Lock-out suit: antitrust laws for elections.

• Author: Doherty, Brian
• Position: Citings - Brief article

ARE POLITICAL campaigns "markets" that cannot be duo-polized under antitrust law? The Libertarian and Green parties are suing to find out.

The suit, filed in September in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., accuses the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), in collusion with the Republican and Democratic parties, of illegally conspiring "to acquire, maintain, and exercise duopoly control of the multi-million dollar market in organizing, promoting, sponsoring, and fundraising" debates, in order to "artificially advantage" the two parties. "The business of campaigning for the presidency and vice-presidency constitutes a cognizable 'presidential elections market' for purposes of the antitrust laws," the suit claims.

The suing parties hope to dissolve the CPD and to receive "treble damages based on their losses" and an injunction against further...