Difference between revisions of "GPCA Elections Code"

Revision as of 02:36, 15 April 2012

DRAFT GPCA ELECTIONS CODE SECTIONS April 2012 Revision 4

DIVISION 6. PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS 2

PART 1. PARTISAN PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARIES 2

CHAPTER 5. GREEN PARTY PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY 2

Article 1. General Provisions 2

Article 2. Qualification of Candidates for Presidential Preference Portion of Primary Ballot 2

Article 3. None of the Above/ No Other Choice Voting 3

Article 5. Preparation, Circulation, and Filing of Nominating Papers 4

Article 6. Green Party Presidential Primary Ballot 7

Article 7. Certification of National Convention Delegates Election and Post election Proceedings 7

Article 8. Presidential Electors 8

CHAPTER 5A. GREEN PARTY DIRECT PRIMARY PROCEDURES 8

Article 1. General Provisions 8

Article 2. None of the Above / No Other Choice Voting 9

DIVISION 7. POLITICAL PARTY ORGANIZATION AND CENTRAL COMMITTEE ELECTIONS 10

PART 6. GREEN PARTY OF CALIFORNIA 10

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS 10

CHAPTER 2. MEMBERS OF COUNTY COUNCILS 10

CHAPTER 3. ELECTION OF COUNTY COUNCILS 11

CHAPTER 4. STATE COORDINATING COMMITTEE 13

DIVISION 6. PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS

PART 1. PARTISAN PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARIES

Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 6960) is added to Part 1 of Division 6 of the Elections Code, to read:

CHAPTER 5. GREEN PARTY PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY

Article 1. General Provisions

6960 This chapter is applicable to the presidential primary ballot of the Green Party only. As used in this chapter, "Green Party" means the Green Party of California.

6960.5 The Green Party presidential primary ballot shall express the presidential preference of California voters who vote in the Green Party primary. National convention delegates shall be selected as provided for in the Bylaws and the Rules and Procedures of the Green Party and pursuant to the rules of the national political party with which the Green Party has affiliated.

6960.7 A filing fee shall not be required from any person to be voted for in any Green Party presidential primary.

Article 2. Qualification of Candidates for Presidential Preference Portion of Primary Ballot

6961 The Secretary of State shall place the name of a candidate upon the Green Party presidential preference ballot when the Secretary of State has determined that the candidate is generally advocated for or recognized throughout the United States or California as actively seeking the presidential nomination of the Green Party or the national political party with which the Green Party has affiliated.

6961.5 On or before the 150th day preceding a presidential primary election, the Secretary of State shall send a letter by first-class mail to the Green Party Liaison to the Secretary of State informing her or him that, while a response is not required, any information they wish to submit will be considered by the Secretary of State in the determination of candidates to be placed on the Green Party presidential preference primary ballot pursuant to Section 6961.

6962 On or before the 120th day preceding a presidential primary election, the Secretary of State shall publicly announce and distribute to the news media for publication a list of the candidates she or he intends to place on the ballot at the following presidential primary election. Following this announcement, the Secretary of State may add to her or his selection, but she or he may not delete any candidate whose name appears on the announced list. The Secretary of State shall mail a copy of the list and any subsequent additions thereto to the Green Party's Liaison to the Secretary of State.

6962.5 When the Secretary of State decides to place the name of a candidate on the ballot pursuant to Sections 6961 and 6962, the Secretary of State shall notify the candidate that her or his name will appear on the Green Party presidential preference primary ballot of this state.

6963 If a selected candidate or an unselected candidate files with the Secretary of State, no later than the 68th day before the presidential primary, an affidavit stating without qualification that she or he is not a candidate for the office of President of the United States at the forthcoming presidential primary election, the name of that candidate shall be omitted from the list of names certified by the Secretary of State to the elections official for the ballot and the name of that candidate shall not appear on the presidential preference portion of the primary ballot.

