COLUMBUS, Ohio _ A Wisconsin state court ruled that Kanye West can't appear as an independent presidential candidate on the battleground state's Nov. 3 ballot, denying the rapper's request to overturn a decision disqualifying him. West could still appeal the ruling.
Brown County Circuit Court Judge John Zakowski ruled his court couldn't refute the findings of the Wisconsin Elections Commission, which concluded that West's representatives filed his nomination papers past the Aug. 4 deadline.
West's lawyers said the papers were filed before 5:01 p.m, thus meeting the "not later than 5:00 p.m." legal requirement. The court disagreed. "The court finds that, basically, 5 o'clock is 5 o'clock," Zakowski wrote in his decision.
West is also suing to overturn a decision keeping him off the ballot in West Virginia for lacking enough valid signatures, and is appealing a court ruling disqualifying him in Virginia. The top courts in Ohio and Arizona have issued rulings that will keep the rapper off the ballot in those states.
Since announcing on July 4 that he's running for president, West has qualified to appear on the ballot in at least 12 states: Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, and Vermont.
