Revision: Jan. 30, 2017, 8:02 a.m.
HB 390 - AS INTRODUCED
2017 SESSION
17-0690
03/09
HOUSE BILL 390
SPONSORS: Rep. Fields, Belk. 4; Rep. Phinney, Straf. 24
COMMITTEE: Election Law
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I. Authorizes the inclusion of additional parties election forms used to request an absentee ballot and to change party registration on the day of the primary.
II. Eliminates the requirement that party columns be staggered on ballots.
III. Modifies the voter registration form used on the day of the general election.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
17-0690
03/09
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Seventeen
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Voter Registration Form; Day of General Election. Amend RSA 654:7, IV(c) to read as follows:
(c) The secretary of state shall prescribe the form of the voter registration form to be used only for voter registrations, transfers, or updates at the polling place on the date of a state general election, which shall be in substantially the following form:
___ NEW REGISTRATION I am not registered to vote in New Hampshire
___ TRANSFER I am registered to vote in New Hampshire and have moved my voting domicile to a new town or ward in New Hampshire
___ NAME CHANGE/ADDRESS UPDATE I am registered to vote in this town/ward and have changed my name/address
Date _________________
VOTER REGISTRATION FORM
FOR USE AT THE POLLING PLACE ON THE DATE OF THE STATE GENERAL ELECTION
(Please print or type)
1. Name __________________________________________________________________
Last (suffix) First Full Middle Name
Street Ward Number
______________________________________________________________________________
Town or City Zip Code
3. Mailing Address if different than in 2 _______________________________________
Street
______________________________________________________________________________
Town or City Zip Code
4. Place and Date of Birth ____________________________________________________
Town or City State
Date_________________
5. Are you a citizen of the United States? Yes _____ No _____
If a naturalized citizen, give name of court where and date when naturalized ______________________________________________________________________________
6. Place last registered to vote ________________________________________________
Street Ward Number
7. Name under which previously registered, if different from above
______________________________________________________________________________
8. Party Affiliation (if any) ___________________________________________________
9. Driver’s License Number __________________________State __________________
If you do not have a valid driver’s license, provide the last four digits of your social security number ____________
My name is ____________________. I am today registering to vote in the city/town of ____________________, New Hampshire. If a city, ward number __________.
I understand that to vote in this ward/town, I must be at least 18 years of age, I must be a United States citizen, and I must be domiciled in this ward/town.
I understand that a person can claim only one state and one city/town as his or her domicile at a time. A domicile is that place, to which upon temporary absence, a person has the intention of returning. By registering or voting today, I am acknowledging that I am not domiciled or voting in any other state or any other city/town.
In declaring New Hampshire as my domicile, I realize that I am not qualified to vote in the state or federal elections in another state.
If I have any questions as to whether I am entitled to vote in this city/town, I am aware that a supervisor of the checklist is available to address my questions or concerns.
I acknowledge that I have read and understand the above qualifications for voting and do hereby swear, under the penalties for voting fraud set forth below, that I am qualified to vote in the above-stated city/town, and, if registering on election day, that I have not voted and will not vote at any other polling place this election.
____________________ ___________________________________________________
Date Signature of Applicant
If this form is used in place of proof of identity, age, citizenship, or domicile, I hereby swear that such information is true and accurate to the best of my knowledge.
This form was executed for purposes of proving (applicant shall circle yes [or no] and initial each applicable item):
Identity yes[/no] _____
(initials)
Citizenship yes[/no] _____
(initials)
Age yes[/no] _____
(initials)
Domicile yes[/no] _____
(initials)
______________________________________ ___________________________
Applicant Election Official
_______________________________
Notary Public/Justice of the Peace/Official Authorized by RSA 659:30
In accordance with RSA 659:34, the penalty for knowingly or purposefully providing false information when registering to vote or voting is a class A misdemeanor with a maximum sentence of imprisonment not to exceed one year and a fine not to exceed $2,000. Fraudulently registering to vote or voting is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $5,000.
