The Constitution Party started as the US Taxpayers Party, an umbrella group of several single state conservative parties. It changed names in 1999. Baldwin was the 2004 vice presidential candidate. He’s running under different labels in some states.

The Socialist Party is the lineal descendant of Eugene Debs’ campaigns a century ago and has elected, as Alice Cooper duly noted in “Wayne’s World,” three Socialist mayors of Milwaukee. The party faded almost to non-existence in the 1960s but has been an off and on presence on Iowa’s presidential ballots since 1980.

Nine presidential tickets is about average for Iowa in recent presidential cycles. The most crowded ballot was in 1992 with 14 candidates.

The big news in Congressional filing was the non-filing by Democratic primary loser William Myers in the 4th Congressional District. There will be three-way contests in the 3rd and 5th Districts, and a four-way race in the 2nd. The U.S. Senate race is a two way contest between incumbent Democrat Tom Harkin and Republican Christopher Reed.

But he said it is not for lack of signed petitions.  Those, he said, he “surrendered” to “Democratic leaders.”

Nor is it for lack of interest.  In a statement sent yesterday afternoon, Meyers noted his intention to stay “very much in this race.”

Why he surrendered his nomination papers to Democratic leaders remains unclear, and Meyers was unwilling to reveal the identities of the recipients of the nomination papers when asked. His statement implied that the recipients had broken a promise to him.

Here is the full text of Meyers’s press release:

DEMOCRATS BREAK PROMISE TO 4TH DISTRICT CANDIDATE

Meyers Surrenders Nomination Papers to Democratic Leaders

“I’m not on the ballot, but I am very much in this race.” Said William J. Meyers, an Independent candidate for Iowa’s 4th Congressional District. Earlier this week, Meyers surrendered his required signature petitions for ballot access to Democratic leaders. In previous public announcements, Meyers said the only reason he was running on an independent ticket was to make a stance on party policies, which needed to be “set in stone” in the form of rules that could be strictly enforced.

Meyers, a former Marine Corps Terrorism expert, is outraged by the party’s actions, “I just wanted to ensure that future candidates did not have doors closed to them as I had on me. This is a mass movement, which needs to be accepting to all comers. Now, the minute I surrendered my petitions, they closed the doors again. I had a feeling they would do this, but trusted a certain individual. Democrats had a real opportunity to establish something real and lasting, but once again they shoot themselves in the foot. I will continue my mission into November……..people have asked why I didn’t attempt to change the rules from the inside, well….sometimes you stroke a donkey and give it a treat, but then there are times like this when you have to grab it by the tail and give it a hard kick in the rear end.” Meyers is without enough time to obtain signatures again, so is asking supporters to use the write in option on November’s ballots. That is unless, of course, Democratic leaders deliver his nomination papers to the Secretary of State for him.

Meyers is also leading the fight against Iowa’s newly enacted smoking ban, as he recently launched a new website, REPEALTHESMOKINGBAN.ORG, which has become the focus point for citizens infuriated by the ban.

Undeterred, Meyers also recently launched a new campaign Web site that features Whitesnake’s seminal 1980s rock anthem, “Here I Go Again (On My Own).”

The first presidential candidate to file in Iowa was Gloria LaRiva, representing the new Party of Socialism and Liberation (PSL).

Ron Gunzburger of the priceless resource Politics1 says the PSL was founded in 2006 by a breakaway faction of the communist revolutionary wing of the pro-Cuba/pro-China Workers World Party. LaRiva was the Workers World presidential nominee in 1992 and has been a frequent candidate for other offices since the 1980s.

The electoral impact of the left of the left of the left is well below the Mendoza line of scattered Mickey Mouse write-ins. Bill Van Auken of the Socialist Equality Party won 176 votes in Iowa out of 1.5 million cast in 2004. Yet every cycle, at least one of the Marxist parties manages to get the 1500 signatures to qualify for the Iowa ballot. Perhaps a signature is enough to make an aggressive newspaper seller go away.

With two weeks to go before the Aug. 15 deadline, Iowa’s U.S. Senate and five congressional races are still, officially, two candidate, Democrat vs. Republican contests. Democratic primary loser William Meyers had not yet filed as an independent in the 4th Congressional District, nor had independent Brian White or Green Wendy Barth in the 2nd District.

The Republicans and Democrats have not, as yet, filled any more of their gaps in the 36 state legislative races that remain uncontested by one of the major parties. However, two other legislative candidates have filed.

