Supporters of reviving a joint presidential primary in Michigan on Jan. 15 aren't giving up.
State officials said Friday they will file an emergency appeal of a court ruling that kept Michigan from moving near the front of the pack in the presidential primary season. An Ingham County judge ruled earlier this week that part of a state law setting up the primary is unconstitutional.
"We believe the Legislature passed this law for a reason," said Secretary of State spokesman Ken Silfven. "That's so Michigan's issues can have the national attention they deserve."
The conflict is a provision giving the state Democratic and Republican parties exclusive access to lists of who voted in their party's primary.
Republicans in the Legislature tried fixing the problem Thursday but didn't get enough support from Democrats, who are divided about participating in the primary or holding a caucus.
House Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford, has said it would be hard to justify the expense of the primary because so many Democratic candidates have pulled themselves off the ballot in Michigan.
State Democrats and Republicans face the possibility of sanctions if they hold their primary early and violate national party rules. Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina are scheduled to have early nominating contests.
The national Republican Party announced Thursday that it will punish five states, including Michigan, for scheduling early nominating contests. Michigan will lose half of their delegates to the national convention, said Mike Duncan, chairman of the Republican National Committee. RNC rules require the punishment for states that hold their nominating contests earlier than Feb. 5.
One alternative Democratic plan would be a Feb. 9 caucus to decide delegates to the Democratic National Convention. But Democratic National Committee member Debbie Dingell, who has pushed for the early primary, said Friday the caucus should be earlier, too, if the primary isn't held.
She wants to hold any caucus the same day as New Hampshire has its primary. New Hampshire has not yet set a primary date, though it is required by state law to hold its primary at least seven days before any other, raising the possibility of a December vote.
Dingell said talks are continuing and Michigan has a couple more weeks to pass legislation or successfully appeal the court ruling. The Legislature has scheduled tentative session days for Tuesday and Nov. 20 but otherwise was planning to be on break for two weeks.
Republicans also think a Jan. 15 primary remains possible. But Michigan Republican Party spokesman Bill Nowling said Friday the party started implementing a backup plan: holding a state convention Jan. 25-26 to apportion delegates to the Republican National Convention.