HOUSE BILL 346
52nd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2015
INTRODUCED BY
Nate Gentry
AN ACT
RELATING TO PRIMARIES; MOVING THE DATE FOR HOLDING PRIMARIES TO THE THIRD TUESDAY IN MARCH OF EACH EVEN-NUMBERED YEAR; CHANGING THE DATES FOR DESIGNATION OF CANDIDATES, DECLARATIONS OF CANDIDACY, FILING DEADLINES, WITHDRAWAL OF CANDIDACY AND OTHER PURPOSES RELATED TO PRIMARIES; MAKING PREPRIMARY CONVENTION DELEGATION OF CANDIDATES OPTIONAL.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. Section 1-8-11 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1969, Chapter 240, Section 160, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-8-11. PRIMARY ELECTION LAW--TIME OF HOLDING PRIMARY.--A primary election shall be held in each county in this state on the [first] third Tuesday [after the first Monday in June] in March of each even-numbered year."
SECTION 2. Section 1-8-12 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1969, Chapter 240, Section 161, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-8-12. PRIMARY ELECTION LAW--PROCLAMATION.--The governor shall issue a public proclamation calling a primary election to be held in each county and precinct of the state on the date prescribed by the Primary Election Law. The proclamation shall be filed with the secretary of state on the [last] second Monday in [January] November of each [even-numbered] odd-numbered year."
SECTION 3. Section 1-8-13 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1969, Chapter 240, Section 162, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-8-13. PRIMARY ELECTION LAW--CONTENTS OF
PROCLAMATION.--
A. The proclamation calling a primary election shall contain:
[A.] (1) the names of the major political parties participating in the primary election;
[B.] (2) the offices for which each political party shall nominate candidates; provided that if any law is enacted by the legislature in the year in which the primary election is held and the law does not take effect until after the date of the proclamation but prior to the date of the primary election, the proclamation shall conform to the intent of the law with respect to the offices for which each political party shall nominate candidates;
[C.] (3) the date on which declarations of candidacy and nominating petitions for United States representative, any office voted upon by all the voters of the state, a legislative office, the office of district judge, district attorney, [state board of] public education commission, public regulation commission or magistrate shall be filed and the places where they shall be filed in order to have the candidates' names printed on the official ballot of their party at the primary election;
[D.] (4) the date on and place at which declarations of candidacy shall be filed for any other office and filing fees paid or, in lieu thereof, a pauper's statement of inability to pay;
[E.] (5) the final date on and place at which candidates for the office of United States representative and for any statewide office seeking preprimary convention designation by the major parties shall file petitions and declarations of candidacy;
[F.] (6) the final date on which the major political parties [shall] that choose to hold state preprimary conventions for the designation of candidates may hold the conventions; and
[G.] (7) the final date on and place at which certificates of designation of primary election candidates shall be filed by political parties with the secretary of state.
B. As used in the Primary Election Law, "statewide office" means [any] an office voted on by all the voters of the state."
SECTION 4. Section 1-8-21 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1996, Chapter 20, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-8-21. PRIMARY ELECTION--METHODS OF PLACING NAMES ON PRIMARY BALLOT.--
A. All candidates seeking primary election nomination to a statewide office or the office of United States representative shall file declarations of candidacy with the proper filing officer. Candidates shall file nominating petitions at the time of filing their declarations of candidacy. Candidates who seek, but do not obtain, preprimary convention designation by a major political party may file new declarations of candidacy and nominating petitions pursuant to Section 1-8-33 NMSA 1978.
B. Except as provided in Subsection C of this section and candidates selected by preprimary convention designation, candidates for any [other] office listed in Paragraph (3) of Subsection A of Section 1-8-13[C] NMSA 1978 shall have their names placed on the primary election ballot by filing declarations of candidacy and nominating petitions with the proper filing officer.
C. Candidates for county office shall have their names placed on the primary election ballot by filing declarations of candidacy and paying filing fees or filing the proper paupers' statements at the time of filing declarations of candidacy with the proper filing officer."