In Ottumwa, independent Rick McClure will challenge Democratic Rep. Mary Gaskill. “I am a true Independent. I am not sold out to either party or any special interests. Like a baseball umpire, I call ‘em like I see ‘em,” McClure says on his MySpace page. He has two friends; Tom is not among them. Dan Cesar of Keosauqua filed in House District 90 as a candidate of the “4th of July Party.” He’ll face incumbent Democrat John Whitaker in the fall. There is no Republican candidate in either contest.

The 60-second ad, which is the first mass media buy of the 2008 4^th District congressional campaign, discusses Latham’s view that Congress needs to work immediately to increase domestic energy supplies.

Four-dollars-a-gallon gas hurts Iowa families, and they’re frustrated with leaders in Congress for not doing more about it – and they have every right to be.

I have always been and will continue to be a strong supporter of alternative energy research and production, but we need to work for solutions that get Iowans from point A to point B without busting their family budget.

It’s no surprise that Latham’s first ad out of the gate focuses on energy. In an interview with the Iowa Independent’s Douglas Burns early this week, Latham emphasized how important the issue is, saying the GOP can capitalize on high gas prices during the 2008 campaign.

Latham is a supporter of increased off-shore drilling and opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve for oil exploration. Critics have said both options would do little to lower America’s dependence on foreign oil or bring the price of energy down but would do irrevocable damage to the environment.

Latham faces Democrat Becky Greenwald and Independent William Meyers this fall. Most believe the race could be much closer than Latham’s previous reelection bids, as register Democrats outnumber registered Republicans in the district for the fist time since district lines were redrawn after the 2000 census.

In response to the ad, Greenwald’s campaign released a statement saying Latham is trying to use advertising to divert attention away from recent votes that stand in the way of reducing gas prices.

Unfortunately, Latham, like George Bush decided to play politics with gas prices. Last week, he voted against a bill that would release 70 million barrels of oil from the strategic oil reserve to bring relief from high gas prices. This bill would bring almost immediate relief to high gas prices. (H. Res. 6578)

And two weeks ago, Latham voted against a bill to force oil companies to drill on existing leases. There are 68 million acres of federal land already leased by oil companies. That is two times the size of the state of Iowa available for energy production that is now sitting idle. (H.R. 615)

Latham’s campaign said the early ad buy resulted from a successful fundraising year to date, out raising his opponents by a ten to one margin.

The filing period runs through August 15, which is also the deadline for Democrats and Republicans to file some of the 36 uncontested races for the Iowa legislature.

In the 4th Congressional District, third place Democratic primary finisher William Meyers appears to be moving ahead with an independent campaign, and newcomer Brian White is planning a run in the 2nd Congressional District.

On the presidential level, Iowa usually sees about eight candidates on the ballot, though a whopping 14 qualified in 1992. Green Party activist Holly Hart was working the Ped Mall of downtown Iowa City Saturday night, and said she thinks the Greens will gather the 1,500 signatures needed to get nominee Cynthia McKinney on the ballot.

Libertarian Bob Barr and independent Ralph Nader are also likely to qualify. Nader and McKinney are expected to draw votes away from Barack Obama, while Barr is expected to take votes from John McCain.

4th District independent candidate for U.S. Congress William Meyers

The site, RepealTheSmokingBan.org, officially went live earlier today. Meyers said he is currently operating it on his own but hopes in the coming days to contact interested parties who are working to overturn the ban to see if they would be interested in utilizing the site to unify the movement on a statewide basis.

“I want to donate the site to groups trying to get this terrible law overturned,” Meyers said. “This site can help form a statewide coalition to make that a reality.”

Meyers said he first became interested in the idea when he was running in the Democratic primary for the 4^th District U.S. Congressional seat. The site, however, is completely separate from his independent run for Congress, Meyers said, though he hopes he can use the experience he has gained during the campaign to benefit the anti-ban movement.

“I’m willing to do what I can, whether that is helping with research for a future lawsuit, assist in online networking or just out talking to people and letting them know why this ban is a bad idea.”

One section of the site, entitled “The Nannies,” lists every legislator who voted in favor of the smoking ban, along with contact information. A “Nanny,” according to the site, is anyone who “thinks they should be able to tell other adults how to live. The militantly anti-anything-else-they-see-someone-else-enjoying.”

Many Democrats were already upset with Meyers, fearing his independent run for Congress could siphon votes away from Democratic nominee Becky Greenwald and tip the race to Republican incumbent Tom Latham. In designing a Web site aimed directly at a bill Democratic legislators and Democratic Gov. Chet Culver advocated,he runs the risk of further alienating the Democratic establishment.

