger graduated from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant un ...

as a

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and ...

major in 1966, and attended Graduate School in Political Science at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

Coalition on Free and Open Elections

In 1985 Winger co-founded, along with several minor party representatives, the

Coalition on Free and Open Elections The Coalition for Free and Open Elections (COFOE) is a nonpartisan organization in the United States that aims to promote fair ballot access. COFOE was founded in 1985, when representatives from across the political spectrum met in the New York C ...

(COFOE). The group attempts to co-ordinate action and provide mutual support among the various minor parties for efforts to liberalize and reform ballot access laws.

Politics

Winger has been a member of the Libertarian Party for several years. Winger has made one run for public office, a 1986 campaign for

Secretary of State of California The secretary of state of California is the chief clerk of the U.S. state of California, overseeing a department of 500 people. The secretary of state is elected for four year terms, like the state's other constitutional officers; the officeh ...

on the Libertarian ballot line. As he was running for the office charged with the administration of elections, the campaign was styled as being nonpartisan, intended to represent the interests of all minor parties. Winger finished fourth among five candidates with 1.5% of the vote.Join California:Election History for the State of California/Elections 1986-11- - 1995
www.JoinCalifornia.com.

References

External links

''Ballot Access News''COFOE
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Winger, Richard 1943 births Living people American bloggers American online publication editors American political activists American political scientists California Libertarians Newsletter publishers (people) United States federal election legislation UC Berkeley College of Natural Resources alumni University of California, Los Angeles alumni Activists from California