New Jersey Libertarian Leguía “has been wronged,” federal judge says, likely out of tight House race

He can’t review state judgment, hints at chance to appeal to Third Circuit Court of Appeals; candidate is discussing next steps with legal team.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhyG3QHtSe8

Video of our interview with Lana Leguia

A federal court judge said that he lacked jurisdiction to restore Libertarian Lana Leguía to a hotly competitive House race. Republicans challenged her candidacy over her use of out-of-state petitioners, a rule no longer enforced on Democrats or Republicans.

In the opinion released Aug. 31, U.S. District Judge Zahid Quraishi said that the federal district court could not review a state court decision, nor had she exhausted openings in state courts, though it was unlikely she could exhaust state remedies before clerks begin mailing ballots on Sept. 19. He added that Leguía could appeal to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.

After the decision, Leguía told Ballots Without Barriers her legal team is exploring its remaining options, but mounting legal costs could bring the fight to an end.

He said that Leguía “had been wronged,” and he expressed frustration with state officials who told candidates that a law would not be enforced. A federal court in 2021 ruled against a New Jersey residency requirement for petitioners for primary candidates; only Democrats and Republicans have primaries. Meanwhile, the state still enforced state residency rules for petitioners for general election candidates, which affects third-party and independent candidates who cannot run in primaries. 

Leguía turned in 755 signatures, well over the 250 required. The New Jersey Republican Committee said that 670 of those signatures should be invalidated because the petitioners were not New Jersey residents.

“There are a lot of candidates who want to play by the rules and they want to fix the system, but they don't realize that the system is not designed for people like you and I to win. It's designed to keep those in power to stay in power,” Leguía said. 

The race for the New Jersey 7th District U.S. House seat includes incumbent Rep. Thomas Kean Jr., Republican; Rebecca Bennett, Democrat; and Seamus O’Toole, Stop Israel’s Genocide Party. 

Cook Partisan Voting Index rated the New Jersey 7th as one of 19 toss-up House races in the ‘26 election. Those precarious seats currently are held by four Democrats and 15 Republicans.New Jersey’s 12-seat House delegation consists of nine Democrats and three Republicans.