1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to elections; adopting an instant runoff 
  1.3             voting system; appropriating money; amending Minnesota 
  1.4             Statutes 2000, sections 200.02, by adding a 
  1.5             subdivision; 204B.03; 204B.04, subdivision 2; 204B.36, 
  1.6             subdivision 2; 204D.03, subdivision 1; 204D.05, 
  1.7             subdivision 3; 204D.08, subdivision 3; 204D.10, 
  1.8             subdivision 1; 204D.12; proposing coding for new law 
  1.9             in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 204C; repealing 
  1.10            Minnesota Statutes 2000, sections 204B.04, subdivision 
  1.11            3; 204B.13, subdivision 4; 204D.05, subdivision 2; 
  1.12            204D.07, subdivision 3; 204D.08, subdivision 6; 
  1.13            204D.10, subdivision 3; 205.065; 205A.03.  
  1.14  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.15     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 200.02, is 
  1.16  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.17     Subd. 24.  [INSTANT RUNOFF VOTING.] "Instant runoff voting" 
  1.18  means the voting procedure in sections 204C.331 to 204C.339. 
  1.19     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 204B.03, is 
  1.20  amended to read: 
  1.21     204B.03 [MANNER OF NOMINATION.] 
  1.22     Candidates of a major political party for any partisan 
  1.23  office except presidential elector ~~and all candidates for~~ 
  1.24  ~~nonpartisan office~~ shall apply for a place on the primary ballot 
  1.25  by filing an affidavit of candidacy as provided in section 
  1.26  204B.06, and except as otherwise provided in section 204D.07, 
  1.27  subdivision 3, shall be nominated by primary.  Candidates for 
  1.28  any partisan office who do not seek the nomination of a major 
  1.29  political party shall be nominated by nominating petition as 
  2.1   provided in sections 204B.07 and 204B.08, and, except for 
  2.2   presidential elector candidates, shall file an affidavit of 
  2.3   candidacy as provided in section 204B.06.  Candidates for 
  2.4   nonpartisan office are nominated by filing an affidavit of 
  2.5   candidacy as provided in section 204B.06. 
  2.6      Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 204B.04, 
  2.7   subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  2.8      Subd. 2.  [CANDIDATES SEEKING NOMINATION BY PRIMARY.] No 
  2.9   individual who seeks nomination for any partisan ~~or nonpartisan~~ 
  2.10  office at a primary shall be nominated for the same office by 
  2.11  nominating petition, except as otherwise provided for ~~partisan~~ 
  2.12  ~~offices~~ in section 204D.10, subdivision 2~~, and for nonpartisan~~ 
  2.13  ~~offices in section 204B.13, subdivision 4~~.  
  2.14     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 204B.36, 
  2.15  subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  2.16     Subd. 2.  [CANDIDATES AND OFFICES.] The name of each 
  2.17  candidate shall be printed at a right angle to the length of the 
  2.18  ballot.  At a general election the name of the political party 
  2.19  or the political principle of each candidate for partisan office 
  2.20  shall be printed above or below the name of the candidate.  The 
  2.21  name of a political party or a political principle shall be 
  2.22  printed in capital and lower case letters of the same type, with 
  2.23  the capital letters at least one-half the height of the capital 
  2.24  letters used for names of the candidates.  At a general 
  2.25  election, blank lines containing the words "write-in, if any" 
  2.26  shall be printed below the name of the last candidate for each 
  2.27  office, or below the title of the office if no candidate has 
  2.28  filed for that office, so that a voter may write in the names of 
  2.29  individuals whose names are not on the ballot.  One blank line 
  2.30  shall be printed for each officer of that kind to be elected.  
  2.31  At a primary election, no blank lines shall be provided for 
  2.32  writing in the names of individuals whose names do not appear on 
  2.33  the primary ballot.  
  2.34     At an election using instant runoff voting under sections 
  2.35  204C.331 to 204C.339, the ballot must be as prescribed in 
  2.36  section 204C.338. 
  3.1      At an election not using instant runoff voting, on the left 
  3.2   side of the ballot at the same level with the name of each 
  3.3   candidate and each blank line shall be printed a square in which 
  3.4   the voter may designate a vote by a mark (X). Each square shall 
  3.5   be the same size.  Above the first name on each ballot shall be 
  3.6   printed the words, "Put an (X) in the square opposite the name 
  3.7   of each candidate you wish to vote for."  At the same level with 
  3.8   these words and directly above the squares shall be printed a 
  3.9   small arrow pointing downward.  Directly underneath the official 
  3.10  title of each office shall be printed the words "Vote for one" 
  3.11  or "Vote for up to ..." (any greater number to be elected). 