“I think this shows my willingness to reach across the aisle and speak out on an issue I believe in,” he said. “I was embarrassed to call myself a Democrat when my party pushed through the smoking ban, and I think it will hurt them and any Republican who voted for it this fall.”

This morning Meyers met for coffee with Tom Harrington of the central committee. Meyers said at the meeting he was offered a spot on the central committee if he agreed to end his independent run. Harrington said no such offer was made, only the suggestion “from one Democrat to another” that if Meyers felt wronged in the primary process,  it would be easy for him to join the central committee and try to change things.

“I was not there as a representative of the Democratic Party,” Harrington said. “And I certainly didn’t make any formal offer. I read on blogs and in the newspaper that he felt he was treated unfairly in the primary, and I wanted to see what his issues were.”

Meyers said that while there was no “formal offer,” it was clear why Harrington was there.

“He was there to discourage me from running as an independent,” he said. “It was pretty clear. I told him I wasn’t interested in what he had to offer, and the meeting ended very cordially.”

District central committee members are elected by county central committees, so Harrington is not in a position to offer a seat since elections took place at county conventions earlier this year. But Harrington said there are seats that were left unfilled, and he mentioned to Meyers it would be pretty easy for him to get on the committee.

Meyers, a former anti-terrorist specialist for the Marines, told the Iowa Independent on June 5 that county Democratic Party leaders improperly shut him out of key meetings and prevented him from obtaining information critical to his primary campaign. He said Democratic chairmen or their staff in Warren, Dallas, Kossuth and Webster counties failed to provide information such as lists of county activists. He also said he was not invited to some meetings at which some of his three opponents spoke to party activists.

It was for those reasons he decided to run, Meyers said, and those issues would not be solved simply by his joining the central committee.

“If I end my campaign, I lose all my leverage to change things,” he said. “There is a lot of behind-the-scenes baloney that goes on, and I am very skeptical of the people in power of the state party right now.”

The first day Meyers can file to run as an independent candidate is July 28. He attained the 300 signatures needed to file before the primary vote even took place. He said he anticipates that this won’t be the last contact the Iowa Democratic Party has with him to try to get him to drop his campaign, but unlessparty members are serious about instituting rule changes to stop what he sees as “good old boy” politics, he will follow through with his independent run into November.

Meyers also said he has heard from nine people looking for help to file as no-party candidates to run in legislative races this fall against incumbent Democrats who supported the state’s smoking ban, but he would not release their names to Iowa Independent without getting permission from the nine first.

“They turned to me for advice on how to do it,” he said. “It’s very encouraging to get that kind of response.”

Meyers will face off with Latham and Democrat Becky Greenwald this fall.

Kim Pieper, spokeswoman for the Greenwald campaign, directed questions to the Iowa Democratic Party. Brooke Borkenhagen, the state party’s press secretary, said that while they respect Meyers’ right to run for office, Democrats in the 4th District spoke loudly on primary night.

“[Greenwald] received more than 50 percent of the vote in a four-way race,” Borkenhagen said. “The party is very much united behind her.”

Gordon Fischer, former chair of the Iowa Democratic Party who did not endorse any candidates in the 4th District primary, said it is true that the chairperson of a county Democratic Party can decide who speaks at meetings, which means Meyers could have been shut out of certain counties.

“But I have never heard of something like that happening,” Fischer said. “County chairs are always very open, and even if they aren’t, a vote by the county central committee would override them and allow a person to speak.”

Democrats have high hopes of defeating Latham in the 4th District, and the timing seemed to be right. Most observers believe this will be another big year for Democrats around the country, and for the first time since district lines were redrawn after the 2000 census, registered Democrats outnumber registered Republicans in the 4th District.

The other incumbents in Iowa, Reps. Leonard Boswell, Bruce Braley and Dave Loebsack, along with Sen. Tom Harkin, appear to be relatively safe this fall, so the state and national party was very interested in the 4th District.

“I don’t think his Independent run is going to have much impact,” Fischer said. “I think a lot of the people who supported him in the primary will support the Democratic nominee, so him being in the race won’t make a lot of difference.”

Before the primary, observers were quick to point out how important it would be for Democrats to unify around the nominee in order to send a message to the national party and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee that this was a swing district. Latham has served six terms in Congress, winning in recent years with around 60 percent of the vote.

Whether Meyers’ Independent run will affect the DCCC perception of the race remains to be seen, but most don’t seem worried.

