Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

LEGISLATIVE GENERAL COUNSEL                                               H.B. 489
Approved for Filing: T.R. Vaughn 6
         6 02-06-24 11:54 AM 6
                 PARTY AFFILIATION DISCLOSURE AMENDMENTS
                                      2024 GENERAL SESSION
                                            STATE OF UTAH
                                Chief Sponsor: Cheryl K. Acton
                                 Senate Sponsor: ____________
 6
 LONG TITLE
 General Description:
        This bill permits party affiliation to appear on the ballot next to the name of certain
 nonpartisan candidates.
 Highlighted Provisions:
        This bill:
        <    permits a candidate for a nonpartisan municipal office or a nonpartisan local board
 of education office to choose to have the candidate's party affiliation appear on the
 ballot adjacent to the candidate's name;
        < requires an election officer to, when posting or printing voter information on a
 candidate described in the preceding paragraph, include the candidate's party
 affiliation adjacent to the candidate's name; and
        < describes the effect of a candidate's party affiliation appearing on a ballot under the
 preceding paragraph.
 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
        None
 Other Special Clauses:
        This bill provides a special effective date.
 Utah Code Sections Affected:
                                                                                                        H.B. 489
 AMENDS:
        20A-6-203, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2020, Chapter 31
     *HB0489*
       H.B. 489                                                                    02-06-24 11:54 AM
         20A-6-301, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2021, Chapter 136
         20A-6-401, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2023, Chapter 45
         20A-6-402, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2020, Chapter 31
         20A-7-801, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2021, Chapter 100
         20A-9-203, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2023, Chapters 116, 435
         20A-9-203.5, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2016, Chapter 48
         20A-9-701, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapter 296
         20A-14-203, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2022, Chapters 13, 265
36
 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
         Section 1. Section 20A-6-203 is amended to read:
         20A-6-203. Ballots for regular primary elections.
         (1) The lieutenant governor, together with county clerks, suppliers of election
 materials, and representatives of registered political parties, shall:
         (a) develop ballots to be used in Utah's regular primary election;
         (b) ensure that the ballots comply generally, where applicable, with the requirements of
 Title 20A, Chapter 6, Part 1, General Requirements for All Ballots, and this section; [and]
         (c) ensure that, for a local school board candidate who, in accordance with Subsections
 20A-14-203(3) and (4), chooses to have the candidate's party affiliation included on the ballot,
 the candidate's party affiliation appears adjacent to the candidate's name on the ballot; and
         [(c)] (d) provide voting booths, election records and supplies, ballot boxes, and as
 applicable, voting devices, for each voting precinct as required by Section 20A-5-403.
         (2) (a) Notwithstanding the requirements of Subsections (1)(b) [and (c)] through (d),
 Title 20A, Chapter 6, Part 1, General Requirements for All Ballots, and Sections 20A-5-403,
 20A-6-401, and 20A-6-401.1, the lieutenant governor, together with county clerks, suppliers of
 election materials, and representatives of registered political parties shall ensure that the
 ballots, voting booths, election records and supplies, and ballot boxes:
         (i) facilitate the distribution, voting, and tallying of ballots in a primary where not all
 voters are authorized to vote for a party's candidate;
         (ii) simplify the task of poll workers, particularly in determining a voter's party
 affiliation;
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       02-06-24 11:54 AM                                                                          H.B. 489
          (iii) minimize the possibility of spoiled ballots due to voter confusion; and
          (iv) protect against fraud.
          (b) To accomplish the requirements of this Subsection (2), the lieutenant governor,
 county clerks, suppliers of election materials, and representatives of registered political parties
 shall:
          (i) mark ballots as being for a particular registered political party; and
          (ii) instruct individuals counting the ballots to count only those votes for candidates
 from the registered political party whose ballot the voter received.
          Section 2. Section 20A-6-301 is amended to read:
          20A-6-301. Manual ballots -- Regular general election.