  3.12     Sec. 5.  [204C.331] [INSTANT RUNOFF VOTING.] 
  3.13     The instant runoff system of voting is adopted in this 
  3.14  state in the manner specified in sections 204C.331 to 204C.339 
  3.15  for all applicable elections.  
  3.16     Sec. 6.  [204C.332] [FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.] 
  3.17     The legislature finds that it is in the public interest to 
  3.18  adopt a voting system in which all successful candidates must 
  3.19  win by a majority vote rather than a plurality of effective 
  3.20  votes and that allows voters to vote secondary and other 
  3.21  preferences in case their favorite candidate is not nominated or 
  3.22  elected.  A system known as instant runoff voting achieves that 
  3.23  purpose.  The legislature further finds that voter interest and 
  3.24  participation in elections will increase because a voter has 
  3.25  more choices and all votes will be more meaningful than under 
  3.26  the present system.  It is in the interest of participatory 
  3.27  democracy that voters be given the opportunity to vote their 
  3.28  true beliefs with their first choice votes, while still making 
  3.29  effective secondary choices among the remaining acceptable 
  3.30  candidates. 
  3.31     Sec. 7.  [204C.333] [DEFINITIONS.] 
  3.32     Subdivision 1.  [APPLICATION.] The definitions in this 
  3.33  section apply to sections 204C.331 to 204C.339.  
  3.34     Subd. 2.  [INSTANT RUNOFF VOTING.] "Instant runoff voting" 
  3.35  means a system of voting whereby voters may rank three or more 
  3.36  candidates for the same office in order of preference so that 
  4.1   voters may indicate a first choice, a second choice, and so on 
  4.2   for as many of the candidates for the office as they wish, up to 
  4.3   the maximum number of choices allowed. 
  4.4      Subd. 3.  [CHOICE.] "Choice" means an indication on a 
  4.5   ballot of a voter's ranking of candidates for a particular 
  4.6   office according to the voter's preference.  
  4.7      Subd. 4.  [VOTE.] "Vote" means a ballot choice that is 
  4.8   counted toward nomination or election of a candidate.  All first 
  4.9   choices are "votes."  Lower ranked choices are potential votes 
  4.10  that may, according to the procedures in sections 204C.334 and 
  4.11  204C.335, be credited to a candidate, and thus become votes for 
  4.12  the candidate. 
  4.13     Subd. 5.  [STAGE; STAGE IN THE COUNTING.] "Stage" or "stage 
  4.14  in the counting" means a step in counting votes where votes for 
  4.15  all remaining candidates are counted to determine whether a 
  4.16  candidate has achieved a majority and, if not, which candidate 
  4.17  or candidates are eliminated. 
  4.18     Subd. 6.  [NEXT CHOICE.] "Next choice" means the highest 
  4.19  ranked choice for a remaining candidate that has not become a 
  4.20  vote at the stage referred to. 
  4.21     Subd. 7.  [LAST PLACE CANDIDATE.] "Last place candidate" 
  4.22  means a candidate who has received the fewest votes among the 
  4.23  candidates who remain at any stage.  Two or more candidates 
  4.24  simultaneously become last place candidates if their combined 
  4.25  votes add up to less than all votes for the candidate with the 
  4.26  next highest number of votes.  
  4.27     Subd. 8.  [EXHAUSTED BALLOT.] "Exhausted ballot" means a 
  4.28  ballot on which all available choices have been used; for 
  4.29  example, all choices made on the ballot have become votes for 
  4.30  the various candidates so indicated or contain choices for 
  4.31  eliminated candidates or both and contain no other choices. 
  4.32     Subd. 9.  [CONTINUING BALLOT.] "Continuing ballot" means a 
  4.33  ballot that is not exhausted. 
  4.34     Subd. 10.  [REMAINING CANDIDATE; CANDIDATES WHO 
  4.35  REMAIN.] "Remaining candidate" means a candidate who has not 
  4.36  been eliminated.  "Candidates who remain" are all those who have 
  5.1   not been eliminated at the stage referred to. 
