HOUSE BILL NO. 490

INTRODUCED BY S. ANDERSON, T. BECK, E. BERGSAGEL, J. BOHLINGER, V. COCCHIARELLA, B. CRIPPEN, E. FRANKLIN, D. FUCHS, B. GLASER, D. GRIMES, L. GROSFIELD, M. HALLIGAN, D. HARGROVE, J. HARP, J. HERTEL, B. KEENAN, D. MCGEE, A. MOHL, K. OHS, D. SHEA, F. THOMAS, C. YOUNKIN

A BILL FOR AN ACT ENTITLED: "AN ACT CHANGING THE DATE OF THE MONTANA PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE PRIMARY ELECTION TO THE FIRST FRIDAY AFTER THE FIRST MONDAY IN MARCH IN ORDER TO COINCIDE WITH A PROPOSED WESTERN REGIONAL PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE PRIMARY ELECTION; PROVIDING AN APPROPRIATION; AMENDING SECTIONS 13-10-201, 13-10-209, 13-10-401, 13-10-402, 13-10-403, 13-10-405, AND 13-13-205, MCA ."

WHEREAS, presidential preference primaries conducted in western states other than California have had little impact upon national politics, owing in part to the fact that those primaries have been conducted at different times and at times late in the presidential nominating process; and

WHEREAS, as a result of the small impact of western preference primaries, presidential candidates spend little time campaigning in western states other than California; and

WHEREAS, if the dates of the presidential preference primaries in western states were all held on the same date and were all moved to a date earlier in the presidential nominating process, western states' primaries as a group would have more effect upon national politics and presidential candidates would respond by campaigning more often in western states and campaigning on issues of concern to westerners; and

WHEREAS, certain members of the legislatures from most western states convened a western regional presidential preference primary task force meeting on November 16 and 17, 1998, in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the members of the task force agreed that the first Friday after the first Monday in March in the year of presidential elections would be an optimal date for holding presidential preference primaries in western states in order to give the presidential preference primaries as a group more political effect; and

WHEREAS, legislation is necessary to change the date of the Montana presidential preference primary from the date of other regular party primaries held in June to the first Friday after the first Monday in March in presidential election years and thereby allow Montana to participate in the western regional presidential preference primary

.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:

NEW SECTION. Section 1. Presidential preference primary election -- secretary of state to reimburse counties for costs of election. In a year in which a presidential preference primary is held pursuant to 13-10-401, each county election administrator shall, within 30 days after the election, or in the case of a recount, within 30 days after the recount or the issuance of a second certificate of election pursuant to 13-16-418, certify the cost of the election to the secretary of state. The secretary of state shall reimburse the certified amount to the election administrator.

Section 2. Section 13-10-201, MCA, is amended to read:

"13-10-201. Declaration for nomination. (1) Each candidate in the primary election, except nonpartisan candidates filing under the provisions of chapter 14, shall send a declaration for nomination to the secretary of state or election administrator. Each candidate for governor shall send a joint declaration for nomination with a candidate for lieutenant governor.

(2) A declaration for nomination must be filed in the office of:

(a) the secretary of state for placement of a name on the ballot for the presidential preference primary, a congressional office, a state or district office to be voted for in more than one county, a member of the legislature, or a judge of the district court;

(b) the election administrator for a county, municipal, precinct, or district office (other than a member of the legislature or judge of the district court) to be voted for in only one county.

(3) Each candidate shall sign the declaration and send with it the required filing fee or, in the case of an indigent candidate, send with it the documents required by 13-10-203. The declaration for nomination must be acknowledged by an officer empowered to acknowledge signatures if sent by mail or by the officer of the office at which the filing is made.

(4) The declaration, when filed, is conclusive evidence that the elector is a candidate for nomination by the elector's party.

(5) (a) The declaration for nomination must be in the form and contain the information prescribed by the secretary of state.

(b) A person seeking nomination to the legislature shall provide the secretary of state with a street address, legal description, or road designation to indicate the person's place of residence. If a candidate for the legislature changes residence, the candidate shall, within 15 days after the change, notify the secretary of state on a form prescribed by the secretary of state.

(c) The secretary of state and election administrator shall furnish declaration for nomination forms to individuals requesting them.

