Minnesota Legislature
SF 2214
as introduced - 89th Legislature (2015 - 2016) Posted on 05/17/2015 02:52pm
Current Version - as introduced
1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 1.26 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20
2.21 2.22 2.23 2.24 2.25 2.26 2.27 2.28 2.29 2.30 2.31 2.32 2.33 2.34 2.35 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 3.21 3.22 3.23 3.24 3.25
3.26 3.27 3.28 3.29 3.30 3.31 3.32 3.33 3.34 3.35
4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.10 4.11
4.12 4.13 4.14 4.15 4.16 4.17 4.18 4.19 4.20 4.21 4.22 4.23 4.24
4.25 4.26 4.27 4.28 4.29
4.30 4.31 4.32 4.33 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 5.9 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 5.14 5.15 5.16 5.17 5.18 5.19
5.20 5.21 5.22 5.23 5.24
5.25 5.26 5.27 5.28 5.29 5.30 5.31 5.32 5.33 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4
6.5 6.6 6.7 6.8
6.9 6.10 6.11
6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16
6.17 6.18 6.19 6.20 6.21
6.22 6.23 6.24 6.25 6.26 6.27 6.28 6.29 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8 7.9 7.10 7.11 7.12 7.13 7.14 7.15 7.16 7.17
7.18 7.19 7.20 7.21 7.22 7.23
7.24 7.25 7.26 7.27 7.28
7.29 7.30 7.31 7.32 7.33
8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 8.6 8.7
8.8 8.9 8.10
8.11 8.12 8.13
A bill for an act
relating to elections; modifying primary elections for partisan offices; requiring
the top two vote getters in partisan primary races to be placed on the general
election ballot; amending Minnesota Statutes 2014, sections 200.02, subdivisions
7, 23; 204B.03; 204B.07, subdivision 4; 204C.13, subdivision 3; 204C.21,
subdivision 3; 204C.32, subdivision 1; 204D.03, subdivisions 1, 3; 204D.05,
subdivisions 1, 3; 204D.07, subdivisions 1, 3; 204D.08, subdivision 4; 204D.10,
subdivision 1; 204D.20, subdivisions 1, 2; 206.61, subdivision 4; repealing
Minnesota Statutes 2014, sections 204B.04, subdivisions 2, 3; 204D.07,
subdivision 2; 204D.08, subdivision 5; 204D.13, subdivision 3.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
Section 1.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 200.02, subdivision 7, is amended to read:
Subd. 7.
Major political party.
(a) "Major political party" means a political party
that maintains a party organization in the state, political division or precinct in question
and that has presented at least one candidate for election to the office of:
(1) governor and lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state auditor, or attorney
general at the last preceding state general election for those offices; or
(2) presidential elector or U.S. senator at the last preceding state general election for
presidential electors; and
whose candidate received votes in each county in that election and received votes
from not less than five percent of the total number of individuals who voted in that election.
(b) "Major political party" also means a political party that maintains a party
organization in the state, political subdivision, or precinct in question and that has
presented at least 45 candidates for election to the office of state representative, 23
candidates for election to the office of state senator, four candidates for election to
the office of representative in Congress, and one candidate for election to each of the
following offices: governor and lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state,
and state auditor, at the last preceding state general election for those offices.
(c) "Major political party" also means a political party that maintains a party
organization in the state, political subdivision, or precinct in question and whose members
present to the secretary of state at any time before the close of filing for the state deleted text begin partisandeleted text end
primary ballot a petition for a place on the state deleted text begin partisandeleted text end primary ballot, which petition
contains signatures of a number of the party members equal to at least five percent of the
total number of individuals who voted in the preceding state general election.
(d) A political party whose candidate receives a sufficient number of votes at a state
general election described in paragraph (a) or a political party that presents candidates at
an election as required by paragraph (b) becomes a major political party as of January
1 following that election and retains its major party status for at least two state general
elections even if the party fails to present a candidate who receives the number and
percentage of votes required under paragraph (a) or fails to present candidates as required
by paragraph (b) at subsequent state general elections.
(e) A major political party whose candidates fail to receive the number and
percentage of votes required under paragraph (a) and that fails to present candidates as
required by paragraph (b) at each of two consecutive state general elections described by
paragraph (a) or (b), respectively, loses major party status as of December 31 following
the later of the two consecutive state general elections.