SECTION 5. Section 1-8-21.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1993, Chapter 55, Section 11, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-8-21.1. DESIGNATION OF CANDIDATES BY CONVENTION.--
A. [State conventions of] Major political parties may choose to designate candidates for nomination to statewide office or the office of United States representative at state conventions or as otherwise provided for candidates for other state offices.
B. No state convention for designating candidates shall be held later than the [second] third Sunday in [March] December preceding the primary election, and delegates to the convention shall be elected according to state party rules filed in the office of the secretary of state.
C. The state convention shall take only one ballot upon candidates for each office to be filled. Every candidate receiving twenty percent or more of the votes of the duly elected delegates to the convention for the office to be voted upon at the ensuing primary election shall be certified to the secretary of state as a convention-designated nominee for that office by the political party. Certification shall take place no later than 5:00 p.m. on the first Tuesday succeeding the state convention.
D. The certificate of designation submitted to the secretary of state shall state the name of the office for which each person is a candidate, each candidate's name and address and the name of the political party that each candidate represents and certification that the candidate has been a member of that political party for the period of time required by the Election Code."
SECTION 6. Section 1-8-26 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1975, Chapter 295, Section 12, as amended by Laws 2014, Chapter 40, Section 5 and by Laws 2014, Chapter 81, Section 5) is amended to read:
"1-8-26. PRIMARY ELECTION LAW--TIME OF FILING--DOCUMENTS NECESSARY TO QUALIFY FOR BALLOT--CHALLENGE.--
A. Declarations of candidacy by preprimary convention designation for any statewide office or for the office of United States representative shall be filed with the proper filing officer on the [first] third Tuesday in [February] November of each [even-numbered] odd-numbered year between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
B. Declarations of candidacy for any [other] office to be nominated in the primary election for which a preprimary convention designation process has not been used shall be filed with the proper filing officer on the [second] third Tuesday of [March] December of each [even-numbered] odd-numbered year between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
C. Certificates of designation shall be submitted to the secretary of state on the first Tuesday following the preprimary convention at which the candidate's designation took place between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
D. Declarations of candidacy for retention for all affected judicial offices shall be filed with the proper filing officer between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on the [second] third Tuesday in [March] December of each [even-numbered] odd-numbered year.
E. No candidate's name shall be placed on the ballot until the candidate has been notified in writing by the proper filing officer that the declaration of candidacy, the petition, if required, and the certificate of registration of the candidate on file are in proper order and that the candidate, based on those documents, is qualified to have the candidate's name placed on the ballot. The proper filing officer shall mail the notice no later than 5:00 p.m. on the Tuesday following the filing date.
F. If a candidate is notified by the proper filing officer that the candidate is not qualified to have the candidate's name appear on the ballot, the candidate may challenge that decision by filing a petition with the district court within ten days of the notification. The district court shall hear and render a decision on the matter within ten days after the petition is filed. The decision of the district court may be appealed to the supreme court within five days after the decision is rendered. The supreme court shall hear and render a decision on the appeal forthwith."
SECTION 7. Section 1-8-30 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1973, Chapter 228, Section 4, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-8-30. PRIMARY ELECTION LAW--DECLARATION OF CANDIDACY--NOMINATING PETITION--FILING AND FORM.--
A. As used in the Primary Election Law, "nominating petition" means the authorized form used for obtaining the required number of signatures of voters, which is signed on behalf of the person wishing to become a candidate for a political office in the primary election requiring a nominating petition.
B. In making a declaration of candidacy, the candidate at the same time shall file a nominating petition, which shall be on the form prescribed by law.
C. The nominating petition shall be on paper approximately eight and one-half inches wide and eleven inches long with numbered lines for signatures spaced approximately three-eighths of an inch apart and shall be in the following form:
"NOMINATING PETITION
I, the undersigned, a registered voter of New Mexico, and a member of the _______________ party, hereby nominate ____________________, who resides at __________________ in the county of _______________, New Mexico, for the party nomination for the office of ________________________, to be voted for at the primary election to be held on _____, and I declare that I am a registered voter of the state, district, county or area to be represented by the office for which the person being nominated is a candidate. I also declare that I have not signed, and will not sign, any nominating petition for more persons than the number of candidates necessary to fill such office at the next ensuing general election.