6963.5 Any unselected candidate desiring to have her or his name placed on the presidential preference primary ballot shall have nomination papers circulated on her or his behalf. In order to qualify the name of that candidate for placement on the presidential preference primary ballot, the nomination papers of the candidate shall be signed by voters registered as affiliated with the Green Party equal in number to not less than 1 percent of the number of persons registered as members of the Green Party as reflected in the report of registration issued by the Secretary of State on the 135th day preceding the presidential primary election.

6964 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if the Secretary of State receives a written communication from the Green Party Liaison to the Secretary of State stating that, by decision of the Green Party, certain individuals have been approved to appear on the ballot, those persons shall be placed on the Green Party presidential preference primary ballot.

Article 3. None of the Above/ No Other Choice Voting

6964.4 (A) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in addition to the name or names of a candidate or candidates designated to appear on the ballot of the Green Party presidential primary election, there shall also be listed as an alternative voting selection either the statement "None of the Above” or “No Other Choice" (as delineated in the following section), which shall be placed as the last voting option following the names of the other candidate or candidates. Every vote for "None of the Above/No Other Choice" shall be processed, tabulated, counted, and reported in the same manner as the votes for all other candidates who appear on the ballot.

(B) When determining the winner of the Presidential Primary for reporting purposes, the "None of the Above/No Other Choice" option shall be declared the winner only if it receives the majority of votes. Otherwise, the candidate with the majority or highest plurality shall be declared the winner.

6964.5 (A) The following language shall be included in each Green Party voter's ballot and upon the applicable internet publication of the Secretary of State: You may vote for “None of the Above” in the Green Party presidential primary. Selecting the “None of the Above” alternative means that you choose not to vote for any of the listed candidates or any write-in candidate. By this selection you are indicating that you prefer there be no Green Party candidate for this office in the General Election.

Article 5. Preparation, Circulation, and Filing of Nominating Papers

6966 This article applies to the nomination of a Green Party candidate for the presidential primary ballot.

6966.5 Nomination papers properly prepared, circulated, signed, and verified shall be left for examination with the elections official of the county in which they are circulated, at least 74 days prior to the presidential primary.

6967 Each signer of a nomination paper for the presidential primary ballot may sign only one paper. The signer shall add his or her printed name and place of residence indicating city and giving the street and number, if any.

6967.5 Any nomination paper may be presented in sections. Each section shall contain the name of the presidential preference candidate. Each section shall bear the name of the county in which it is circulated. Only voters of the county registered as affiliated with the Green Party are competent to sign.

6968 Each section shall be prepared with the lines for signatures numbered, and shall have attached the declaration of the circulator who obtained signatures to it, stating, under penalty of perjury, that he or she is a voter registered as affiliated with the Green Party, that all the signatures to the attached section were made in his or her presence, and that to the best of his or her knowledge and belief each signature to the section is the genuine signature of the person whose name it purports to be. No other declaration is required to be made.

6968.5 A verified nomination paper is prima facie evidence that the signatures are genuine and that the persons signing it are voters registered as affiliated with the Green Party until it is otherwise proven by comparison of the signatures with the affidavits of registration in the office of the elections official.

6969 The nomination paper for a candidate for the presidential preference ballot shall be in substantially the following form:

SECTION OF NOMINATION PAPER SIGNED BY VOTER ON BEHALF OF PRESIDENTIAL PREFERENCE PRIMARY CANDIDATE

Section _____ Page _____

County of __________

Nomination paper of a presidential preference candidate for the Green Party presidential primary ballot.

State of California )

) ss.

County of ______ )

SIGNER'S STATEMENT

I, the undersigned, am a voter of the County of _________, State of California, and am registered as affiliated with the Green Party. I hereby nominate _________ for the presidential primary ballot of the Green Party, to be voted for at the presidential primary to be held on the ___ day of _______ 20__. I have not signed the nomination paper of any other candidate for the same office.

