Revision: Feb. 10, 2012, midnight
SB 236 – AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE
02/08/12 0507s
2012 SESSION
03/05
SENATE BILL 236
AN ACT relative to nomination of candidates.
SPONSORS: Sen. Stiles, Dist 24
COMMITTEE: Public and Municipal Affairs
This bill changes various dates relating to nomination of candidates, recounts, and hearings by the ballot law commission.
This bill was requested by the secretary of state.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
02/08/12 0507s
12-2888
03/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twelve
AN ACT relative to nomination of candidates.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Vacancy for Office on Party Ticket. Amend RSA 655:37 to read as follows:
655:37 Vacancy for Office on Party Ticket. If, after the holding of a state primary election, a vacancy exists for any office on a party ticket, such vacancy may be filled as provided in this section. The appropriate party committee shall notify the secretary of state in writing of a person they designate to fill the vacancy. The person so designated shall, no later than the first [Friday] Tuesday following the primary election, file with the secretary of state a declaration of candidacy as provided in RSA 655:17 with the understanding that, where the form says primary election, it shall be construed to mean general election. If the candidate is designated for the office of governor, executive councilor, state senator, or state representative, he or she shall also file, no later than [5:00 p.m. on] the first [Friday] Tuesday following the primary, the appropriate affidavit as provided in RSA 655:29. Any candidate who has not filed all the forms required by this section within the required period of time shall not have his or her name printed on the state general election ballot for that office.
2 Write-In Nomination. Amend RSA 659:88, I(b) to read as follows:
(b) A person whose name was not printed anywhere on the official state primary election ballot, and who receives the nomination of a party by write-in vote in a primary election and wishes to accept the nomination, shall file a declaration of candidacy with the secretary of state no later than [3:00 p.m. on] the first [Friday] Monday after the primary. The declaration of candidacy shall be filed with the understanding that, where the form says “primary election,” it shall be construed to mean “general election.” Such person shall not, however, be required to pay the administrative assessment under RSA 655:19-c.
3 Rejection of Nomination by Write-In Vote. RSA 659:90 is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:
659:90 Rejection of Nomination by Write-In Vote. Persons nominated by write-in vote who wish to reject the nomination shall reject their nominations as follows. A person notified in writing of his or her nomination by the secretary of state as required by RSA 659:89 shall advise the secretary of state in writing if he or she wishes to reject the nomination. If such rejection of nomination is not received by the secretary of state by the first Tuesday following the date of the primary, the person shall be deemed to have accepted the nomination, and his or her name shall appear on the official ballot as a candidate for the office. If for any reason the person cannot be contacted by the deadline for the printing of the ballots, the candidate’s name shall be printed on the official state general election ballot.
4 Nomination for Incompatible Offices. Amend RSA 659:91 to read as follows:
659:91 Nominations for Incompatible Offices. Any person who is nominated by the same political party for incompatible offices shall notify the secretary of state [in person, in writing, by facsimile transmission, or by e-mailing a signed statement as an attachment] no later than [3:00 p.m. on the Thursday] the Friday following the date of the primary of which nomination he or she will accept. Thereupon the secretary of state shall declare a vacancy to exist in the nomination which such person declined. The vacancy shall be filled as provided in RSA 655:37 except that all the necessary declarations of candidacy and affidavits shall be filed no later than 5:00 p.m. on the [Friday] first Tuesday following the date of the primary.
5 Primary Recount Applications. Amend RSA 660:7, I to read as follows:
I. Any person for whom a vote was cast for any nomination of any party at a state primary may apply for a recount, provided that the difference between the votes cast for the applying candidate and a candidate of that party declared nominated is less than 10 votes or less than 1.5 percent of the total ballots cast in the primary for that party in the towns which comprise the office to be recounted. The application shall be made in writing to the secretary of state and shall be submitted no later than 5:00 p.m. on the [day] Friday after the primary election. [The request may be made by hand delivery, by facsimile transmission, or as an attachment to an e-mail. The fee shall be paid prior to the beginning of the recount. Recounts shall begin 2 days after the primary election and shall be conducted so as to complete all recounts involving towns or wards which have pending requests for absentee ballots for the general election from UOCAVA voters no later than 8:00 a.m. on the Saturday following the primary. Other recounts shall begin during the week following the primary.] Each candidate requesting a recount shall pay the secretary of state fees as provided in RSA 660:2.
6 Ballot Law Commission; Hearing Date. Amend the introductory paragraph of RSA 665:5, I to read as follows:
I. If necessary, the ballot law commission shall meet [at 9:00 a.m. on the Saturday following the regularly-scheduled state primary election and, if necessary, on] on the fourth Friday of September in each general election year and the third Friday following the presidential primary election in order to hear and decide:
7 Effective Date. This act shall take effect upon its passage.