On June 4, 1948, Secretary of State Edward J. Hummel attempted to block the Progressives from appearing on the ballot citing a 1941 law prohibiting "parties or groups engaged in un-American activities". He claimed that three of Wallace's campaigners in the state were communists. The Progressives sued and the Supreme Court of Ohio ruled in their favor. The Progressives chose to petition to place Wallace onto the ballot as an independent as the option for creating a party required 500,000 signatures. Hummel rejected their petition claiming that independents could not appear on the presidential ballot, but the Supreme Court of Ohio ruled in favor of the Progressives. Voters would have to vote for all 25 Wallace electors individually rather than using the straight party option available for the major parties.[2]
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