2 Change of Registration. Amend RSA 654:34, V(a) to read as follows:
V.(a) At any primary, the supervisors of the checklist shall make available within the polling place a card or list of undeclared voters from the statewide centralized voter registration database to enable a voter who was registered as an undeclared voter but who changed registration on the day of the primary in order to vote as a registered member of a party to change registration so that the voter is registered once again as an undeclared voter. The card or list shall be in substantially the following form:
Name ____________________
(Print)
Address ____________________
____________________
____________________
I hereby request that my political party registration be changed as follows:
From: Democrat [ ], or Republican [ ], or (name of any party determined by the secretary of state to have achieved official status under RSA 652:11) []
To: Undeclared [ ]
Signed under the pains and penalties of perjury.
____________________
Date____________________
3 Party Columns. Amend RSA 656:5, I to read as follows:
I. The names of all candidates nominated in accordance with the election laws shall be arranged upon the state general election ballot in successive party columns. Each separate column shall contain the names of the candidates of one party; except that, if only a part of a full list of candidates is nominated by a political party, 2 or more such lists may be arranged whenever practicable in the same column. [The party columns that list the names of candidates for offices that elect more than one person shall stagger the names of the candidates so that they do not line up evenly in a horizontal direction. The left-most column shall begin one line below the column to its right.] The secretary of state shall determine the vertical location of any additional columns that may appear on the ballot.
4 Absentee Voting; Forms. Amend RSA 657:4, I to read as follows:
I. Prior to any state election, the secretary of state shall prepare the appropriate application forms for absentee ballots worded in substantially the following form. The secretary of state shall insert the names of all parties qualified as set forth in RSA 652:11 in the list of parties on the application form. The secretary of state shall prepare the application forms in such quantity as he or she deems necessary:
Absence (Excluding Absence Due to Residence Outside the United States), Religious Observance, and Disability:
I hereby declare that (check one):
___ I am a duly qualified voter who is currently registered to vote in this town/ward.
___ I am absent from the town/city where I am domiciled and will be until after the next election, or I am unable to register in person due to a disability, and request that the forms necessary for absentee voter registration be sent to me with the absentee ballot.
I will be entitled to vote by absentee ballot because (check one):
___ I plan to be absent on the day of the election from the city, town, or unincorporated place where I am domiciled.
___ I am requesting a ballot for the presidential primary election and I may be absent on the day of the election from the city, town, or unincorporated place where I am domiciled, but the date of the election has not been announced. I understand that I may only make such a request 14 days after the filing period for candidates has closed, and that if I will not be absent on the date of the election I am not eligible to vote by absentee ballot.
___ I cannot appear in public on election day because of observance of a religious commitment.
___ I am unable to vote in person due to a disability.
___ I cannot appear at any time during polling hours at my polling place because of an employment obligation. For the purposes of this application, the term “employment” shall include the care of children and infirm adults, with or without compensation.
Any person who votes or attempts to vote using an absentee ballot who is not entitled to vote by absentee ballot shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. RSA 657:24.
I am requesting an official absentee ballot for the following election (check one):
___ Presidential Primary to be held on __________
(MM/DD/YYYY)
(The date may appear as blank when the date is not known.)
___ State Primary to be held on __________
(MM/DD/YYYY)
___ General Election
For primary elections, I am a member of or I am now declaring my affiliation with the (check one):
___ Republican Party
___ Democratic Party
___ (name of any party determined by the secretary of state to have achieved official status under RSA 652:11)
and am requesting a ballot for that party’s primary.
Please print:
Applicant’s Name:
__________________________________________________
(Last) (First) (Middle) (Sr., Jr., II., III)
Applicant’s Voting Domicile (home address):
__________________________________________________
(Street Number) (Street Name) (Apt/Unit) (City/Town) (Ward) (Zip Code)
Mail the ballot to me at this address (if different than the home address):
______________________________
(Street Number) (Street Name) (Apt/Unit) (City/Town) (Ward) (Zip Code)
Applicant’s Signature: __________
The applicant must sign this form to receive an absentee ballot.
Date Signed: __________
(MM/DD/YYYY)
5 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.