  5.2      Sec. 8.  [204C.334] [COUNTING OF BALLOTS.] 
  5.3      Subdivision 1.  [GENERAL EXPLANATION.] In general, instant 
  5.4   runoff counting proceeds in the following manner:  first by 
  5.5   counting all votes.  A candidate who receives a majority of the 
  5.6   votes is nominated or elected.  If no candidate receives a 
  5.7   majority at the first or any subsequent stage, then the last 
  5.8   place candidate at each stage is eliminated.  The next choices 
  5.9   on ballots for an eliminated candidate become votes for the 
  5.10  candidates indicated in those choices, and this process 
  5.11  continues until all but one candidate has been eliminated. 
  5.12     Subd. 2.  [SPECIFIC PROCEDURES.] (a) This subdivision 
  5.13  governs how votes must be counted for each office covered by 
  5.14  instant runoff voting, subject to the conditions in section 
  5.15  204C.335.  
  5.16     (b) All first choices are counted first and if a candidate 
  5.17  has obtained a majority of those votes that candidate is 
  5.18  nominated or elected and counting ends.  
  5.19     (c) If no candidate receives a majority of votes at the 
  5.20  first stage, then second stage counting begins by eliminating 
  5.21  the last place candidate and the second choices made on ballots 
  5.22  for the eliminated candidate become votes for the second choice 
  5.23  candidate indicated on those ballots.  A candidate who receives 
  5.24  a majority of votes at that stage is nominated or elected.  
  5.25     (d) If no candidate receives a majority at a previous stage 
  5.26  then the last place candidate among the remaining candidates is 
  5.27  eliminated and the next choices made on ballots for an 
  5.28  eliminated candidate become votes for the candidate indicated on 
  5.29  those ballots.  A candidate who receives a majority of votes at 
  5.30  that stage is nominated or elected.  
  5.31     (e) If at any stage in the counting there are two or more 
  5.32  last place candidates, these candidates are eliminated 
  5.33  simultaneously and the next choices made on ballots that had 
  5.34  votes for one or more eliminated candidates become votes for 
  5.35  indicated candidates who remain.  
  5.36     (f) The counting process continues in this manner with 
  6.1   successive last place candidates being eliminated and the next 
  6.2   choices made on continuing ballots on which votes were cast for 
  6.3   eliminated candidates are counted for the remaining candidate or 
  6.4   candidates indicated by those choices until all but one 
  6.5   candidate has been eliminated and that candidate is then 
  6.6   nominated or elected. 
  6.7      Sec. 9.  [204C.335] [VOTING CONDITIONS AND LIMITATIONS.] 
  6.8      Subdivision 1.  [EXHAUSTED BALLOTS.] Once a ballot is 
  6.9   exhausted it is disregarded and no longer counted.  A ballot 
  6.10  assigning the same ranking to more than one candidate for an 
  6.11  office is exhausted when the duplicate ranking is reached, and 
  6.12  in that case no vote is recorded for any of the duplicate 
  6.13  candidates so chosen.  
  6.14     Subd. 2.  [SKIPPED RANKING.] If a ballot choice skips a 
  6.15  ranking, then the next ranking below the skipped choice is moved 
  6.16  up and counted as though it were the rank of the skipped choice. 
  6.17     Subd. 3.  [TIE VOTES.] Ties between candidates that prevent 
  6.18  the determination of the last place candidate occurring at any 
  6.19  stage are resolved by counting the next choices made for the 
  6.20  tied candidates on all continuing ballots, including the ballots 
  6.21  of the tied candidates.  If the tie is between the two remaining 
  6.22  candidates, then the candidate that had the most votes at the 
  6.23  earliest stage where the candidates were not tied is nominated 
  6.24  or elected.  If candidates are tied at every stage, then ties 
  6.25  must be decided by lot according to section 204C.34. 
  6.26     Subd. 4.  [MAXIMUM EFFECTIVE CHOICES.] Only five choices 
  6.27  for any one office are counted.  
  6.28     Subd. 5.  [WRITE-IN VOTES.] Voters may write in one 
  6.29  candidate for each office and assign a ranking to the write-in 
  6.30  candidate along with candidates whose names are already on the 
  6.31  ballot.  Write-in candidates with fewer than ten votes are 
  6.32  automatically eliminated in elections in jurisdictions where 
  6.33  more than 1,000 total ballots were cast in the previous election.
  6.34     Subd. 6.  [INSUFFICIENT CHOICE VOTES MADE.] If ballots do 
  6.35  not contain sufficient effective second and lower choices for a 
  6.36  particular office so that at the end of the counting no 
  7.1   candidate achieves a majority, then the candidate who has 
  7.2   received the most votes is nominated or elected. 
