S.B. 78

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ELECTION LAW - POLITICAL PARTIES
2 1997 GENERAL SESSION
3 STATE OF UTAH
4 Sponsor: Pete Suazo
5 AN ACT RELATING TO ELECTIONS; MODIFYING DATES FOR BECOMING A
6 REGISTERED POLITICAL PARTY; MODIFYING REQUIREMENTS FOR REGISTERING
7 POLITICAL PARTY NAMES; ESTABLISHING REQUIREMENTS GOVERNING
8 POLITICAL PARTY EMBLEMS; CLARIFYING REQUIREMENTS GOVERNING
9 POLITICAL PARTY OFFICERS AND LIAISONS; MODIFYING DATES FOR POLITICAL
10 PARTIES TO CERTIFY CANDIDATES; CLARIFYING CERTIFICATION
11 REQUIREMENTS; AND MAKING TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS.
12 This act affects sections of Utah Code Annotated 1953 as follows:
13 AMENDS:
14 20A-8-103, as last amended by Chapter 213, Laws of Utah 1996
15 20A-8-107, as enacted by Chapter 21, Laws of Utah 1994
16 20A-9-403, as last amended by Chapters 1 and 340, Laws of Utah 1995
17 ENACTS:
18 20A-8-402, Utah Code Annotated 1953
19 20A-8-403, Utah Code Annotated 1953
20 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
21 Section 1. Section 20A-8-103 is amended to read:
22 20A-8-103. Petition procedures.
23 (1) To become a registered political party, an organization of registered voters that is not
24 a continuing political party shall file a petition with the lieutenant governor that is signed by at
25 least 500 registered voters on or before [March 1] February 15 of the year in which a regular
26 general election will be held.
27 (2) The petition shall:

1 (a) state that the signers are or desire to become members of the designated party or group;
2 (b) state the name and identify the emblem of the party or group;
3 (c) state the process that the organization will follow to organize and adopt a constitution
4 and bylaws; and
5 (d) be signed by a filing officer, who agrees to receive communications on behalf of the
6 organization.
7 (3) The lieutenant governor shall:
8 (a) determine whether or not the required number of voters appears on the petition; and
9 (b) certify his findings to the filing officer of the group within 30 days of the filing of the
10 petition.
11 (4) If the lieutenant governor determines that the petition meets the requirements of this
12 section, he shall authorize the filing officer to organize the prospective political party.
13 Section 2. Section 20A-8-107 is amended to read:
14 20A-8-107. Naming and identifying registered political parties.
15 (1) As used in this section, the proposed name or emblem of a registered political party
16 is "distinguishable" if a reasonable person of average intelligence will be able to perceive a
17 difference between the proposed name and any name currently reserved by another registered
18 political party.
19 (2) (a) A registered political party may reserve a name, an emblem, or both by filing an
20 application to reserve a specified name or emblem with the lieutenant governor.
21 (b) If the lieutenant governor finds that the name or emblem is distinguishable, the
22 lieutenant governor shall reserve the name or emblem for the applicant.
23 (3) If a registered political party has reserved a name, an emblem, or both, it may not
24 change the name or emblem during the regular general election cycle.
25 (4) A registered political party may not reserve a name or emblem during the regular
26 general election cycle.
27 Section 3. Section 20A-8-402 is enacted to read:
28 20A-8-402. Political party officers -- Submission of names of officers to the lieutenant
29 governor.
30 Each registered political party shall:
31 (1) designate a state party officer to act as liaison with the lieutenant governor's office;

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1 (2) submit the names of its state officers and liaison to the lieutenant governor within
2 seven days after the officers are selected; and
3 (3) within seven days of any change in party officers or liaison, submit the names of the
4 new officers and liaison to the lieutenant governor.
5 Section 4. Section 20A-8-403 is enacted to read:
6 20A-8-403. Political parties -- Certification.
7 When this title requires that a registered political party certify information to the lieutenant
8 governor, the registered political party has met that requirement if the information is signed by the
9 registered political party's designated liaison or the registered political party's chair.
10 Section 5. Section 20A-9-403 is amended to read:
11 20A-9-403. Regular primary elections.
12 (1) (a) The fourth Tuesday of June of each even-numbered year is designated as regular
13 primary election day.
14 (b) Each registered political party that chooses to use the primary election process to
15 nominate some or all of its candidates shall comply with the requirements of this section.
16 (2) (a) (i) Each registered political party that wishes to participate in the primary election
17 shall submit the names of its county candidates to the county clerks and the names of all of its
18 [statewide or multicounty] candidates to the lieutenant governor by 5 p.m. on May [20] 10 of each
19 even-numbered year.
20 (ii) By 5 p.m. on May 14 of each even-numbered year, the lieutenant governor shall send
21 the county clerks a certified list of the names of all statewide or multicounty candidates that must
22 be printed on the primary ballot.
23 (b) If a registered political party does not wish to participate in the primary election, it
24 shall submit the names of its county candidates to the county clerks and the names of all of its
25 [statewide or multicounty] candidates to the lieutenant governor by 5 p.m. on [August] July 15 of
26 each even-numbered year.
27 (3) The county clerk shall:
28 (a) review the declarations of candidacy filed by candidates for local boards of education
29 to determine if more than two candidates have filed for the same seat;
30 (b) place the names of all candidates who have filed a declaration of candidacy for a local
31 board of education seat on the nonpartisan section of the ballot if more than two candidates have

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1 filed for the same seat; and
2 (c) conduct a lottery to determine the order of the candidates' names on the ballot.
3 (4) After the county clerk receives the certified list from a registered political party, the
4 county clerk shall post or publish a primary election notice in substantially the following form:
5 "Notice is given that a primary election will be held Tuesday, June ____, 19__, to nominate
6 party candidates for the parties and nonpartisan offices listed on the primary ballot. The polling
7 place for voting precinct ____ is ____. The polls will open at 7 a.m. and continue open until 8
8 p.m. of the same day. Attest: county clerk".
9 (5) (a) Candidates receiving the highest number of votes cast for each office at the regular
10 primary election are nominated by their party or nonpartisan group for that office.
11 (b) If two or more candidates are to be elected to the office at the regular general election,
12 those party candidates equal in number to positions to be filled who receive the highest number
13 of votes at the regular primary election are the nominees of their party for those positions.
14 (6) (a) When a tie vote occurs in any primary election for any national, state, or other
15 office that represents more than one county, the governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney
16 general shall, at a public meeting called by the governor and in the presence of the candidates
17 involved, select the nominee by lot cast in whatever manner the governor determines.
18 (b) When a tie vote occurs in any primary election for any county office, the district court
19 judges of the district in which the county is located shall, at a public meeting called by the judges
20 and in the presence of the candidates involved, select the nominee by lot cast in whatever manner
21 the judges determine.
22 (7) The expense of providing all ballots, blanks, or other supplies to be used at any primary
23 election provided for by this section, and all expenses necessarily incurred in the preparation for
24 or the conduct of that primary election shall be paid out of the treasury of the county or state, in
25 the same manner as for the regular general elections.


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Legislative Review Note
as of 11-21-96 8:57 AM

A limited legal review of this bill raises no obvious constitutional or statutory concerns.

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel

Committee Note

The State and Local Affairs Interim Committee recommended this bill.

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