          (1) [Each] Except as provided in Subsection (3)(f), an election officer shall ensure that:
          (a) all manual ballots furnished for use at the regular general election contain:
          (i) no captions or other endorsements except as provided in this section;
          (ii) no symbols, markings, or other descriptions of a political party or group, except for
 a registered political party that has chosen to nominate its candidates in accordance with
 Section 20A-9-403; and
          (iii) no indication that a candidate for elective office has been nominated by, or has
 been endorsed by, or is in any way affiliated with a political party or group, unless the
 candidate has been nominated by a registered political party in accordance with Subsection
 20A-9-202(4) or Subsection 20A-9-403(5);
          (b) at the top of the ballot, the following endorsements are printed in 18 point bold
 type:
          (i) "Official Ballot for ____ County, Utah";
          (ii) the date of the election; and
          (iii) the words "certified by the Clerk of __________ County" or, as applicable, the
 name of a combined office that includes the duties of a county clerk;
          (c) unaffiliated candidates, candidates not affiliated with a registered political party,
 and all other candidates for elective office who were not nominated by a registered political
 party in accordance with Subsection 20A-9-202(4) or Subsection 20A-9-403(5), are listed with
 the other candidates for the same office in accordance with Section 20A-6-305, without a party
 name or title;
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        H.B. 489                                                                    02-06-24 11:54 AM
         (d) each ticket containing the lists of candidates, including the party name and device,
 are separated by heavy parallel lines;
         (e) the offices to be filled are plainly printed immediately above the names of the
 candidates for those offices;
         (f) the names of candidates are printed in capital letters, not less than one-eighth nor
 more than one-fourth of an inch high in heavy-faced type not smaller than 10 point, between
 lines or rules three-eighths of an inch apart; and
         (g) on a ticket for a race in which a voter is authorized to cast a write-in vote and in
 which a write-in candidate is qualified under Section 20A-9-601:
         (i) the ballot includes a space for a write-in candidate immediately following the last
 candidate listed on that ticket; or
         (ii) for the offices of president and vice president and governor and lieutenant
 governor, the ballot includes two spaces for write-in candidates immediately following the last
 candidates on that ticket, one placed above the other, to enable the entry of two valid write-in
 candidates.
         (2) [An] Except as provided in Subsection (3)(f), an election officer shall ensure that:
         (a) each individual nominated by any registered political party under Subsection
 20A-9-202(4) or Subsection 20A-9-403(5), and no other individual, is placed on the ballot:
         (i) under the registered political party's name, if any; or
         (ii) under the title of the registered political party as designated by them in their
 certificates of nomination or petition, or, if none is designated, then under some suitable title;
         (b) the names of all unaffiliated candidates that qualify as required in Chapter 9, Part 5,
 Candidates not Affiliated with a Party, are placed on the ballot;
         (c) the names of the candidates for president and vice president are used on the ballot
 instead of the names of the presidential electors; and
         (d) the ballots contain no other names.
         (3) When the ballot contains a nonpartisan section, the election officer shall ensure
 that:
         (a) the designation of the office to be filled in the election and the number of
 candidates to be elected are printed in type not smaller than eight point;
         (b) the words designating the office are printed flush with the left-hand margin;
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        02-06-24 11:54 AM                                                                          H.B. 489
        (c) the words, "Vote for one" or "Vote for up to _____ (the number of candidates for
 which the voter may vote)" extend to the extreme right of the column;
        (d) the nonpartisan candidates are grouped according to the office for which they are
 candidates;
        (e) the names in each group are placed in the order specified under Section 20A-6-305
 with the surnames last; [and]
        (f) for a local school board candidate who, in accordance with Subsections
 20A-14-203(3) and (4), chooses to have the candidate's party affiliation included on the ballot,
 the candidate's party affiliation appears adjacent to the candidate's name on the ballot; and
        [(f)] (g) each group is preceded by the designation of the office for which the
 candidates seek election, and the words, "Vote for one" or "Vote for up to _____ (the number
 of candidates for which the voter may vote)," according to the number to be elected.
        (4) Each election officer shall ensure that:
        (a) proposed amendments to the Utah Constitution are listed on the ballot in
 accordance with Section 20A-6-107;
        (b) ballot propositions submitted to the voters are listed on the ballot in accordance
 with Section 20A-6-107;
        (c) bond propositions that have qualified for the ballot are listed on the ballot under the
 title assigned to each bond proposition under Section 11-14-206; and
        (d) the judicial retention section of the ballot includes a statement at the beginning
 directing voters to the Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission's website in accordance
 with Subsection 20A-12-201(4).
        Section 3. Section 20A-6-401 is amended to read:
        20A-6-401. Ballots for municipal primary elections.