Sec. 2.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 200.02, subdivision 23, is amended to read:
Subd. 23.
Minor political party.
(a) "Minor political party" means a political party
that has adopted a state constitution, designated a state party chair, held a state convention
in the last two years, filed with the secretary of state no later than December 31 following
the most recent state general election a certification that the party has met the foregoing
requirements, and met the requirements of paragraph (b) or (e), as applicable.
(b) To be considered a minor party in all elections statewide, the political party must
have presented at least one candidate for election to the office of:
(1) governor and lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state auditor, or attorney
general, at the last preceding state general election for those offices; or
(2) presidential elector or U.S. senator at the preceding state general election for
presidential electors; and
new text begin (3) new text end who received votes in each county that in the aggregate equal at least one percent
of the total number of individuals who voted in the election, or its members must have
presented to the secretary of state at any time before the close of filing for the state
deleted text begin partisandeleted text end primary ballot a deleted text begin nominatingdeleted text end petition in a form prescribed by the secretary of
state new text begin requesting that the party be recognized as a minor political party new text end containing the
signatures of party members in a number equal to at least one percent of the total number
of individuals who voted in the preceding state general election.
(c) A political party whose candidate receives a sufficient number of votes at a
state general election described in paragraph (b) becomes a minor political party as of
January 1 following that election and retains its minor party status for at least two state
general elections even if the party fails to present a candidate who receives the number
and percentage of votes required under paragraph (b) at subsequent state general elections.
(d) A minor political party whose candidates fail to receive the number and
percentage of votes required under paragraph (b) at each of two consecutive state general
elections described by paragraph (b) loses minor party status as of December 31 following
the later of the two consecutive state general elections.
(e) A minor party that qualifies to be a major party loses its status as a minor party
at the time it becomes a major party. Votes received by the candidates of a major party
must be counted in determining whether the party received sufficient votes to qualify as a
minor party, notwithstanding that the party does not receive sufficient votes to retain its
major party status. To be considered a minor party in an election in a legislative district,
the political party must have presented at least one candidate for a legislative office in that
district who received votes from at least ten percent of the total number of individuals
who voted for that office, or its members must have presented to the secretary of state a
deleted text begin nominatingdeleted text end petition in a form prescribed by the secretary of state new text begin requesting that the party
be recognized as a minor political party and new text end containing the signatures of party members in
a number equal to at least ten percent of the total number of individuals who voted in the
preceding state general election for that legislative office.
Sec. 3.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204B.03, is amended to read:
204B.03 MANNER OF NOMINATION.
Candidates deleted text begin of a major political partydeleted text end for any partisan office except presidential
elector and all candidates for nonpartisan office shall apply for a place on the primary
ballot by filing an affidavit of candidacy as provided in section 204B.06, and except as
otherwise provided in section 204D.07, subdivision 3, shall be nominated by primary.
deleted text begin Candidates for any partisan office who do not seek the nomination of a major political
party shall be nominated by nominating petition as provided in sections 204B.07 and
204B.08, and, except for presidential elector candidates, shall file an affidavit of candidacy
as provided in section 204B.06.
deleted text end
Sec. 4.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204B.07, subdivision 4, is amended to read:
Subd. 4.
Oath and address of signer.
Following the information required by
subdivisions 1 and 2 and before the space for signing, each separate page that is part of
the petition shall include an oath in the following form:
"I solemnly swear (or affirm) that I know the contents and purpose of this petitiondeleted text begin ,
that I do not intend to vote at the primary election for the office for which this nominating
petition is made,deleted text end and that I signed this petition of my own free will."
Notarization or certification of the signatures on a nominating petition is not
required. Immediately after the signature, the signer shall write on the petition the signer's
residence address including street and number, if any, and mailing address if different
from residence address.
Sec. 5.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204C.13, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3.
Marking ballots.
The voter shall mark each ballot in the following manner:
(a) A mark (X) shall be placed in the square opposite the printed name of each
candidate for whom the individual desires to vote, and in the square before the "YES" or
"NO" if the individual desires to vote for or against a question.
(b) The voter may write in other names on the lines provided under the printed
names of the candidates, except that no names shall be written in on primary ballots.
