Cornel West will not appear on Pennsylvania presidential ballot: PA Supreme Court

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Monday reaffirmed a lower court ruling that independent presidential candidate Cornel West will not appear on the presidential ballot this November.

West, who originally sought the presidency under the Green Party's banner, was attempting to get his name on the ballot before early voting begins in the Keystone State, but his efforts were blocked by the Democratic Party.

The candidates that will appear on Pennsylvania's presidential ballots are Vice President Kamala Harris for the Democratic Party, former President Donald Trump for the Republican Party, Chase Oliver for the Libertarian Party, and Jill Stein for the Green Party.

The ruling now allows Pennsylvania Secretary of State Al Schmidt to certify the ballots and send them to early voters. The commonwealth's Supreme Court ruled that West’s campaign lacked the required affidavits for 14 of his 19 presidential electors, according to the Associated Press.

Similar efforts to keep West off the ballots occurred in the swing states of Virginia and North Carolina. But West will appear on the presidential ballot for both states. 

Pennsylvania is considered one of the closest swing states in the 2024 election so far, with Trump and Harris both polling at approximately 48%, and is worth 19 electoral votes. The battleground state went to President Joe Biden in 2020. 

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.