Election Law

Judge Tosses Suit Claiming McCain is not a Citizen

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A federal judge in San Francisco has tossed a lawsuit that had contended John McCain is not a U.S. citizen and should not be allowed on the ballot.

U.S. District Judge William Alsup said McCain’s birth in the Panama Canal Zone made him a citizen under the relevant statutes, Legal Times reports. “Plaintiff has not demonstrated the likelihood of success on the merits necessary to warrant the drastic remedy he seeks,” Alsup wrote.

Alsup also said the plaintiff, an elector pledged to third-party candidate Alan Keyes, did not have standing to challenge McCain’s placement on the ballot. Two other lawsuits claiming McCain does not meet the constitutional requirement for citizenship to be president have also been dismissed on standing grounds, the story says.

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