Number Signature Printed Name Residence Street Address City

1.

2.

3.

Etc.

CIRCULATOR'S DECLARATION

I, __________, affirm that I am a voter registered as affiliated with the Green Party in _________ County, that I secured signatures in the County of _________ to the nomination paper of a candidate in the presidential preference primary of the Green Party, that all the signatures on this section of the nomination paper numbered from 1 to ___, inclusive, were made in my presence, that the signatures were obtained between _______, 20__ and _________, 20__, and that to the best of my knowledge and belief each signature is the genuine signature of the person whose name it purports to be.

I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.

Executed at ________, California, this ____ day of ____, 20__.

[Signed] ______________________________

Circulator

[Printed Name] _____________________________

6969.5 Prior to filing, the sections of a nomination paper for any candidate shall be numbered in order.

6970 Nomination papers, properly assembled, may be consolidated and fastened together by counties, but nomination papers signed by voters in different counties shall not be fastened together.

6970.5 The elections official shall examine all nomination papers left with him or her for examination and shall disregard and mark "not sufficient" the name of any voter of that county that does not appear in the same handwriting on an affidavit of registration in the office of the elections official. The elections official shall also disregard and mark "not sufficient" the name of any voter of the county who is not registered as affiliated with the Green Party.

6971 Within five days after any nomination papers are left with the elections official for examination, the elections official shall do both of the following:

(a) Examine and affix to them a certificate reciting that he or she has examined them and stating the number of names that have not been marked "not sufficient."

(b) Transmit the papers with the certificate of examination to the Secretary of State, who shall file the papers.

6971.5 The certificate of the elections official to nomination papers of a candidate shall be in substantially the following form:

CERTIFICATE OF ELECTIONS OFFICIAL TO NOMINATION PAPERS OF CANDIDATE OR GROUP OF CANDIDATES

To the Secretary of State:

I, County Elections Official of the County of ________, hereby certify that I have examined the nomination papers to which this certificate is attached, of the presidential candidate at the ensuing presidential primary, and that the number of names which have not marked "not sufficient" is _____. The candidate or group of candidates named in the nomination papers comprise the following (state names of candidates):

____________ ___________ ______________

____________ ___________ ______________

____________ ___________ ______________

Etc. Etc. Etc.

Dated this ___ day of _________, 20__.

__________________________

(SEAL) County Elections Official

By _______________________

Deputy

6972 Upon receipt of a sufficient number of signatures for the nomination of a candidate for the presidential preference primary ballot, the Secretary of State shall notify the candidate or his or her duly authorized representative of that fact.

Article 6. Green Party Presidential Primary Ballot

6973 Following the filing of nomination papers, the presidential preference primary candidates as well as the "None of the Above/No Other Choice" alternative shall be printed upon the ballot.

6973.5 For the presidential primary election, the format of the Green Party ballot shall be governed by Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 13100) of Division 13, with the following exceptions:

(a) The heading "Presidential or No Candidate Preference" shall be included.

(b) Selected and unselected presidential candidates and the "None of the Above/No Other Choice" alternative shall be listed below the heading specified in subdivision (a).

(c) The instruction to voters shall begin with the words "Vote for a candidate or 'None of the Above'” The instruction to voters shall also include the statement that "Delegates to the national convention will be selected after the primary election." See Article 3 of this Chapter for reference regarding instructions to the voters.

6974 Any person who believes his or her name may be used as a write-in candidate for President of the United States shall, not later than 21 days before the primary election, file an endorsement of his or her write-in candidacy with the Secretary of State, or no votes shall be counted for that write-in candidate.

Article 7. Certification of National Convention Delegates Election and Post election Proceedings

6975 The number of delegates to be selected following the presidential preference primary shall be the number established by the national political party with which the Green Party has affiliated.

6975.5 National convention delegates shall be selected as provided for in the Bylaws and Procedures of the Green Party and pursuant to the rules of the national political party with which the Green Party has affiliated.

