Conyers' Primary Challenger Commends Ballot Ruling

A Detroit pastor seeking to unseat U.S. Rep. John Conyers says an elections clerk should be commended for a ruling that the longtime legislator doesn't have enough signatures to appear on the Aug. 5 primary ballot for Michigan's 13th Congressional District.  
Wayne County Clerk Cathy Garrett said Tuesday that Conyers' nominating petitions were insufficient.
It follows her report last week finding Conyers was more than 400 signatures short of 1,000 needed. Officials believe several people who circulated his petitions do not appear to have been registered voters or had registered too late.
The Rev. Horace Sheffield III says Garrett "did what the law called for her to do."  Federal court actions, meanwhile, are taking aim at the requirement that petition collectors be registered voters.