RICHMOND, Va. - Kanye West filed an appeal with the Virginia Supreme Court to overturn a Richmond judge's ruling that took his name off of Virginia's ballots for the 2020 presidential election.
A Richmond circuit court found that a majority of West's elector oaths were obtained by "improper, fraudulent or misleading means" after two Suffolk residents filed a request to have West removed from the ballot, claiming that he failed to meet the minimum candidacy requirements to appear on the ballot for the general election.
According to the Virginia Department of Elections website, in order to appear on Virginia’s ballot as an Independent, candidates must gather petition signatures from 5,000 qualified Virginia voters and receive a pledge and notarized oath from 13 electors.
The lawsuit stated that the VDOE's "decision to qualify West as a candidate was based on Elector Oaths that were obtained by fraudulent means and/or rife with violations of Virginia law and other disqualifying errors," and argues that at least 11 of the 13 Elector Oaths West submitted are invalid.
West hired two new lawyers with BakerHostetler, Trevor Stanley and Mark Braden, for his appeal. Both lawyers have extensive ties to the Republican Party and represented the Republican Party of Virginia when they opposed suspending the witness requirement for the June primaries earlier this spring.
Because West filed a motion for expedited consideration in this appeal, the case will be considered quickly, according to Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring's office.
This is a developing story.