1. _____________ _______________ ______________ __________
(usual (name printed (address as (city or
signature) as registered) registered) zip code)
2. _____________ _______________ ______________ __________
(usual (name printed (address as (city or
signature) as registered) registered) zip code)".
D. In [October] July of odd-numbered years, the secretary of state shall post on the secretary of state's web site and shall furnish to each county clerk a sample of a nominating petition form, a copy of which shall be made available by the county clerk upon request of any candidate.
E. When more than one sheet is required for a petition, each of the sheets shall be in the form prescribed by this section and all sheets shall be firmly secured by a staple or other suitable fastening."
SECTION 8. Section 1-8-33 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1973, Chapter 228, Section 7, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-8-33. PRIMARY ELECTION LAW--NOMINATING PETITION-- NUMBER OF SIGNATURES REQUIRED.--
A. As used in this section, "total vote" means the sum of all votes cast for all of the party's candidates for governor at the last preceding primary election at which the party's candidate for governor was nominated.
B. Candidates who seek preprimary convention designation shall file nominating petitions at the time of filing declarations of candidacy. Nominating petitions for those candidates shall be signed by a number of voters equal to at least two percent of the total vote of the candidate's party in the state or congressional district, or the following number of voters, whichever is greater: for statewide offices, two hundred thirty voters; and for congressional candidates, seventy-seven voters.
C. Candidates for statewide office or the office of United States representative who do not seek preprimary convention designation shall file nominating petitions at the same time as candidates for any other office to be voted on at the primary election for which nominating petitions are required. Nominating petitions for those candidates shall be signed by a number of voters equal to at least three percent of the total vote of the candidate's party in the state or congressional district, or the following number of voters, whichever is greater: for statewide offices, two hundred thirty voters; and for congressional candidates, seventy- seven voters.
[C.] D. Nominating petitions for candidates for any other office to be voted on at the primary election for which nominating petitions are required shall be signed by a number of voters equal to at least three percent of the total vote of the candidate's party in the district or division, or the following number of voters, whichever is greater: for metropolitan court and magistrate courts, ten voters; for the public regulation commission, fifty voters; for the public education commission, twenty-five voters; for state representative, ten voters; for state senator, seventeen voters; and for district attorney and district judge, fifteen voters.
[D.] E. A candidate who fails to receive the preprimary convention designation that the candidate sought may collect additional signatures to total at least four percent of the total vote of the candidate's party in the state or congressional district, whichever applies to the office the candidate seeks, and file a new declaration of candidacy and nominating petitions for the office for which the candidate failed to receive a preprimary designation. The declaration of candidacy and nominating petitions shall be filed with the secretary of state either ten days following the date of the preprimary convention at which the candidate failed to receive the designation or on the date all declarations of candidacy and nominating petitions are due pursuant to the provisions of the Primary Election Law, whichever is later."
SECTION 9. Section 1-8-36.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1981, Chapter 156, Section 1, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-8-36.1. PRIMARY ELECTION LAW--WRITE-IN CANDIDATES.--
A. Write-in candidates are permitted in the primary election only for the offices of United States representative, members of the legislature, district judges, district attorneys, public regulation commission, public education commission, magistrates and any office voted upon by all voters of the state.
B. A person may be a write-in candidate only for nomination by the major political party with which the person is affiliated as shown by the certificate of registration, and such person shall have the qualifications to be a candidate in the primary election for the political party for which the person is a write-in candidate.
C. A person desiring to be a write-in candidate for one of the offices listed in Subsection A of this section in the primary election shall file with the proper filing officer a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate. Such declaration of intent shall be filed between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on the third Tuesday in [March] December preceding the primary.
D. A write-in vote shall be counted and canvassed only if:
(1) the name written in is the name of a declared write-in candidate and shows two initials and last name; first name, middle initial or name and last name; first and last name; or the full name as it appears on the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate and misspellings of the above combinations that can be reasonably determined by a majority of the members of the precinct board to identify a declared write-in candidate; and
(2) the name is written on the proper line provided on the ballot for write-in votes for the office for which the candidate has filed a declaration of intent and the voter has followed the directions for casting a vote for the write-in candidate.
