Libertarian candidate Marco Battaglia appeared in Polk County District court Wednesday to fight for his spot on the November general election ballot. He argued that a Republican-led effort to disqualify him sets a dangerous precedent for third-party candidates.
Battaglia, whose legal name is Mark T. Andersen, filed a petition for judicial review after the State Objections Panel voted 2-1 on June 15 to remove him from Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District ballot. Panel members Secretary of State Paul Pate and Attorney General Brenna Bird sustained a formal challenge brought by Annie Kuhle, a political consultant for incumbent U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn.
Addressing the fact that staffers tied to his own representative led the push to disqualify him, Battaglia criticized the dynamics driving the effort.
“The specific challenger works for … my current congressperson,” Battaglia said. “So to me, that’s just inappropriate.”
The legal dispute followed attempts to convince Battaglia to withdraw. On June 7, Nunn and Kuhle visited Battaglia’s home to share a home-cooked meal. According to Battaglia, Nunn offered to fly him to Washington D.C., to make him a “poster boy for election integrity” alongside US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The next day, Kuhle sent a group text asserting that Battaglia’s petition signatures were collected by a “democrat operative” and warned that if he failed to drop out by Tuesday at noon, the campaign would file “multiple challenges to your signatures and additional legal action.”
Battaglia, additionally received a phone call from Kennedy, who warned that “if this house seat flips, it’ll make my life a living hell.”
When Battaglia refused to step aside, Kuhle challenged his nomination papers, arguing he could not run under his preferred name. In his court petition, represented by attorney Rachel J. Scherle, Battaglia argued that Iowa Code Chapter 45 required candidates to list the name “in the form the candidate wants it to appear on the ballot” and does explicitly mandate using a legal name.
Battaglia has run for office on several previous occasions, including the House of Representatives 3rd Congressional District in 2024 and Lieutenant Governor in 2022—neither of which prompted a legal challenge due to his name.
Following his court appearance, Battaglia acknowledged the personal strain of fighting for his identity in court.
“I felt really good about it,” Battaglia said. “I myself got more affected and emotional than I would have liked, but it’s because this is literally about my name and like my family and honestly generational trauma.”
Battaglia said that political operatives are misusing election processes to squeeze out independent candidates.
“They’re basically setting a new precedent that every time, since I’ve been participating, every time we jump over some new hurdle that they set up, they just set up something new,” Battaglia said. “They’re really hurting our elections and our people every time they do it, they’re making it harder for anybody that’s not a crony and not already the incumbent.”
If excluded from the ballot, Battaglia said he might run as a non-party candidate under his legal name using an organization like “America 250 Party,” or turn his focus toward seeking the Libertarian Party’s national presidential nomination.
The district judge is expected to issue a decision early next week.
