ACA 13, as introduced, Gray. Presidential elections.
The California Constitution requires the Legislature to provide for partisan elections for presidential candidates, including an open presidential primary where the candidates on the ballot are those found by the Secretary of State to be recognized candidates throughout the nation or throughout California for the office of President of the United States, and those whose names are placed on the ballot by petition, but excluding any candidate who has withdrawn by filing an affidavit of noncandidacy.
Existing statutory law provides for a presidential primary election at which delegations to the national conventions of political parties are chosen. Existing law requires a voter who is registered as preferring a political party participating in a presidential primary election to be furnished a ballot for the political party that he or she prefers, on which the presidential candidates for that political party are listed. Existing law prohibits a voter who is not registered as disclosing a preference for any one of the political parties participating in the election from voting the ballot of a political party unless the political party, by party rule duly noticed to the Secretary of State, authorizes a person who has declined to disclose a party preference to vote its ballot.
Existing law does not provide for a candidate who is not seeking the nomination of a political party to participate in the presidential primary election. However, existing law permits such a presidential candidate to be nominated, and have his or her name printed on the general election ballot, by filing independent nomination papers signed by a specified percentage of voters. Existing law also provides for write-in candidates at the presidential general election.
This measure would, instead, require the Legislature to provide for a presidential primary election at which every ballot contains the names of all candidates for the office of President of the United States recognized by the Secretary of State in accordance with applicable statutes, including candidates who are not seeking the nomination of a political party for that office. This measure would authorize a voter to vote for any candidate at the presidential primary election without regard to the political party preference, or lack of political party preference, of the voter. This measure would require the Legislature to enact statutes requiring the Secretary of State to report to each political party the number of votes cast at the presidential primary election for each candidate seeking the nomination of that party in a manner that segregates the votes by the political party preference, or lack of political party preference, of the voters. This measure would authorize a political party to count the votes from the presidential primary election according to the rules of the party and would authorize the party to place a candidate of its choice on the general election ballot. This measure would require the Legislature to provide for a presidential general election at which every ballot contains the names of the candidates selected by each political party that participated in the preceding presidential primary election and the name of the candidate who received the highest number of voters at the preceding presidential primary election among candidates not seeking the nomination of a political party.
Vote: 2⁄3. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
P2 1Resolved by the Assembly, the Senate concurring, That the
2Legislature of the State of California at its 2015-16 Regular
3Session commencing on the first day of December 2014, two-thirds
4of the membership of each house concurring, hereby proposes to
P3 1the people of the State of California that the Constitution of the
2State be amended as follows:
That Section 5 of Article II thereof is amended to read:
(a) Abegin delete voter-nominationend deletebegin insert voter-nominatedend insert primary
5election shall be conducted to select the candidates for
6congressional and state elective offices in California. All voters
7may vote at a voter-nominated primary election for any candidate
8for congressional and state elective office without regard to the
9political party preference disclosed by the candidate or the voter,
10provided that the voter is otherwise qualified to vote for candidates
11for the office in question. The candidates who are the top two
12vote-gettersbegin delete at aend deletebegin insert
in theend insert voter-nominated primary election for a
13congressional or state elective office shall, regardless of party
14preference, compete in the ensuing general election.
15(b) Except as otherwise provided by Section 6, a candidate for
16a congressional or state elective office may have his or her political
17party preference, or lack of political party preference, indicated
18upon the ballot for the office in the manner provided by statute. A
19political party or party central committee shall not nominate a
20candidate forbegin delete anyend deletebegin insert aend insert congressional or state elective office at the
21voter-nominatedbegin delete primary.end deletebegin insert
primary election.end insert
This subdivision shall
22not be interpreted to prohibit a political party or party central
23committee from endorsing, supporting, or opposing any candidate
24for a congressional or state elective office. A political party or
25party central committee shall not have the right to have its preferred
26candidate participate in the general election for a voter-nominated
27office other than a candidate who is one of the two highest
28vote-getters at the primary election, as provided in subdivision (a).
29(c) The Legislature shall provide for partisan elections for
30begin delete presidential candidates, andend delete political party and party central
31
begin delete committees, including an open presidential primary whereby the begin insert
committees.end insert
32candidates on the ballot are those found by the Secretary of State
33to be recognized candidates throughout the nation or throughout
34California for the office of President of the United States, and those
35whose names are placed on the ballot by petition, but excluding
36any candidate who has withdrawn by filing an affidavit of
37noncandidacy.end delete
38(d) A political party that participated in a primary election for
39a partisan office
pursuant to subdivision (c) has the right to
40participate in the general election for that office and shall not be
P4 1denied the ability to place on the general election ballot the
2candidate who received, at the primary election, the highest vote
3among that party’s candidates.
4
(d) The Legislature shall provide for a presidential primary
5election at which every ballot contains the names of all candidates
6for the office of President of the United States recognized by the
7Secretary of State in accordance with statutes enacted by the
8Legislature, including candidates who are not seeking the
9nomination of a political party for that office. A voter may vote
10for any candidate at the presidential primary election without
11regard to the political party preference, or lack of political party
12preference, of the voter. The Legislature shall enact statutes that
13
require the Secretary of State to report to each political party the
14number of votes cast at the presidential primary election for each
15candidate seeking the nomination of that party for the office of
16President of the United States in a manner that segregates the
17votes by the political party preference, or lack of political party
18preference, of the voters. A political party may count the votes
19from the presidential primary election according to the rules of
20the party and may place a candidate of its choice on the general
21election ballot.
22
(e) The Legislature shall provide for a presidential general
23election at which every ballot contains the names of the candidates
24selected by each political party that participated in the preceding
25presidential primary election and the name of the candidate who
26received the highest number of votes at the
preceding presidential
27primary election among candidates not seeking the nomination of
28a political party for the office of President of the United States.
O
99