Thank you for contacting the Secretary of State with your question about the Secretary of State’s responsibility regarding the authenticity of a presidential candidate’s birth certificate.
The qualifications to be a presidential candidate include the following
A. A natural-born citizen of the United States,
B. At least 35 years of age, and
C. A resident of the United States at least 14 years.
While the Secretary of State certifies candidates for the ballot, each political party is legally responsible for choosing the candidate they wish to place on the ballot. You may view the Presidential Candidate Qualification Procedures for the February 5th 2008 presidential primary election on our website at http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/elections_runningforoffice_08.htm.
Thank you for contacting the Secretary of State. We hope this information is helpful to you. If you have questions about this or another matter related to the Secretary of State’s office, please contact our Legislative and Constituent Affairs at (916) 653-6774.
Sincerely,
Legislative and Constituent Affairs
Secretary of State
-----Original Message-----
From: -------------
Sent: Friday, October 24, 2008 6:07 PM
To: Secretary of State Bowen
Subject: candidate qualifications
Madam Secretary:
It is possible that one of the presidential candidates does not meet the constitutional requirements for office. Senator Obama has refused a court order in Penn. requiring him to produce a birth certificate to establish that he is a natural-born US citizen as required by the US constitution.
We may have someone running for office on Cal ballots, who is not qualified.
Could you please issue a statement on this before the election.
Thank you.
------------ California voter 951-000-0000
Wonderful world is going to hell in a handbasket.
PS: Thanks for trying. :)