(6) Declarations for nomination must be filed no sooner than 135 days before the election in which the office first appears on the ballot and no later than 5 p.m., 75 days before the date of the primary election.

(7) A declaration for nomination of a candidate for the presidential preference primary election may be filed no sooner and no later than as provided in subsection (6) of this section before the date of the primary as provided in 13-10-401."

Section 3. Section 13-10-209, MCA, is amended to read:

"13-10-209. Arrangement of ballots. (1) (a) Except as provided in 13-10-403, ballots for a primary election must be arranged and printed in the same manner and number as provided in chapter 12 for general election ballots, except there must be separate ballots for each political party entitled to participate. The name of the political party must be printed at the top of the separate ballot for that party and need not be printed opposite each candidate's name.

(b) Nonpartisan offices and ballot issues may be printed on separate ballots or may appear on the same ballot as partisan offices if:

(i) each section is clearly identified as separate; and

(ii) the nonpartisan offices and ballot issues appear on each party's ballot.

(2) It is not necessary to print a primary ballot for a political party that does not have candidates for more than half of the offices on the ballot in even-year elections if no more than one candidate files for nomination by that party for any of the offices on the ballot. The secretary of state shall certify that a primary election is not necessary for that party if that is the case and shall certify or instruct the election administrator to certify the names of the candidates for that party for the general election ballot only.

(3) The separate ballots for each party must be the same size and color. The stubs of each set of party ballots must bear the same number. If printed as a separate ballot, the nonpartisan ballot must be a different size or color than the party ballots, but the stubs must be numbered in the same order as the party ballots.

(4) If a ballot issue is to be voted on at a primary election, it may be placed on the nonpartisan ballot or a separate ballot. A separate ballot may be a different size and color than the other ballots in the election, but the stubs must be numbered in the same order.

(5) Each elector shall receive a set of party ballots and a nonpartisan and a ballot issue ballot if the ballots are printed."

Section 4. Section 13-10-401, MCA, is amended to read:

"13-10-401. Date of presidential preference primary election. In the years in which a president of the United States is to be elected, a presidential preference primary election must be held on the first Friday after the first Monday in March."

Section 5. Section 13-10-402, MCA, is amended to read:

"13-10-402. Ballot. The regular party primary ballots must be used for the presidential preference primary election. The presidential section of the ballot must be placed before any other section listing local candidates for election.

"

Section 6. Section 13-10-403, MCA, is amended to read:

"13-10-403. Form of ballot. The form of the presidential preference ballot must be specified by the secretary of state, must list all candidates nominated in accordance with the provisions of this part, and must, in addition, include a presidential ballot position that must be designated as "no preference" and a blank write-in space."

Section 7. Section 13-10-405, MCA, is amended to read:

"13-10-405. Submission and verification of petition. Petitions of nomination for the presidential preference primary election and the affidavits of circulation required by 13-27-302 must be presented to the election administrator of the county in which the signatures are gathered at least 1 week before the presidential preference primary election filing deadline prescribed in 13-10-201(7). A filing fee is not required. The election administrator shall verify the signatures in the manner prescribed in 13-27-303 through 13-27-308 and shall forward the petitions to the secretary of state."

Section 8. Section 13-13-205, MCA, is amended to read:

"13-13-205. When ballots to be available. (1) The election administrator shall ensure that ballots are printed and available for absentee voting at least 45 days prior to an election for those elections held in compliance with 13-1-104(1) and (3) and 13-1-107(1).

(2) For elections held in compliance with 13-1-104(2) and 13-1-107(2), the election administrator shall ensure that ballots are printed and available for absentee voting at least 20 days prior to an election."

NEW SECTION. Section 9. Appropriation -- reversion of unspent appropriation. (1) There is appropriated $527,584 from the general fund to the office of the secretary of state for the biennium ending June 30, 2001, for the purposes of [this act].

(2) Money appropriated by this section for the purposes of [this act] that is not spent by July 1, 2001, reverts to the general fund.

NEW SECTION. Section 10. Codification instruction. [Section 1] is intended to be codified as an integral part of Title 13, chapter 1, part 2, and the provisions of Title 13, chapter 1, part 2, apply to [section 1].

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