  7.3      Subd. 7.  [VOTES FOR ELIMINATED CANDIDATES.] No votes may 
  7.4   be counted for a candidate who has been eliminated no matter how 
  7.5   many second and lower ranked choices might otherwise have become 
  7.6   votes for the candidate in a later stage. 
  7.7      Sec. 10.  [204C.336] [APPLICATION.] 
  7.8      Subdivision 1.  [OFFICES COVERED.] This section applies to 
  7.9   elections for the following offices: 
  7.10     (1) members of the legislature; 
  7.11     (2) judges of the supreme court, the court of appeals, and 
  7.12  district courts; 
  7.13     (3) president and vice-president of the United States; and 
  7.14     (4) members of the United States senate and United States 
  7.15  house of representatives. 
  7.16     Subd. 2.  [ELECTIONS COVERED.] This section applies to 
  7.17  voting in all primary, regular, and special elections where 
  7.18  three or more candidates are running for the same office.  
  7.19     Subd. 3.  [NONPARTISAN PRIMARIES.] Primaries for all 
  7.20  nonpartisan offices are abolished, and there will be only a 
  7.21  general election under instant runoff voting rules for these 
  7.22  offices. 
  7.23     Sec. 11.  [204C.337] [LOCAL OPTION AUTHORIZED.] 
  7.24     A home rule charter city that elects its officers with 
  7.25  party designation may use instant runoff voting as specified by 
  7.26  sections 204C.331 to 204C.339 if the charter allows it.  
  7.27     Sec. 12.  [204C.338] [BALLOT SPECIFICATIONS AND DIRECTIONS 
  7.28  TO VOTERS.] 
  7.29     Ballots should be simple and easy to understand.  Sample 
  7.30  ballots illustrating voting procedures must be posted in or near 
  7.31  the voting booth and included in the instruction packet of 
  7.32  absentee ballots.  Directions provided to voters must conform 
  7.33  substantially to the following specifications:  "You may vote 
  7.34  for candidates in order of preference.  Indicate your first 
  7.35  choice by marking the number "1" beside a candidate's name (or 
  7.36  by marking in the column labeled "First Choice"), your second 
  8.1   choice by marking the number "2" (or by marking the column 
  8.2   labeled "Second Choice"), your third choice by marking the 
  8.3   number "3" (or by marking in the column labeled "Third Choice"), 
  8.4   and so on, for as many or as few choices as you wish from one up 
  8.5   to the total of five.  You are under no obligation to rank more 
  8.6   than one candidate for each office, but ranking additional 
  8.7   candidates will not affect your first choice candidate.  Do not 
  8.8   mark the same number beside more than one candidate (or put more 
  8.9   than one mark in each column for the office you are voting on).  
  8.10  Do not skip numbers." 
  8.11     Sec. 13.  [204C.339] [CHANGES IN VOTING DEVICES AND 
  8.12  COUNTING METHODS.] 
  8.13     Appropriate election officials of this state may provide 
  8.14  for the use of electronic, computerized, or other devices for 
  8.15  marking, sorting, and counting the ballots and tabulating the 
  8.16  results and may modify the design and form of the ballots, the 
  8.17  directions to voters, and the details with respect to the method 
  8.18  of marking, sorting, invalidating, and retaining of ballots, and 
  8.19  the counting of votes.  No change may be made inconsistent with 
  8.20  provisions, purposes, or principles of this section.  Election 
  8.21  officials should provide voters with a ballot that has a special 
  8.22  design, format, or layout for offices to which instant runoff 
  8.23  voting applies, but the parts of ballots for contests that have 
  8.24  only one or two candidates for the same office may differ from 
  8.25  the parts of a ballot to which instant runoff voting applies. 
  8.26     Sec. 14.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 204D.03, 
  8.27  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  8.28     Subdivision 1.  [STATE PRIMARY.] The state primary shall be 
  8.29  held on the first Tuesday after the second Monday in September 
  8.30  in each even-numbered year to select the nominees of the major 
  8.31  political parties for partisan offices ~~and the nominees for~~ 
  8.32  ~~nonpartisan offices~~ to be filled at the state general election, 
  8.33  other than presidential electors.  
  8.34     Sec. 15.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 204D.05, 
  8.35  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  8.36     Subd. 3.  [COUNTY AUDITOR TO PREPARE.] The county auditor 
  9.1   of each county shall prepare the state partisan primary 
  9.2   ballot ~~and the state and county nonpartisan primary ballot~~.  
