Florida HB 537 - Draft Sections 21-30

Note: Additions are notated in this manner; deletions are notated in this manner.

Section 21. Effective upon this act becoming a law, section 100.051, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
100.051 Candidate's name on general election ballot.--

The supervisor of elections of each county shall print on ballots to be used in the county at the next general election the names of candidates who have been nominated by a political party, other than a minor political party, and the candidates who have otherwise obtained a position on the general election ballot in compliance with the requirements of this code.

Section 22. Section 100.061, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
100.061 Primary election.--

In each year in which a general election is held, a primary election for nomination of candidates of political parties shall be held on the Tuesday 10 9 weeks prior to the general election. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes cast in each contest in the primary election shall be declared nominated for such office. If two or more candidates receive an equal and highest number of votes for the same office, such candidates shall draw lots to determine which candidate is nominated.

Section 23. Effective upon this act becoming a law, subsection (3) of section 100.111, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
100.111 Filling vacancy.--

(3) Whenever there is a vacancy for which a special election is required pursuant to s. 100.101, the Governor, after consultation with the Secretary of State, shall fix the dates of a special primary election and a special election. Nominees of political parties other than minor political parties shall be chosen under the primary laws of this state in the special primary election to become candidates in the special election.

Prior to setting the special election dates, the Governor shall consider any upcoming elections in the jurisdiction where the special election will be held. The dates fixed by the Governor shall be specific days certain and shall not be established by the happening of a condition or stated in the alternative. The dates fixed shall provide a minimum of 2 weeks between each election. In the event a vacancy occurs in the office of state senator or member of the House of Representatives when the

Legislature is in regular legislative session, the minimum times prescribed by this subsection may be waived upon concurrence of the Governor, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the President of the Senate. If a vacancy occurs in the office of state senator and no session of the Legislature is scheduled to be held prior to the next general election, the Governor may fix the dates for the special primary election and for the special election to coincide with the dates of the primary election and general election. If a vacancy in office occurs in any district in the state Senate or House of Representatives or in any congressional district, and no session of the Legislature, or session of Congress if the vacancy is in a congressional district, is scheduled to be held during the unexpired portion of the term, the Governor is not required to call a special election to fill such vacancy.

(a) The dates for candidates to qualify in such special election or special primary election shall be fixed by the Department of State, and candidates shall qualify not later than noon of the last day so fixed. The dates fixed for qualifying shall allow a minimum of 14 days between the last day of qualifying and the special primary election.

(b) The filing of campaign expense statements by candidates in such special elections or special primaries and by committees making contributions or expenditures to influence the results of such special primaries or special elections shall be not later than such dates as shall be fixed by the Department of State, and in fixing such dates the Department of State shall take into consideration and be governed by the practical time limitations.

(c) The dates for a candidate to qualify by the petition process pursuant to s. 99.095 in such special primary or special election shall be fixed by the Department of State. In fixing such dates the Department of State shall take into consideration and be governed by the practical time limitations. Any candidate seeking to qualify by the petition process in a special primary election shall obtain 25 percent of the signatures required by s. 99.095.

(d) The qualifying fees and party assessments of such candidates as may qualify shall be the same as collected for the same office at the last previous primary for that office. The party assessment shall be paid to the appropriate executive committee of the political party to which the candidate belongs.

(e) Each county canvassing board shall make as speedy a return of the result of such special primary elections and special elections as time will permit, and the Elections Canvassing Commission likewise shall make as speedy a canvass and declaration of the nominees as time will permit.

Section 24. Section 100.191, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
100.191 General election laws applicable to special elections; returns.--

All laws that are applicable to general elections are applicable to special elections or special primary elections to fill a vacancy in office or nomination, except that the canvass of returns by the county canvassing board of each county in which a special election is held shall be made on the day following the election, and the certificate of the result of the canvass shall be immediately forwarded to the Department of State. The Elections Canvassing Commission shall immediately, upon receipt of returns from the county in which a special election is held, proceed to canvass the returns and determine and declare the result thereof.

Section 25. Effective August 1, 2007, subsections (1) and (3) of section 100.371, Florida Statutes, are amended, present subsection (6) of that section is renumbered as subsection (7) and amended, and a new subsection (6) is added to that section, to read:
100.371 Initiatives; procedure for placement on ballot.--

(1) Constitutional amendments proposed by initiative shall be placed on the ballot for the general election, provided the initiative petition has been filed with the Secretary of State no later than February 1 of the year the general election is held. A petition shall be deemed to be filed with the Secretary of State upon the date the secretary determines that valid and verified the petition forms have has been signed by the constitutionally required number and distribution of electors under this code, subject to the right of revocation established in this section.

