SB 380 - AS INTRODUCED
2024 SESSION
24-2956
08/05
SENATE BILL 380
AN ACT relative to moving the state primary date.
SPONSORS: Sen. Lang, Dist 2; Sen. Ricciardi, Dist 9; Sen. Innis, Dist 7; Sen. Pearl, Dist 17; Sen. Abbas, Dist 22; Rep. Berry, Hills. 39; Rep. Moffett, Merr. 4; Rep. Osborne, Rock. 2; Rep. Sweeney, Rock. 25
COMMITTEE: Election Law and Municipal Affairs
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ANALYSIS
This bill moves the state primary date to June.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
24-2956
08/05
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Four
AN ACT relative to moving the state primary date.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Election of Officers and Delegates; Election Dates; State Primary Election. Amend RSA 653:8 to read as follows:
653:8 State Primary Election. The state primary election shall be held on the second Tuesday in [September] June of every even-numbered year.
2 Voters and Checklists; Hearings on Alterations to Party Registration. Amend RSA 654:32 to read as follows:
654:32 Hearings on Alterations to Party Registration. Before each state or presidential primary election, the supervisors of the checklist shall be in session before each primary for the change of registration of legal voters as provided in RSA 654:34 or 654:34-a or both. Before the presidential primary, the session shall be on the Friday preceding the first day of the filing period, between 7:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. and at the discretion of the supervisors for extended hours. Before the state primary election, the session shall be on Tuesday before the first Wednesday in [June] March between 7:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. and at the discretion of the supervisors for extended hours.
3 Voters and Checklists; Change of Registration. Amend RSA 654:34, IV to read as follows:
IV. No person, who is already registered to vote, whether his or her party membership has been previously registered or not, shall affiliate with a party or disaffiliate from a party between the first Wednesday in [June] March and the day before the state primary election.
4 Elections; Nominations by Primary; Filing: General Provisions. Amend RSA 655:14 to read as follows:
655:14 Filing; General Provisions. The name of any person shall not be printed upon the ballot of any party for a primary unless he or she is a registered member of that party, he or she shall have met the age and domicile qualifications for the office he or she seeks at the time of the general election, he or she meets all the other qualifications at the time of filing, and he or she shall file with the appropriate official between the first Wednesday in [June] March and the Friday of the following week a declaration of candidacy as provided in RSA 655:17.
5 Elections; Nominations by Primary. Amend RSA 655:21 to read as follows:
655:21 Form. Primary petitions shall be made in the following form:
State of New Hampshire
County of ____________________ ss.
City (Town) of ____________________
I do hereby join in a petition for the printing on the primary ballot of the name of ____________________ whose domicile is in the city (town) of ______________ (ward, street, and number, if in a city), in the county of __________, for the office of ______________ to be voted for on Tuesday, the _____ day of [September] June, _____ (year), and certify that I am qualified to vote for a candidate for said office, that I am a registered member of the _____________ party, and am not at this time a signer of any other similar petition for any other candidate for the above office; that my domicile is in the city (town) of _____________ (ward, street, and number, if in a city), in the county of _____________. I certify that to my knowledge the above-named candidate is not a candidate for incompatible offices as defined in RSA 655:10, and that he or she is not a federal employee which makes him or her ineligible to file as a candidate for this office. I further certify that I believe the above-named person is especially qualified to fill said office.
I hereby swear, under the penalties for voting fraud set forth below, that the information above is true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.
_________________________________
Print Voter's name
______________________________
Voter's Signature
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.
6 Elections; Nomination by Primary; Examination and Rejection. Amend RSA 655:26 to read as follows:
655:26 Examination and Rejection. The officer with whom primary petitions are filed shall immediately upon receipt thereof examine the same and ascertain whether they conform to the law. If found not to conform thereto or to be conflicting as provided in RSA 655:23, [he] they shall then endorse thereon the reason why such petition cannot be accepted and shall, within 24 hours, return the same to the candidate in whose behalf it was filed. In such case, the candidate may file supplementary petitions with the official, but not later than the third Wednesday in [June] March.
7 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 on the third Thursday of [September] June in each general election year and the third Friday following the presidential primary election in order to hear and decide:
8 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2025.
| Date | Body | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Jan. 16, 2024 | Senate | Hearing |
| Feb. 8, 2024 | Senate | Floor Vote |
| March 11, 2024 | House | Hearing |
| March 19, 2024 | House | Exec Session |
| March 19, 2024 | House | Floor Vote |
May 2, 2024: Indefinitely Postpone (Rep. Weber): MA RC 189-178 05/02/2024 HJ 12 P. 50
May 2, 2024: Lay on Table (Rep. Sweeney): MF DV 175-192 05/02/2024 HJ 12 P. 50
May 2, 2024: Reconsider ITL (Rep. Boehm): MA DV 191-175 05/02/2024 HJ 12 P. 50
May 2, 2024: Inexpedient to Legislate: MA RC 190-176 05/02/2024 HJ 12 P. 48
May 2, 2024: Ought to Pass: MF DV 170-196 05/02/2024 HJ 12 P. 47
April 3, 2024: Committee Report: Without Recommendation 03/19/2024 (Vote 10-10; RC) HC 17 P. 20
March 13, 2024: Executive Session: 03/19/2024 10:30 am LOB 306-308
March 6, 2024: Public Hearing: 03/11/2024 01:50 pm LOB 306-308
Feb. 29, 2024: Introduced (in recess of) 02/22/2024 and referred to Election Law HJ 6 P. 138
Feb. 8, 2024: Ought to Pass: MA, VV; OT3rdg; 02/08/2024; SJ 3
Jan. 30, 2024: Committee Report: Ought to Pass, 02/08/2024, Vote 3-1; SC 6
Jan. 4, 2024: Hearing: 01/16/2024, Room 103, LOB, 09:15 am; SC 2
Dec. 12, 2023: To Be Introduced 01/03/2024 and Referred to Election Law and Municipal Affairs; SJ 1