6975.6 The Secretary of State shall, not later than the 30th day after the election, file in his of her office a statement of the canvassed returns for the Green Party presidential preferential primary, including votes for write-in candidates and the "None of the Above" alternative.

6975.7 SEC. 2. Notwithstanding Section 17610 of the Government Code, if the Commission of State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code. If the statewide cost of the claim for reimbursement does not exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000), reimbursement shall be made from the State Mandates Claims Fund.

Article 8. Presidential Electors

6975.8 In each year of the general election at which electors of President and Vice President of the United States are to be chosen, the Green Party of California also shall nominate as the candidates of its party as many electors of President and Vice President of the United States as the state is then entitled, 50 percent of whom shall be women and 50 percent men, unless an odd number of electors is to be chosen, in which case the difference between the number of women and men shall be not more than one. The Liaison to the Secretary of State of the Green Party of California shall certify the name of each elector nominated, and the elector's residence address to the Secretary of State.

CHAPTER 5A. GREEN PARTY DIRECT PRIMARY PROCEDURES

Article 1. General Provisions

6976 This chapter is applicable to the direct primary election ballots of the Green Party only. As used in this chapter, “Green Party” means the Green Party of California.

Article 2. None of the Above / No Other Choice Voting

6976.2 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in addition to the name or names of a candidate or candidates designated to appear on the ballot of the Green Party primary election, there also shall be listed as an alternative voting selection either the statement "None of the Above” or “No Other Choice” (as delineated in the preceding section), which shall be placed as the last voting option following the names of the other candidate or candidates and places on the ballot for write-in candidates. Votes for "None of the Above/No Other Choice” shall be processed, tabulated, counted, and reported in the same manner as the votes for all other candidates who appear on the ballot.

The following language shall be included in each voter's ballot in the Green Party direct primary elections for U.S. Senate, U.S. Congress, statewide offices, state legislature offices, and State Board of Equalization offices, and shall also be placed on any applicable internet publication of the Secretary of State :

You may vote for “No Other Choice” in this primary. Selecting the “No Other Choice” alternative means that you choose not to vote for a candidate. By doing this, you are indicating that you prefer no candidate be placed on the General Election ballot.

6976.4 For the offices of U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, statewide offices, state legislature offices, and State Board of Equalization offices, and those offices only, if the alternative “None of the Above/No Other Choice” receives votes in a number more than one half of the total number of votes cast for that office, no Green Party candidate will be nominated to appear on the ballot in the General Election for the applicable office.

DIVISION 7. POLITICAL PARTY ORGANIZATION AND CENTRAL COMMITTEE ELECTIONS

Part 6 (commencing with Section 7900) is added to Division 7 of the Elections Code, to read:

PART 6. GREEN PARTY OF CALIFORNIA

CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS

7900 This part applies to the organization, operations, and functions of the party known as the Green Party . As used in this part, “Green Party" means the Green Party of California.

CHAPTER 2. MEMBERS OF COUNTY COUNCILS

7901 At each direct primary election, members of central committees, which shall be termed “county councils,” shall be elected in each county.

7902 For the purposes of this chapter, the registration figures used shall be those taken from the statement of voters and their political affiliations transmitted by the elections officials to the Secretary of State on the 135th day prior to the next direct primary election.

7903 The number of members of the county council to be elected in a county shall be three if the county has less than 150 registered Green Party voters. Otherwise, the number of members of the county council to be elected shall be the greater of: a) The number seven, or b) The integer nearest the resulting quotient obtained by dividing 100 times the number of Green Party registered voters in the county by the number of Green Party registered voters in the state. If election is by districts, the number to be elected for each district will be the number for the proportion of registered Green Party voters in that district, using the Method of Equal Proportions. However, county Green Parties may choose to modify the size of their county council by notifying the State Coordinating Committee, who shall in turn notify the Secretary of State no later than 135 days prior to the direct primary election.

