Ralph Nader misses spot on California ballot

7.00pm

LOS ANGELES - Consumer advocate Ralph Nader did not collect enough signatures to make the ballot in California as an independent presidential candidate but his spokesman said on Sunday the campaign would keep trying.

Nader had gathered about 85,000 signatures by Friday's deadline and had clearly failed to accumulate the 153,035 signatures needed to place him on the ballot, California Secretary of State spokesman Doug Stone said. Final tallies were not immediately available.

Nader campaign spokesman Kevin Zeese said the campaign would keep trying to get Nader's name before the state's voters. "We have four or five other options to get his name on the ballot, none of which I can disclose... We expect to be on the ballot in November," Zeese said.

Zeese said Nader's campaign was trying to convince Green Party members in California to replace their presidential nominee with Nader, who was their candidate in 2000. A spokesman for the Green Party was not immediately available.

Nader has accused Democrats of mounting legal battles to try and block him from getting on state ballots because they fear he would siphon votes from Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry. As an independent candidate, Nader must gather signatures to win a place on most state ballots, unlike candidates for the two major parties. The numbers required vary from state to state.

But Bob Mulholland, a California Democratic Party adviser, said, "(Nader) was a ... failure. He did not collect enough signatures."

In the 2000 presidential election, Nader was on the ballot in 43 states and the District of Columbia and garnered 2.7 per cent of the national vote. Zeese said Nader so far has submitted signatures in 18 states for the election this year.

- REUTERS