E. At the time of filing the declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, the write-in candidate shall be considered a candidate for all purposes and provisions relating to candidates in the Election Code, including the obligations to report pursuant to the Campaign Reporting Act, except that the write-in candidate's name shall not be printed on the ballot.
F. No unopposed write-in candidate shall have the write-in candidate's nomination certified unless the write-in candidate receives at least the number of write-in votes in the primary election as the write-in candidate would need signatures on a nominating petition pursuant to the requirements set out in Section 1-8-33 NMSA 1978.
G. A write-in vote shall be cast by writing in the name and following the directions for casting a vote for the write-in candidate. As used in this section, "write-in" does not include the imprinting of any name by rubber stamp or similar device or the use of pre-printed stickers or labels."
SECTION 10. Section 1-8-44 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1969, Chapter 240, Section 182, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-8-44. PRIMARY ELECTION LAW--WITHDRAWAL OF CANDIDATES.--A candidate seeking to withdraw from a primary election shall withdraw no later than the [first] third Tuesday in [April] January before that primary election by filing a signed and notarized statement of withdrawal with the proper filing officer."
SECTION 11. Section 1-8-65 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2014, Chapter 40, Section 7 and Laws 2014, Chapter 81, Section 7) is amended to read:
"1-8-65. MINOR POLITICAL PARTY CANDIDATES FOR GENERAL OR UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE SPECIAL ELECTIONS--NOMINATING PETITION FORM.--
A. As used in Sections 1-8-2 through 1-8-4 NMSA 1978, "nominating petition" means the authorized form used for obtaining the required number of signatures of voters that is signed on behalf of the person wishing to become a minor political party candidate for a political office in a general or United States representative special election requiring a nominating petition.
B. In making a declaration of candidacy, the candidate shall file a nominating petition at the same time, which shall be on forms prescribed by law.
C. The nominating petition for a minor political party candidate for any office requiring a nominating petition shall be on paper approximately eight and one-half inches wide and eleven inches long with numbered lines for signatures approximately three-eighths of an inch apart and shall be in the following form:
"NOMINATING PETITION FOR MINOR POLITICAL PARTY CANDIDACY (GENERAL ELECTION)
I, the undersigned, a registered voter of
New Mexico, hereby nominate ___________________, who resides at _______________ in the county of __________________,
New Mexico, for the _______________ party nomination for the office of _______________________ to be voted for at the general election or United States representative special election to be held on _________, and I declare that I am a registered voter of the area to be represented by the office for which the person being nominated is a candidate. I also declare that I have not signed, and will not sign, any nominating petition for more persons than the number of candidates necessary to fill such office at the next ensuing general election or at a United States representative special election. I understand that if the candidate's political party does not qualify as a minor political party, the candidate may run as an unaffiliated independent candidate.
1. _____________ _____________ _____________ _____________
(usual signature) (name printed (address as (city or zip as registered) registered) code)
2. _____________ _____________ _____________ _____________
(usual signature) (name printed (address as (city or zip as registered) registered) code)".
D. In [March of even-numbered] December of odd-numbered years, the secretary of state shall post on the secretary of state's web site and shall furnish to each county clerk a sample of a nominating petition form, a copy of which shall be made available by the county clerk upon request of any candidate.
E. When more than one sheet is required for a petition, each of the sheets shall be in the form prescribed by this section."
SECTION 12. Section 1-15A-5 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1977, Chapter 230, Section 4, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-15A-5. NOMINATION BY COMMITTEE.--There shall be convened in Santa Fe a committee consisting of the chief justice of the supreme court, as [chairman] chair, the speaker of the house of representatives, [and] the minority floor leader of the house of representatives, the president pro tempore of the senate, the minority floor leader of the senate and the state [chairmen] chairs of those major political parties participating in the presidential primary. The committee shall nominate as presidential primary candidates, and certify to the secretary of state, not later than [February 15] November 30 before the presidential primary election, the names of all those generally advocated and nationally recognized or supported by any major political party in the state as candidates of the major political parties participating in the presidential primary for the office of president of the United States."
SECTION 13. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2015.
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