Election runoffs.

2015
STATE OF WYOMING
15LSO-0469
Numbered
2.1

SENATE FILE

NO.
SF0128

Election runoffs.

Sponsored by:
Senator(s) Meier and Representative(s) Clem, Jaggi and Madden

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to elections; requiring a runoff election after a primary election for specified statewide offices when no candidate receives a majority of the vote; requiring that runoff elections be conducted by mail ballot; changing the date for primary elections; amending election related time lines; specifying procedures; conforming existing statutes; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1
.

W.S. 22
‑
5
‑
601 is created to read:

ARTICLE 6
RUNOFF MAIL BALLOT ELECTIONS

22
‑
5
‑
601
.

Runoff elections for nominations; mail ballot procedures; applicability.

(a)

For nominations for governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, state auditor and state superintendent of public instruction, a runoff election shall be held with respect to that nom
ination if no candidate receives
a majority of the vote on the respective partisan primary ballot. The candidates in the runoff election shall be the two (2) candidates who received the highest number of votes in the
ir
respective partisan primary election except:

(
i
)

If more than two (2) candidates tie for the highest number of votes in the primary election, the state canvassing board shall cast lots to determine which two (2) shall be runoff election candidates; or

(ii)

If two (2) or more candidates tie for the second highest number of votes in the primary election, the state canvassing board shall cast lots to determine who shall be the second candidate in the runoff election.

(b)

If any candidate eligible to be in a runoff election withdraws, dies or is determined ineligible, the remaining two (2) candidates receiving the highest number of votes in accordance with subsection (a) of this section shall be the candidates in the runoff election.

(c)

Runoff elections shall be conducted by mail. Official ballots shall be prepared by the secretary of state and all other pre
‑
election procedures
shall be
followed as otherwise provided by law or
as required by
rules promulgated by the secretary of state, except that mail ballot packets shall be prepared in accordance with the following:

(
i
)

Fourteen (14) days before a runoff election,
a special mail ballot packet shall be mailed to
each qualified elector entitled to vote in the special mail ballot election, at the last address appearing in the registration records, which shall be marked
"
DO NOT FORWARD
‑
ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED,
"
or any other similar statement which is in accordance with United States postal service regulations;

(ii)

The ballot or ballot label shall contain the following warning:

WARNING
The criminal laws regulating the conduct of elections contained in chapter 26 of the Wyoming Election Code of 1973, as amended, apply with equal force to elections by mail.

(iii)

Beginning
fourteen (14) days
prior to a runoff election and until
4:00 p.m. on
the runoff
election day, mail ballots shall be made available at
every
Wyoming
county court house
for voters entitled to vote in the election but whose address has changed or who did not receive their ballot in the mail and for voters allowed by law to register and vote the day of the election;

(
i
v)

Upo
n
receipt of a ballot,
an elector wishing to cast the ballot in the runoff election shall
mark the ballot, sign and complete the return verification envelope and comply with the instructions provided with the ballot. The voter may return the marked ballot to the election official by United States mail or by depositing
the ballot at the office
of the election official or a
designated depository no later than 5:00 p.m. on election day;

(v)

Once the ballot is returned, it sh
all not be returned to the elector
. The election official shall first qualify the submitted ballot by examining the verification envelope and comparing the information on the envelope to the poll list to determine whether the ballot was submitted by a
n elector
who has not previously voted in the election. If the ballot so qualifies and is otherwise valid, the official shall place a number next to the
elector
'
s
name in the poll book. The election official shall then open and separate the ballot from the envelope and place the ballot in a ba
llot box so as to keep the elector
'
s ballot private;

(vi)

All
deposited ballots shall be counted as provided in this act and rules promulgated by the secretary of state. A runoff election mail ballot shall be valid and counted only if it is returned in the return verification envelope, the affidavit on the envelope is signed by the
elector
to whom the ballot was issued and the information on the envelope is verified as provided in paragraph (vi)
of this subsection. If the election official determines that a
n elector
to whom a replacement ballot has been issued has voted more than once, the official shall only count the first ballot received from that
elector
.

(d)

The secretary of state after consultation with the county clerks shall:

(
i
)

Prescribe the form of materials to be used in the conduct of runoff elections by mail, including all mail ballot instructions for completing the ballot and return verification envelope;

(ii)

Establish procedures for conducting runoff mail ballot elections consistent with the Wyoming Election Code and applicable federal law.

(e)

To the extent this section conflicts with other sections of this Election Code this section shall apply.

Section 2
.

