New Jersey Libertarian Leguía “has been wronged,” federal judge says, likely out of tight House race
Updated: Sep 22
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.
Video of our interview with Lana Leguia
UPDATE: Libertarian Lana Leguía’s fight to return to the ballot has reached its end. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito denied her emergency application on Sept. 18, leaving in place the state court decision that disqualified her nominating petition. Leguía had submitted 759 signatures, well above the 250 required to qualify, but 670 were challenged because they were collected by three out-of-state circulators. After a series of decisions in state and federal court, Leguía asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene, arguing that New Jersey had effectively changed the rules after candidates had relied on the state allowing out-of-state circulators for years. Alito denied the application without explanation, leaving Leguía off the November ballot. The denial does not resolve the merits of her constitutional claims regarding New Jersey’s circulator residency requirement. (September 22nd)
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.
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