“I presume very few voters in the district [outside of where he lives] know him now or ever will,” said John Norris, chairman of the Iowa Utilities Board and the 2002 Democratic nominee in the 4th Congressional District who endorsed Greenwald. “That generally means he pulls votes that would otherwise be anti-Latham votes, but if Greenwald’s campaign is strong, and I presume she will run a solid if not very good campaign, she will not be hurt very much by Meyers.”

Kevin Miskell, who came in fourth in Tuesday’s primary, said the race to defeat Latham is not going to be easy, but he, too, doubts that Meyers will have much of an impact.

“But if he goes out and tries to play the role of the spoiler, I think it’s going to damage his reputation and his future in politics,” he said.

Fischer said he hopes Meyers will reconsider.

“I’d hope he’d respect the will of the voters,” he said. 

Meyers said he began gathering the 300 signatures he needed to get his name on the ballot for the general election before the primary took place.

"We already have the signatures we need, and we're just waiting for the filing period to begin to file them," Meyers said in an interview with the Iowa Independent. "There is still time for the [Democratic] Party to talk me out of it, but I don't think that's likely."

Screenshot of Meyers' Web site, www.meyersforhouse.com, which has been converted to reflect his Independent affiliation.

He blamed behind-the-scenes moves by officials with local chapters of the Democratic Party who supported Greenwald for driving him to make this decision. He said local county officials, including Greenwald, who serves as chair of the Dallas County Democratic Party, denied him access to the local chapter's central committees, damaging his campaign in Dallas, Warren and Webster counties, to name a few.

"People will say that I could get a voter list form the secretary of state's office," Meyers said. "But I was denied access to the central committees of certain counties, which cut me off from party activists who could have helped get my name out to voters."

"It was crooked the way the party treated me," he continued.

Meyers said he has no confidence in Greenwald as a candidate in the fall or in Congress if she is elected.

"She doesn't have any real ideas," he said. "She's just saying what she's been told to say by the party, and we are already represented by a rubber stamp. I don't want to elect someone like that again."

Meyers wouldn't comment on what, exactly, the Democratic Party could say between now and July 28 when when the filing period for independent candidates begins, saying only that he would like for Democratic officials to admit that they were wrong in denying him access to county central committees.

Meyers' decision comes on the heels of a Democratic primary in the 3rd Congressional District where party loyalty played a key role. In that race, incumbent Rep. Leonard Boswell made challenger Ed Fallon's support of Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader in the 2000 election central to the campaign, calling Fallon's credentials as a Democrat into question.

"I'm part of a new generation of Democrats," Meyers said. "I'm willing to stand up and do what I think is right, so I'm not concerned about my political future. Doing an integrity check on my party is a good thing that will make it stronger in the long term."

Greenwald could not be reached for comment. Several Democratic county chairs named by Meyers did not return phone calls seeking comment.

With 50.9 percent of the vote, Greenwald easily outpaced her three rivals for the nomination. Greenwald received 80 percent of the vote in Dallas County, where she serves as chair of the local Democratic Party, and 52 percent of the vote in Story County, the district’s most populous county. “My supporters are the reason I’m here,” Greenwald said in an interview with Iowa Independent. “They worked so hard for me, and they deserve all the credit.”

Greenwald received the endorsement of The Des Moines Register editorial board, which most believe was key in a race where name recognition was low for each of the candidates. She also received endorsements from high-profile Democrats like former Gov. Tom Vilsack, former 4th District Congressional nominee John Norris and nearly the entire Garst family.

Kurt Meyer, the candidate most believed could have challenged Greenwald in the race, faced several hurdles to the nomination. Meyer donated $100,000 to his own campaign, which is more than his opponents raised combined, but he never seemed to take advantage of having more funds available. According to filings with the Federal Elections Commission, Meyer’s campaign spent $90,639 to very little effect. The largest campaign expense, according to documents, was a poll his campaign paid for on April 14, which cost $13,300. Thousands of dollars were also spent on the salaries of five staffers.

Meyer also faced recent accusations that he was only a “part-time resident,” with opponents claiming he bought a home in the district to run for Congress while actually living in Minnesota.

The other candidates in the race, Kevin Miskell and William Meyers, had virtually no money and no staff, putting them at a considerable disadvantage.

Greenwald will now turn her attention to Latham. She said she will begin today with a trip to Marshalltown.

“I want to immediately get out on the campaign trail and hit the ground running,” she said.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has listed Latham as a GOP target on its Web site. How much money the committee will eventually funnel to the Democratic nominee in the district will likely be determined by polling and other indicators of Democratic support after June 3. Greenwald, who spoke with Meyer shortly before 11 p.m. last night, said she is confident the party will unify for the fall election to defeat Latham.