SENATE BILL 572
50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2011
INTRODUCED BY
William H. Payne
AN ACT
RELATING TO ELECTIONS; AMENDING MULTIPLE SECTIONS OF THE ELECTION CODE TO MOVE THE DATE FOR HOLDING PRIMARIES TO THE FIRST TUESDAY IN MARCH OF EACH EVEN-NUMBERED YEAR; CHANGING THE DATE FOR DESIGNATION OF CANDIDATES, DECLARATIONS OF CANDIDACY, FILING DEADLINE FOR WRITE-IN CANDIDATES, WITHDRAWAL OF CANDIDACY AND COMMITTEE NOMINATIONS TO CORRESPOND TO AN EARLIER PRIMARY DATE.
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) 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 Tuesday in [June] 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 Monday in [January] October of each [even-numbered] odd-numbered year."
SECTION 3. Section 1-8-21.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1993, Chapter 55, Section 11) is amended to read:
"1-8-21.1. DESIGNATION OF CANDIDATES BY CONVENTION.--
A. State conventions of major political parties may designate candidates for nomination to statewide office or the office of United States representative.
B. No state convention for designating candidates shall be held later than the third Sunday in [March] January 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, [his] the name and address and the name of the political party that the candidate represents and shall certify that the candidate has been a member of that political party for the period of time required by the Election Code."
SECTION 4. Section 1-8-26 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1975, Chapter 295, Section 12, as amended) 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 and declarations of candidacy for retention of a justice of the supreme court or judge of the court of appeals shall be filed with the proper filing officer on the second 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 and declarations of candidacy for retention for all affected district judicial offices shall be filed with the proper filing officer on the third Tuesday of [March] January of each even-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. 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.
E. 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."
SECTION 5. 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 the county 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 the first Tuesday of [June] March, 20 _____, and I declare that I am a resident 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) rt. no.)
2. _____________ _______________ ______________ __________
(usual (name printed (address as (city or
signature) as registered) registered) rt. no.).".
D. In [October] July of odd-numbered years, the secretary of state 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 6. 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 before 5:00 p.m. on the second Tuesday in [March] January.
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 preprinted stickers or labels."
SECTION 7. 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 Tuesday in [April] February before that primary election by filing a signed and notarized statement of withdrawal with the secretary of state."
SECTION 8. Section 1-8-56 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1977, Chapter 230, Section 4, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-8-56. 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] November 15 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."
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