(c) deleted text begin At a state primary an individual may vote for candidates of only one major
political party on the partisan primary ballot. If a partisan primary ballot contains votes
for the candidates of more than one major political party, the ballot is totally defective
and no vote on the ballot shall be counted.
deleted text end
deleted text begin (d)deleted text end An individual who spoils a ballot may return it to the election judges and receive
another.
Sec. 6.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204C.21, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3.
Primary.
At a primary the election judges shall first deleted text begin separate the partisan
ballots by major political party and thendeleted text end count the votes for each officenew text begin on the primary
ballotnew text end as provided in subdivision 1. The nonpartisan primary ballots shall be counted
separately after the partisan primary ballots have been counted.
Sec. 7.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204C.32, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1.
County canvass.
The county canvassing board shall meet at the
county auditor's office on either the second or third day following the state primary. After
taking the oath of office, the canvassing board shall publicly canvass the election returns
delivered to the county auditor. The board shall complete the canvass by the third day
following the state primary and shall promptly prepare and file with the county auditor
a report that states:
(a) the number of individuals voting at the election in the county, and in each precinct;
(b) the number of individuals registering to vote on election day and the number of
individuals registered before election day in each precinct;
(c) deleted text begin for each major political party,deleted text end the names of the candidates running for each
partisan office and the number of votes received by each candidate in the county and in
each precinct;
(d) the names of the candidates deleted text begin of each major political partydeleted text end who are nominated; and
(e) the number of votes received by each of the candidates for nonpartisan office in
each precinct in the county and the names of the candidates nominated for nonpartisan
office.
Upon completion of the canvass, the county auditor shall mail or deliver a notice of
nomination to each nominee for county office voted for only in that county. The county
auditor shall transmit one of the certified copies of the county canvassing board report
for state and federal offices to the secretary of state by express mail or similar service
immediately upon conclusion of the county canvass. The secretary of state shall mail a
notice of nomination to each nominee for state or federal office.
Sec. 8.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204D.03, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1.
State primary.
The state primary shall be held on the second
Tuesday in August in each even-numbered year to select the nominees deleted text begin of the major
political partiesdeleted text end for partisan deleted text begin officesdeleted text end and deleted text begin the nominees fordeleted text end nonpartisan offices to be filled at
the state general election, other than presidential electors.
Sec. 9.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204D.03, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3.
Exceptiondeleted text begin ; certain partisan candidatesdeleted text end .
(a) If no more than deleted text begin one
candidate filesdeleted text end new text begin two candidates filenew text end for nomination deleted text begin by a major political partydeleted text end for a partisan
office, the deleted text begin candidatedeleted text end new text begin candidatesnew text end who filed must be declared the deleted text begin nomineedeleted text end new text begin nomineesnew text end upon
the close of filing. If every candidate for a partisan office has been declared the nominee
upon the close of filing, the office must be omitted from the state primary ballot. If all
offices, both partisan and nonpartisan, have been omitted from the state primary ballot in a
municipality or county, the governing body of the municipality or county may decide that
the state primary will not be conducted in that municipality or county.
(b) Within 15 days after the close of filing, each municipal clerk or county auditor
whose governing body has decided not to conduct the state primary shall post notice that
the offices have been so omitted and the state primary canceled and shall send a copy of
the notice to the secretary of state.
Sec. 10.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204D.05, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1.
State deleted text begin partisandeleted text end primary ballot.
The state deleted text begin partisandeleted text end primary ballot
shall contain the names of the candidates seeking deleted text begin thedeleted text end nomination deleted text begin of each major political
partydeleted text end for the partisan offices filled at the state general election.
Sec. 11.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204D.05, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3.
County auditor to prepare.
The county auditor of each county shall
prepare the state deleted text begin partisandeleted text end primary ballot and the state and county nonpartisan primary ballot.
Sec. 12.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204D.07, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1.
Duties of county auditor.
Except as provided in deleted text begin subdivisions 2 anddeleted text end new text begin
subdivisionnew text end 3, the county auditor shall place on the appropriate state primary ballot the
name of each candidate who has properly filed an affidavit of candidacy with the auditor
and of each candidate certified by the secretary of state pursuant to section 204D.06.
Sec. 13.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204D.07, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
Subd. 3.
