A U.S. District Court is set to, in late April, hold a trial in the case of Block v. Mollis. The main issue of the case is whether or not there’s any state interest in making it illegal to circulate a petition for a new party in an odd year. According to the article:
There are many reasons why a group might want to be a qualified party in an odd year. Only qualified parties are listed on the voter registration form, and the sooner a group gets on that form, the faster it will gain registered members. Also, if a party qualifies in an odd year, its chances of recruiting good candidates are enhanced. Also, paid petition circulators tend to be less expensive in odd years than in even years.
You can read the full article here. Source: Ballot Access News.
I think this is different from what’s going on in this post.