7904 At its first meeting following the direct primary election and at subsequent meetings, a county council may appoint additional members to the county council to fill any vacancy.

7905 No person shall be appointed to membership on a county council who is registered with another party or registered as "Decline to State." Appointment of other persons who cannot register to vote shall be allowed under certain circumstances as described in state Green Party bylaws and any applicable county Green Party bylaws.

7906 The removal of residence by an elected or appointed member of a county council from the applicable county shall constitute automatic resignation from the county council.

7907 Any member of a county council who changes her or his voter registration to be no longer affiliated with the Green Party shall automatically be removed from office upon such registration.

7908 County Council members additionally may be removed for cause and by procedures established in the Bylaws of the local Green Party organization.

7908 County Council members additionally may be removed for cause and by procedures established in the Bylaws of the local Green Party organization.

7909 Whenever any person is appointed to a county council, the county council shall file notices of the appointment with the county elections official and the Coordinating Committee of the Green Party of California within 30 days after it is made. The notices shall contain the name and address of the person appointed and shall indicate the date of the appointment.

7910 The Department of General Services shall permit any county council that desires to do so to hold meetings in a state building within the county, and a minimum of one meeting each month shall be without charge.

CHAPTER 3. ELECTION OF COUNTY COUNCILS

7911 Members of County Councils shall be elected from one or more multi-member districts. Multi-member districts shall conform to the county boundaries or recognized jurisdictional boundaries of districts within the county in accordance with Green Party bylaws.

(A) The following provision shall remain in effect until the first statewide election occurring after the Secretary of State has certified that the voting equipment used in a county is capable of recording and reporting the ranked ballot described in this Code regarding Green Party primary elections for partisan office. Any county chapter of the Green Party may choose to have their County Council members elected using the Limited Voting method. This semi-proportional voting method, as described in the “International IDEA Handbook of Electoral System Design” (Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance), second edition, limits each voter to some number of votes that is fewer than the number of open seats. The specifications and requirements for conducting a Limited Voting election are contained in the Green Party bylaws. The decision to use Limited Voting will be conveyed in writing by the County Council to the Green Party Coordinating Committee no less than 12 months prior to the primary election. The Coordinating Committee shall then notify the Secretary of State and the county elections official within 30 days.

(B) At and after the first Primary Election occurring after the Secretary of State has certified that the voting equipment used in a county is capable of recording and reporting the ranked ballot voting described in this Code regarding Green Party primary elections for partisan office, members of County Councils shall be elected from one or more multi-member districts using Choice Voting, the Single Transferable Vote form of proportional representation described in the “International IDEA Handbook of Electoral System Design” (Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance), second edition. The specifications and requirements for conducting a Choice Voting election are contained in the Green Party bylaws.

7912 The Secretary of State, no later than the 125th day before the direct primary election, shall compute the number of members of county councils to be elected in each county and shall mail a certificate to that effect to the elections official of each county and to the Liaison to the Secretary of State of the Green Party of California.

7913 The elections official, no later than the 115th day before the direct primary election, shall compute the number of members of county councils to be elected in each district if the election of the members is to be by district pursuant to this chapter.

7914 In each county, the name of each candidate for member of county councils shall appear on the ballot only if she or he is registered in the Green Party and has filed a nomination paper pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 6700) of Division 6 signed in the candidate‘s behalf by Green Party voters of the county council election district in which she or he is a candidate.

7915 In counties where members of county councils are to be elected by district, a person seeking election as a member of a county council may seek election only in the district in which she or he resides.

7916 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the names of all candidates nominated for election to a county council shall be printed on this party’s ballot in that jurisdiction, and this shall be done regardless of the number of candidates and the number of such offices.

7917 Notwithstanding any other provision of this code, a person may obtain and circulate nomination papers both for nomination to a public office and for election as a member of a county council.