Exceptiondeleted text begin ; certain nonpartisan candidatedeleted text end .
If not more than twice the
number of individuals to be elected to deleted text begin a nonpartisandeleted text end new text begin annew text end office file for the nomination, their
names and the name of the office shall be omitted from the state and county deleted text begin nonpartisandeleted text end
primary ballot and the candidates who filed shall be the nominees.
Sec. 14.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204D.08, subdivision 4, is amended to read:
Subd. 4.
State deleted text begin partisandeleted text end primary ballotdeleted text begin ; party columnsdeleted text end .
new text begin (a) new text end The state partisan
primary ballot shall be headed by the words "State deleted text begin Partisandeleted text end Primary Ballot." deleted text begin The ballot shall
be printed on white paper. There must be at least three vertical columns on the ballot and
each major political party shall have a separate column headed by the words ".......... Party,"
giving the party name. Above the party names, the following statement shall be printed.
deleted text end
deleted text begin
"Minnesota Election Law permits you to vote for the candidates of only one political
party in a state partisan primary election."
deleted text end
deleted text begin
If there are only two major political parties to be listed on the ballot, one party must
occupy the left-hand column, the other party must occupy the right-hand column, and the
center column must contain the following statement:
deleted text end
deleted text begin
"Do not vote for candidates of more than one party."
deleted text end
deleted text begin
The names of the candidates seeking the nomination of each major political party
shall be listed in that party's column. If only one individual files an affidavit of candidacy
seeking the nomination of a major political party for an office, the name of that individual
shall be placed on the state partisan primary ballot at the appropriate location in that
party's column.
deleted text end
deleted text begin In each column,deleted text end new text begin (b)new text end The candidates for senator in Congress shall be listed first,
candidates for representative in Congress second, candidates for state senator third,
candidates for state representative fourth and then candidates for state office in the order
specified by the secretary of state.
deleted text begin
The party columns shall be substantially the same in width, type, and appearance.
The columns shall be separated by a 12-point solid line.
deleted text end
new text begin
(c) The name of the political party
or the political principle of each candidate shall be printed above or below the name of the
candidate in the manner provided in section 204B.36, subdivision 2.
new text end
Sec. 15.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204D.10, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1.
Partisan offices; nominees.
The deleted text begin candidate for nomination of a major
political party for a partisan office on the state partisan primary ballot who receivesdeleted text end new text begin two
candidates that receivenew text end the highest number of votes new text begin for each office new text end shall be deleted text begin the nominee
of that political party for that officedeleted text end new text begin the nominees regardless of party affiliation. The
nominees shall be placed on the general election ballotnew text end .
Sec. 16.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204D.20, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
Subdivision 1.
Special primary.
Except as provided in subdivision 2, the candidates
deleted text begin of the major political partiesdeleted text end to fill a vacancy shall be nominated at a special primary. The
deleted text begin candidate of each party who receivesdeleted text end new text begin two candidates that receivenew text end the highest number of
votes at the special primary shall be nominated.
Sec. 17.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204D.20, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
Subd. 2.
No special primary; when.
No special primary shall be held to nominate
candidates to fill a vacancy if only deleted text begin one individual from each major political party filesdeleted text end new text begin two
individuals filenew text end as a candidate deleted text begin for that party's nominationdeleted text end . In that case, the individuals who
have filed are nominated.
Sec. 18.
Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 206.61, subdivision 4, is amended to read:
Subd. 4.
Order of candidates.
On the "State deleted text begin Partisandeleted text end Primary Ballot" prepared
for primary elections, and on the state general election ballot prepared for the general
election, the order of the names of nominees or names of candidates for election shall be
the same as required for paper ballots. More than one column or row may be used for the
same office or party. Electronic ballot display and audio ballot readers must conform to
the candidate order on the optical scan ballot used in the precinct.
Sec. 19. new text begin REPEALER.
new text end
new text begin
Minnesota Statutes 2014, sections 204B.04, subdivisions 2 and 3; 204D.07,
subdivision 2; 204D.08, subdivision 5; and 204D.13, subdivision 3,
new text end
new text begin
are repealed.
new text end
Sec. 20. new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE.
new text end
new text begin
This act is effective January 1, 2016, and applies to all elections held on or after
that date.
new text end