by Andrew Trunsky
Kanye West will not appear on Virginia’s ballot this fall after the state’s Supreme Court denied his appeal Thursday.
The rapper was originally removed from the ballot after a judge granted a temporary injunction sought by Attorney General Mark Herring. West’s campaign appealed to the Virginia Supreme Court in response.
In its conclusion, the court wrote that “having considered the record and arguments presented, we find it is not ‘appropriate under the circumstances of this case’ to alter the temporary injunction.”
Herring, who originally filed a motion for an emergency hearing seeking to block West from the ballot, said he was pleased that the court sided with him, citing the risks that would arise if ballots had to be reprinted.
“This case could have thrown the election into chaos, drastically changing the ballot and potentially disenfranchising tens of thousands of Virginians during an election that has brought challenges like none we have ever dealt with before,” he said in a statement Thursday. “Today’s ruling will keep things on track and help ensure that every single vote is counted in November.”
While West has qualified for ballots in states including Colorado, Arkansas and Vermont, he has failed to qualify in more competitive states like Ohio and Michigan. In Wisconsin, the state’s elections commission denied his attempt after his campaign turned in the necessary paperwork less than one minute after the 5 P.M. deadline.
Had West qualified in Virginia, he still would have been unlikely to win the Democratic-leaning state, where Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and President Donald Trump have collectively received over 90% in recent polls.
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Andrew Trunsky is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation.
Photo “Kanye West” by David Shankbone CC1.0