7918 Notwithstanding any other provision of this code, the number of sponsors which shall be required of a person to be a candidate for member of a county council shall be either: (a) Not less than 20; or (b) Not less than 2 percent of the number of voters registered as affiliated with the Green Party in the county council election district -- whichever is less.

7919 Notwithstanding any other provision of this code, each sponsor is entitled to sponsor as many candidates as there are seats in the district. Candidate names listed on a single sponsor's certificate, and the signatures thereon shall be counted toward the sponsor requirement of each and every candidate whose name is listed on the certificate. However, in no case shall the number of candidates having their names on a sponsor's certificate exceed the number of members of a county council to be elected in the district.

7920 The elections official of each county shall include the office of member of county council and the candidates therefore in a place and manner similar to that for the office of county central committee of other political parties and the candidates therefore on the applicable official lists.

7921 The order of appearance of the names of the candidates for member of county council on the ballot shall be determined by a public drawing held at the time, place, and manner prescribed for determining the order of names of county central committee members pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 13100) of Division 13.

7922 The office of member of county council shall be placed on the direct primary ballot under the heading "Party County Council” in the place and manner designated for the office of county central committee pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 13100) of Division 13. The subheading printed under party central committees on the direct primary ballot shall be in substantially the following form: Member of Green Party County Council, ___the __________ District or Member of the Green Party County Council, _______ County.

7923 A certificate of election shall be issued to each elected member of county councils by the officers charged with that duty of issuing certificates of election to members of county central committees under Section 8145, using the term county council in place of the term central committee.

7924 Except as hereinafter otherwise provided, the votes cast for each candidate for member of county shall be included in the canvass and statement of results in a manner similar to the vote for each candidate for county central committees pursuant to Division 15 (commencing with Section 15000), and specifically:

(a) The final total of votes cast for each candidate for member of county council, including the name, address and ballot designation of each such candidate, and a specification as to which candidates were declared elected shall be certified to the Secretary of State forthwith upon completion of the official canvass. The county clerk shall simultaneously send one copy of this final certification to the Green Party Liaison to the Secretary of State.

(b) As soon as practicable after the direct primary election, the Secretary of State shall prepare a certified list by county of all elected Green Party members of county councils, including their addresses and primary election ballot designations. The Secretary of State shall send copies of the list to the registrar of voters in each county no later than 45 days following the direct primary election. This list shall be maintained for public inspection by said registrars of voters until a subsequent such list is received.

(c) The Secretary of State, no later than 45 days following the direct primary election, shall send a notice by mail to each of the elected members of county councils which shall inform that person that he or she has been elected as a member of the county council. The Secretary of State shall send a copy of the certified list of all elected members of all county councils to the Green Party of California Liaison to the Secretary of State.

7925. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Code, no write-in candidate for member of county council shall be declared elected unless that candidate has received a number of first choice votes equal to or greater than 2 percent of the number of party members voting in the county council election district at the direct primary or 20 votes, whichever is less.

CHAPTER 4. STATE COORDINATING COMMITTEE

7926 The members of the Coordinating Committee shall be elected as provided in the bylaws of the Green Party of California and shall have the responsibilities described in those bylaws.

7927 No person shall be a member of the Coordinating Committee unless she or he is registered as a voter affiliated with the Green Party of California.

7928 The state Coordinating Committee shall hold meetings not less than once during each year.

7929 The Green Party state Coordinating Committee shall have the authority to certify, as provided by Green Party bylaws, county council members in the following counties:

(a) Counties in which no county council candidates qualified for the ballot in the preceding direct primary election;

(b) Counties in which all members of the county council have become disqualified from holding office. County council members pursuant to this section shall meet the qualifications otherwise required for county council members. County council members confirmed under this section shall be reported by the state Coordinating Committee to the applicable county elections officials. County council members confirmed under this section shall have all the powers and privileges otherwise afforded to county councils.