BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 80
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Date of Hearing: March 15, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ELECTIONS AND REDISTRICTING
Paul Fong, Chair
AB 80 (Fong) - As Amended: March 3, 2011
SUBJECT : Presidential primary: election date.
SUMMARY : Moves the presidential primary election from February
to June in presidential election years and consolidates it with
the statewide direct primary election. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires the presidential primary to be held on the first
Tuesday after the first Monday in June in any year that is
evenly divisible by the number four.
2)Eliminates the first Tuesday in February of each year evenly
divisible by the number four as an established election date
and as a date in which statewide elections are held.
3)Requires the presidential primary to be consolidated with the
statewide direct primary held in that year.
EXISTING LAW requires the presidential primary to be held on the
first Tuesday in February in any year that is evenly divisible
by the number four, and prohibits the consolidation of the
presidential primary with the statewide direct primary held in
that year.
FISCAL EFFECT : Keyed non-fiscal by Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose of the Bill : According to the author, "Current law is
out of compliance with national party rules and requires
California to hold three separate statewide elections in 2012,
imposing a huge cost on the state and local governments at a
time when our fiscal situation is in crisis. Eliminating the
state's stand-alone presidential primary election and
consolidating it with other statewide elections will save
millions of dollars, increase voter turnout, and ensure that
California's primary is held in accordance with national party
rules."
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2)History of California's Primary Elections : From 1946 to 1994,
California's primary elections were held in June of every
even-numbered year. Frustrated, however, with the perceived
lack of importance and impact that California had on the
presidential nominating process, the state passed several
pieces of legislation to move up the presidential primary
election. In 1996, California's presidential primary was held
on the fourth Tuesday in March. In 2000, the presidential
primary was held on the first Tuesday in March.
Regardless of the earlier primary dates, California struggled
to gain influence on the selection of presidential candidates
as other states also moved up their primaries. In 2000,
California's March 7th presidential primary came after nine
other states held their primaries or caucuses and was held on
the same day as 13 other state contests.
The Legislation that permanently moved the primary to the
first Tuesday in March, SB 1999 (Costa), Chapter 913, Statutes
of 1998, did so for all future primary elections - not just
presidential primary elections. Discouraged from the
perceived lack of clout California was having in the
presidential primary process, even with the earlier primary
date, and concerned that the earlier primary for legislative,
congressional, and statewide offices was increasing the costs
of campaigning by lengthening the campaign season, the
Legislature and Governor chose to move California's primary
election, including presidential primaries, back to June. SB
1730 (Johnson), Chapter 817, Statues of 2005, required
California's primary election to be held on the first Tuesday
after the first Monday in June in every even-numbered year.
For 2008, the Legislature and Governor again attempted to
increase California's influence in the presidential campaign
and encourage candidates to discuss and debate issues relevant
to this state. SB 113 (Calderon), Chapter 2, Statutes of
2007, moved California's presidential primary to February 5th
- the earliest vote in state history. In addition to moving
up the presidential primary, SB 113 required a separate
primary election for legislative and congressional offices to
be held in June. By the time California voters went to the
polls on election day, 33 other states had also moved up their
presidential primaries and 15 states held their primary on the
same day as California - giving February 5th the title of
'Super Tuesday.' As a result of the primary date change,
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California conducted three separate statewide elections in
2008. This bill proposes to eliminate the stand-alone
presidential primary and consolidate it with the statewide
direct primary in June.
3)Party Rules : When a state holds a presidential primary or
caucus, it is actually selecting delegates who are pledged to
support a specified presidential candidate to represent the
state at the political party conventions. Those delegates
then vote at the party convention to choose the party's
presidential nominee. While a state is free to schedule its
presidential primary election or caucus whenever it wants, it
may face sanctions at the national convention if its election
or caucus is held at a time or in a manner that violates the
national party rules. The national Democratic and Republican
party rules establish a time period during which state parties
are permitted to select delegates to the national convention.
That time period is commonly referred to as the "window."
Historically, the parties have allowed certain states,
including Iowa and New Hampshire, to schedule their
presidential contests prior to the designated window without
penalty.
In response to the 2008 'Super Tuesday' where several states
shared the same primary date, both national political parties
adopted new rules in August 2010 to extend the primary season
and encourage states to hold their presidential primaries or
caucuses later in the year. Though both parties begin the
window on the first Tuesday in March, they take different
approaches to encourage states to hold later primary
elections. The Democratic National Committee will be awarding
states who schedule their primaries later than March 6th a
specific percentage of bonus delegates, allotting more
delegates the later the primary or caucus. The Republican
National Committee will penalize states that choose to
schedule their presidential contests prior to the first day of
April by reducing the number of delegates awarded to an
offending state by 50%. Absent a change to current law, which
sets California's presidential primary for February,
California will be out of compliance with the national party
rules. Several states have introduced legislation to comply
with the new political party rules. This bill's proposed
timeframe for the presidential primary would be consistent
with national party rules.
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4)Consolidation : The presidential primary election in 2008
marked the first time in recent history that California did
not consolidate its presidential primary with the statewide
direct primary election, and as a result California held three
separate statewide elections that year. According to
information provided by the State Controller's Office and the
Secretary of State's Office, California spent approximately
$96,980,195 on the stand-alone presidential primary election
in 2008. This bill proposes to consolidate all future
presidential primary elections with statewide direct
primaries.
5)Previous Legislation : SB 113 (Calderon), Chapter 2, Statues of
2007 moved California's presidential primary election from
June to February in presidential election years and prohibited
it from being consolidated with the statewide direct primary.
AB 2949 (Umberg) of 2006 would have required the Secretary of
State to schedule California's presidential primary election
before, or on the same day as, the earliest presidential
primary election held in any other state. AB 2949 was held on
the Assembly Appropriations Committee's suspense file.
AB 1730 (Johnson), Chapter 817, Statutes of 2004 moved
California's statewide direct primary election to the first
Tuesday after the first Monday in June and required it to be
consolidated with the presidential primary election in
presidential election years.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Association of Clerks and Election Officials
California State Association of Counties
Secretary of State Debra Bowen
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Maria Garcia / E. & R. / (916) 319-2094
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