  9.3      Sec. 16.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 204D.08, 
  9.4   subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  9.5      Subd. 3.  [ROTATION OF NAMES.] On state primary ballots the 
  9.6   name of each candidate for nomination to a partisan ~~or~~ 
  9.7   ~~nonpartisan~~ office shall be rotated with the names of the other 
  9.8   candidates for nomination to that office so that the name of 
  9.9   each candidate appears substantially an equal number of times at 
  9.10  the top, at the bottom, and at each intermediate place in that 
  9.11  group of candidates.  If the number of candidates for an office 
  9.12  is equal to or less than the number to be elected, no rotation 
  9.13  of candidate names is required and the official preparing the 
  9.14  ballot shall determine the position of the candidates by lot. 
  9.15     Sec. 17.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 204D.10, 
  9.16  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  9.17     Subdivision 1.  [PARTISAN OFFICES; NOMINEES.] The candidate 
  9.18  for nomination of a major political party for a partisan office 
  9.19  on the state partisan primary ballot who receives ~~the highest~~ 
  9.20  ~~number~~ a majority of votes or is the last candidate remaining 
  9.21  under the system of instant runoff voting prescribed by sections 
  9.22  204C.331 to 204C.339 shall be the nominee of that political 
  9.23  party for that office, except as otherwise provided in 
  9.24  subdivision 2.  
  9.25     Sec. 18.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 204D.12, is 
  9.26  amended to read: 
  9.27     204D.12 [NAMES PLACED ON GENERAL ELECTION BALLOTS.] 
  9.28     Without payment of an additional fee, the county auditor 
  9.29  shall place on the appropriate state general election ballot the 
  9.30  name of every candidate:  
  9.31     (a) Whose nomination at the state primary has been 
  9.32  certified by the appropriate canvassing board; 
  9.33     (b) Who has been nominated by petition, including 
  9.34  candidates certified by the secretary of state; and 
  9.35     (c) Who was nominated ~~and whose name was omitted from the~~ 
  9.36  ~~state~~ for a nonpartisan ~~primary ballot pursuant to~~ office under 
 10.1   section ~~204D.07, subdivision 3~~ 204B.03.  
 10.2      Only the names of duly nominated candidates may be placed 
 10.3   on a ballot. 
 10.4      Sec. 19.  [VOTING SYSTEMS.] 
 10.5      The secretary of state shall determine the cost of 
 10.6   providing uniform electronic voting systems throughout the state 
 10.7   that:  (1) can reject improperly marked ballots at the voting 
 10.8   site, allowing the voter the opportunity to make a correction; 
 10.9   and (2) have the capacity to implement instant runoff voting and 
 10.10  other transferable vote systems by permitting an appropriate, 
 10.11  understandable ballot design that allows voters to rank 
 10.12  candidates, and by storing each voter's ranking, thus providing 
 10.13  for fast, reliable calculation of voting results.  The secretary 
 10.14  of state shall purchase appropriate electronic voting systems if 
 10.15  they can be made available for the primary election in year 
 10.16  2002.  The secretary of state shall purchase existing electronic 
 10.17  voting systems from the local governmental units that are now 
 10.18  responsible for providing voting systems if the secretary of 
 10.19  state determines that the systems do not meet the criteria, and 
 10.20  the proceeds from the sale of the systems to other states, 
 10.21  countries, or parties are appropriated to the secretary of state 
 10.22  to purchase electronic voting systems.  The secretary of state 
 10.23  shall solicit requests for proposal for the various options the 
 10.24  secretary of state considers viable.  If no adequate procurement 
 10.25  can be made for the amount appropriated or within the 2002 
 10.26  primary timeline, then the secretary of state shall report to 
 10.27  the legislature by January 15, 2002, with findings as to cost, 
 10.28  options, and timelines. 
 10.29     Sec. 20.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
 10.30     $15,000,000 is appropriated from the general fund to the 
 10.31  secretary of state to purchase electronic voting systems under 
 10.32  section 19, to be available until June 30, 2003.  
 10.33     Sec. 21.  [REPEALER.] 
 10.34     Minnesota Statutes 2000, sections 204B.04, subdivision 3; 
 10.35  204B.13, subdivision 4; 204D.05, subdivision 2; 204D.07, 
 10.36  subdivision 3; 204D.08, subdivision 6; 204D.10, subdivision 3; 
 11.1   205.065; and 205A.03, are repealed.  
 11.2      Sec. 22.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
 11.3      Sections 1 to 18 and 21 are effective for the primary in 
 11.4   election year 2002 and thereafter.  Sections 19 and 20 are 
 11.5   effective July 1, 2001.