W.S. 22
‑
2
‑
101(a)(ii), 22
‑
2
‑
104(b), 22
‑
2
‑
108, 22
‑
2
‑
109(a) and by creating a new subsection (d), 22
‑
3
‑
102(a)(intro) and by creating a new subsection (f),
22
‑
3
‑
109(a), 22
‑
4
‑
402(a) and (e), 22
‑
5
‑
209, 22
‑
5
‑
215, 22
‑
5
‑
219(a), 22
‑
6
‑
101, 22
‑
8
‑
101(a), (b) and (d), 22
‑
8
‑
116 and 22
‑
21
‑
103 are amended to read:

22
‑
2
‑
101
.

Applicability and construction of Election Code generally.

(a)

Chapters 1 through 28 of this Election Code apply to the following elections:

(ii)

Primary elections
and runoff elections under
W.S. 22
‑
5
‑
601
;

22
‑
2
‑
104
.

Election dates.

(b)

A primary election shall be held at the regular polling places in each precinct on the first Tuesday after the third Monday in
August
June
in general election years for the nomination of candidates for partisan and nonpartisan offices to be filled at the succeeding general election and for the election of major party precinct committeemen and committeewomen.

22
‑
2
‑
108
.

Secretary of state to certify officers to be elected.

Between
the twenty
‑
fourth day of April and the third day of May
March 20 and March 30
in each general election year, the secretary of state shall
transmit
to the county clerk of each county a
certified list
stating what officers, other than county and precinct officers, are to be nominated or elected at the election.

22
‑
2
‑
109
.

County clerk to publish proclamation.

(a)

Between
one hundred one (101) and
ninety
‑
one (91)
and eighty
‑
one (81)
days before each primary election the county clerk in each county shall publish at least once in a newspaper of general circulation in the county and post in the county clerk
'
s office and at the place where each municipality within the county regularly holds its council meetings a proclamation setting forth the date of the election, the offices to be fille
d
at the election including the terms of the offices, the number of persons required by law to fill the offices, the filing deadline for the offices and the requirements for filing statements
of campaign receipts and expenditures. The proclamation shall also include the aforementioned information regarding offices to be filled at the general election and any other pertinent primary election information. In addition, the description of any ballot proposition submitted to the voters of the state, a political subdivision thereof, county or other district shall be included.

(d)

Between thirty
‑
five (35) and twenty
‑
five (25) days before
any runoff election described by
W.S. 22
‑
5
‑
601, the county clerk in each county shall publish at least once in a newspaper of general circulation in the county and post conspicuously in at least three (3) public places in each municipality a proclamation setting forth the date of the runoff election and the offices to be filled at the election, including the terms of the offices.

22
‑
3
‑
102
.

Qualifications; temporary registration.

(a)

Except as provided in subsection (f) of this section, a
person may register to vote not less than fourteen (14) days before an election, at any election specified in W.S. 22
‑
2
‑
101(a)(
i
) through (viii) or as
provided by W.S. 22
‑
3
‑
117, who satisfies the following qualifications:

(f)

Only persons registered to vote in the primary election, including those who registered at the polls at the
primary election, may vote in the
runoff election described in W.S. 22
‑
5
‑
601. No person shall change his party affiliation at a runoff election from that under which he was registered at the time of the primary election.

22
‑
3
‑
109
.

Certification and transmittal of poll lists; posting of registry lists.

(a)

Not less than ten (10) days before any election, the county clerk shall certify and transmit to the officer in charge of each election at his request the necessary poll lists for the precincts or areas involved in the election. Not less than ten (10) days prior to the primary and general elections
and not less than five (5) days prior to a runoff election described in W.S. 22
‑
5
‑
601,
the county clerks shall
upon request
deliver

up to
three (3)
copies of the
poll lists for each precinct in the county to the
county chairman of each political party in the respective counties.

22
‑
4
‑
402
.

Petition; form; validity.

(a)

Any group of persons desiring to form a new political party within this state shall file a petition with the secretary of state not later than
June
April
1 in any general election year in which the party seeks to qualify for the general election ballot.

(e)

The petition shall be circulated no earlier than
April
February
1 of the year preceding the general election.

22
‑
5
‑
209
.

Time for filing nomination applications; certified list.

An application for nomination shall be filed not more than
ninety
‑
six (96)
eighty
‑
eight (88)
days and not later than eighty
‑
one (81) days next
preceding the
primary election. Not later than sixty
‑
eight (68) days before a primary election the secretary of state shall transmit to each
county clerk a certified list of persons whose applications have been filed in the office of the secretary of state stating as to each his name, age, address, office sought and party affiliation.

