[JURIST] The Minnesota Supreme Court has ruled that a state law requiring candidates to reach a vote threshold in a primary election before appearing on the general election ballot violated "important constitutional rights that are central to the preservation of our democracy." Saying that the law served "no rational state purpose," the court concluded "that by denying Independence Party candidates access to the general election ballot the primary threshold law violates petitioners' constitutional rights to vote and to associate for the advancement of political beliefs under the First and Fourteenth Amendment." Read the court's opinion. AP has more.