        (1) Each election officer shall ensure that:
        (a) the following endorsements are printed in 18 point bold type:
        (i) "Official Primary Ballot for ____ (City, Town, or Metro Township), Utah";
        (ii) the date of the election; and
        (iii) a facsimile of the signature of the election officer and the election officer's title in
 eight point type;
        (b) immediately below the election officer's title, two one-point parallel horizontal
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        H.B. 489                                                                  02-06-24 11:54 AM
 rules separate endorsements from the rest of the ballot;
         (c) immediately below the horizontal rules, an "Instructions to Voters" section is
 printed in 10 point bold type that states: "To vote for a candidate, mark the space following the
 name(s) of the person(s) you favor as the candidate(s) for each respective office." followed by
 two one-point parallel rules;
         (d) after the rules, the designation of the office for which the candidates seek
 nomination is printed and the words, "Vote for one" or "Vote for up to _____ (the number of
 candidates for which the voter may vote)" are printed in 10-point bold type, followed by a
 hair-line rule;
         (e) after the hair-line rule, the names of the candidates are printed in heavy face type
 between lines or rules three-eighths inch apart, in the order specified under Section 20A-6-305
 with surnames last and grouped according to the office that they seek;
         (f) for a municipal office candidate who, in accordance with Subsection
 20A-9-203(13), chooses to have the candidate's party affiliation included on the ballot, the
 candidate's party affiliation appears adjacent to the candidate's name on the ballot;
         [(f)] (g) a square with sides not less than one-fourth inch long is printed immediately
 adjacent to the names of the candidates; and
         [(g)] (h) the candidate groups are separated from each other by one light and one heavy
 line or rule.
         (2) A municipal primary ballot may not contain any space for write-in votes.
         Section 4. Section 20A-6-402 is amended to read:
         20A-6-402. Ballots for municipal general elections.
         (1) Except as otherwise required for a race conducted by instant runoff voting under
 [Title 20A, Chapter 4, Part 6, Municipal Alternate Voting Methods Pilot Project] Chapter 4,
 Part 6, Municipal Alternate Voting Methods Pilot Project, for a manual ballot at a municipal
 general election, an election officer shall ensure that:
         (a) the names of the two candidates who received the highest number of votes for
 mayor in the municipal primary are placed upon the ballot;
         (b) if no municipal primary election was held, the names of the candidates who filed
 declarations of candidacy for municipal offices are placed upon the ballot;
         (c) for other offices:
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        02-06-24 11:54 AM                                                                             H.B. 489
           (i) twice the number of candidates as there are positions to be filled are certified as
 eligible for election in the municipal general election from those candidates who received the
 greater number of votes in the primary election; and
           (ii) the names of those candidates are placed upon the municipal general election
 ballot;
           (d) the names of the candidates are placed on the ballot in the order specified under
 Section 20A-6-305;
           (e) for a municipal office candidate who, in accordance with Subsection
 20A-9-203(13), chooses to have the candidate's party affiliation included on the ballot, the
 candidate's party affiliation appears adjacent to the candidate's name on the ballot;
           [(e)] (f) in an election in which a voter is authorized to cast a write-in vote and where a
 write-in candidate is qualified under Section 20A-9-601, a write-in area is placed upon the
 ballot that contains, for each office in which there is a qualified write-in candidate:
           (i) a blank, horizontal line to enable a voter to submit a valid write-in candidate; and
           (ii) a square or other conforming area that is adjacent to or opposite the blank
 horizontal line to enable the voter to indicate the voter's vote;
           [(f)] (g) ballot propositions that have qualified for the ballot, including propositions
 submitted to the voters by the municipality, municipal initiatives, and municipal referenda, are
 listed on the ballot in accordance with Section 20A-6-107; and
           [(g)] (h) bond propositions that have qualified for the ballot are listed on the ballot
 under the title assigned to each bond proposition under Section 11-14-206.
           (2) Except as otherwise required for a race conducted by instant runoff voting under
 [Title 20A, Chapter 4, Part 6, Municipal Alternate Voting Methods Pilot Project] Chapter 4,
 Part 6, Municipal Alternate Voting Methods Pilot Project, when using a mechanical ballot at
 municipal general elections, each election officer shall ensure that:
           (a) the following endorsements are displayed on the first portion of the ballot:
           (i) "Official Ballot for ____ (City, Town, or Metro Township), Utah";
           (ii) the date of the election; and
           (iii) a facsimile of the signature of the election officer and the election officer's title;
           (b) immediately below the election officer's title, a distinct border or line separates the
 endorsements from the rest of the ballot;
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        H.B. 489                                                                 02-06-24 11:54 AM
        (c) immediately below the border or line, an "Instructions to Voters" section is
 displayed that states: "To vote for a candidate, select the name(s) of the person(s) you favor as
 the candidate(s) for each respective office." followed by another border or line;
        (d) after the border or line, the designation of the office for which the candidates seek
 election is displayed, and the words, "Vote for one" or "Vote for up to _____ (the number of
 candidates for which the voter may vote)" are displayed, followed by a line or border;
        (e) after the line or border, the names of the candidates are displayed in the order
 specified under Section 20A-6-305 with surnames last and grouped according to the office that
 they seek;