22
‑
5
‑
215
.

Nomination of partisan candidates and write
‑
in candidates.

Except as provided in W.S. 22
‑
5
‑
601,
o
n each party ballot the candidate or candidates equal in number to the number to be elected to each office who receive the largest number of votes shall be nominated and shall be entitled to have their names printed on the ballot for the next general election. A write
‑
in candidate shall not be nominated and shall not be entitled to have his name printed on the ballot for the next general election unless he received at least twenty
‑
five (25) write
‑
in votes. An unsuccessful candidate for office at a primary election whose name is printed on any party ballot may not accept nomination for the same office at the next general election.

22
‑
5
‑
219
.

Further action by nominees or elect not required; exception.

(a)

Candidates nominated and major party precinct committeemen and committeewomen elected at a primary
or runoff
election shall be deemed nominated or elected without further action. In addition, each write
‑
in candidate nominated at a primary
or runoff
election shall comply with the provisions of W.S. 22
‑
16
‑
106.

22
‑
6
‑
101
.

Certification of candidates nominated; printing of names.

Not less than sixty (60) days before each general election the secretary of state shall
transmit
to each county clerk under party headings
a certified list of
the name and address of each person nominated by primary
or runoff
election as indicated by the state canvass, the name of each person nominated by provisional or minor party convention, the name of each independent candidate qualifying for nomination by petition, and the office sought. The names of these candidates shall be printed on the official ballot of the general election.

22
‑
8
‑
101
.

Notice of election officials needed; county chairmen to submit list of names; municipal clerks list of names appointment.

(a)

Not later than the third Tuesday of
April
March
in each general election year, each county clerk shall notify the county chairmen of the major and minor political parties in the county of the number of election judges and counting board members and alternates needed for the ensuing two (2) year term.

(b)

Not later than the third Tuesday of
May
April
in each general election year the county chairman of each major and minor political party in each county may certify to the county clerk a list of registered electors residing in the county and affiliated with the party, and a list of persons who are at least sixteen (16) years of age who otherwise meet all requirements for qualification as an elector, who are willing to serve as a judge of election or as a member of a counting board.

(d)

Not later than
June 30
May 10
, the county clerk on each general election year shall appoint judges of
election and counting boards and alternates from lists submitted by the county chairmen of the major and minor political parties.

22
‑
8
‑
116
.

Compensation.

Judges of election and members of counting boards shall be compensated for services at a rate to be determined by the board of county commissioners at the
June
April
meeting and stated on the notice sent to each nominee. The rate shall be not less than the state minimum wage. Compensation shall begin one (1) hour before a member assumes his duties. The election official who delivers the returns shall receive additional compensation for necessary travel beyond ten (10) miles at the rate authorized for county employees. If a flat rate is paid, said sum shall not be less than the state hourly minimum wage multiplied by the number of hours the polls are open plus one (1) hour.

22
‑
21
‑
103
.

How bond question to be submitted to electors; contents.

Each bond question shall be submitted to a vote of the qualified electors of the political subdivision. Every bond election shall be held on the same day as a primary election or a general election, or on the Tuesday next following the first Monday in May or November, or on the Tuesday next following the third Monday in
August
June
. If calling the election in May, the body political subdivision shall by March 1, provide written notification to the county clerk, specifying the date of the election and the bond question. If the political subdivision specifies the date of the election to be a primary or general statewide or other
August
June
or November election, then the political subdivision shall provide notice to the county clerk not less than one hundred ten (110) days before the election if for a primary or other
August
June
election, and not less than seventy (70) days before the election, if for a general or other November election. The bond question shall state the purpose of the bonds, the maximum principal amount thereof, the maximum number of years allowed for the indebtedness and the maximum rate of interest to be paid thereon. The secretary of state may promulgate reasonable rules for conducting bond elections
where the election is not held at the same time as the general or primary election.

Section 3
.

The secretary of state
'
s office and Wyoming county clerks shall confer on the scheduling of primary elections and other time lines required by this act.
On or before August 1, 2015
, the secretary of state
'
s office and any Wyoming county clerk may submit a recommendation to the joint corporations, elections and political subdivisions interim committee concerning the scheduling of primary elections
and other time lines
required by this act. The joint corporations, elections and political subdivisions interim committee shall consider any
recommendation

received and if any primary election date or other time requirement specified by this act is
in
advisable, the committee shall
propose
an
amendment
to the date or time requ
irement during the 2016 budget s
ession.

Section 4
.

Th
is act is effective July 1, 2016
.

(END)

1
SF0128