A district court judge has ruled the Libertarian candidates for governor and lieutenant governor cannot be listed on Iowa’s General Election ballot. It’s likely the Libertarian candidates will appeal to the Iowa Supreme Court.
In June, the State Objection Panel ruled Nicholas Gluba and his running mate Jules Cutler had failed to qualify for the ballot because Cutler did not submit a signed affidavit of candidacy. Cutler says a staffer in the Iowa Secretary of State’s office told her she did not have to submit the document. The staffer says she didn’t reject any paperwork and doesn’t remember Cutler being in the office.
The Iowa Supreme Court has recently ruled in some high-profile ballot access cases. In 2022, the court overturned a lower court’s decision that Democrat Abby Finkenauer had failed to collect enough petition signatures and her name was listed on that year’s Primary ballot. In 2024, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled three Libertarian candidates had not been properly nominated by their party and could not be listed on the General Election ballot.