(3) Each signature shall be dated when made and shall be valid for a period of 4 years following such date, provided all other requirements of law are met. The sponsor shall submit signed and dated forms to the appropriate supervisor of elections for verification as to the number of registered electors whose valid signatures appear thereon. The supervisor shall promptly verify the signatures within 30 days of receipt of the petition forms and upon payment of the fee required by s. 99.097. The supervisor shall promptly record each valid signature in the statewide voter registration system, in the manner prescribed by the Secretary of State, the date each form is received by the supervisor and the date the signature on the form is verified as valid. The supervisor may verify that the signature on a form is valid only if:

• (a) The form contains the original signature of the purported elector.

• (b) The purported elector has accurately recorded on the form the date on which he or she signed the form.

• (c) The form accurately sets forth the purported elector's name, street address, county, and voter registration number or date of birth.

• (d) The purported elector is, at the time he or she signs the form, a duly qualified and registered elector authorized to vote in the county in which his or her signature is submitted.

The supervisor shall retain the signature forms for at least 1 year following the election in which the issue appeared on the ballot or until the Division of Elections notifies the supervisors of elections that the committee which circulated the petition is no longer seeking to obtain ballot position.

(6)

(a) An elector's signature on a petition form may be revoked within 150 days of the date on which he or she signed the petition form by submitting to the appropriate supervisor of elections a signed petition-revocation form adopted by rule for this purpose by the division.

(b) The petition-revocation form and the manner in which signatures are obtained, submitted, and verified shall be subject to the same relevant requirements and timeframes as the corresponding petition form and processes under this code and shall be approved by the Secretary of State before any signature on a petition-revocation form is obtained.

(c) Supervisors of elections shall provide petition1080 revocation forms to the public at all main and branch offices.

(d) The petition-revocation form shall be filed with the supervisor of elections by February 1 preceding the next general election or, if the initiative amendment is not certified for ballot position in that election, by February 1 preceding the next successive general election. The supervisor of elections shall promptly verify the signature on the petition-revocation form and process such revocation upon payment, in advance, of a fee of 10 cents or the actual cost of verifying such signature, whichever is less. The supervisor shall promptly record each valid and verified petition-revocation form in the statewide voter registration system in the manner prescribed by the Secretary of State.

(7)(6) The Department of State may adopt rules in accordance with s. 120.54 to carry out the provisions of subsections (1)-(6) (1)-(5).

Section 26. Subsection (1) of section 101.043, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
101.043 Identification required at polls.--

(1) The precinct register, as prescribed in s. 98.461, shall be used at the polls for the purpose of identifying the elector at the polls prior to allowing him or her to vote. The clerk or inspector shall require each elector, upon entering the polling place, to present one of the following current and valid picture identifications:

• (a) Florida driver's license.
• (b) Florida identification card issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
• (c) United States passport.
• (d) Employee badge or identification.
• (e) Buyer's club identification.
• (d)(f) Debit or credit card.
• (e)(g) Military identification.
• (f)(h) Student identification.
• (g)(i) Retirement center identification.
• (h)(j) Neighborhood association identification.
• (i)(k) Public assistance identification.

If the picture identification does not contain the signature of the voter, an additional identification that provides the voter's signature shall be required. The elector shall sign his or her name in the space provided on the precinct register or on an electronic device provided for recording the voter's signature. The clerk or inspector shall compare the signature with that on the identification provided by the elector and enter his or her initials in the space provided on the precinct register or on an electronic device provided for that purpose and allow the elector to vote if the clerk or inspector is satisfied as to the identity of the elector.

Section 27. Subsection (1) of section 101.048, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
101.048 Provisional ballots.--

(1) At all elections, a voter claiming to be properly registered in the state and eligible to vote at the precinct in the election but whose eligibility cannot be determined, a person whom an election official asserts is not eligible, and other persons specified in the code shall be entitled to vote a provisional ballot. Once voted, the provisional ballot shall be placed in a secrecy envelope and thereafter sealed in a provisional ballot envelope. The provisional ballot shall be deposited in a ballot box. All provisional ballots shall remain sealed in their envelopes for return to the supervisor of elections. The department shall prescribe the form of the provisional ballot envelope. A person casting a provisional ballot shall have the right to present written evidence supporting his or her eligibility to vote to the supervisor of elections by not later than 5 p.m. on the second third day following the election.

Section 28. Subsection (1) of section 101.573, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
101.573 Record of votes by precinct.--

(1) Within 35 75 days after the date of a municipal election or runoff, whichever occurs later, a presidential preference primary, a primary election, a special election, or a general election, the supervisor of elections shall file with the Department of State precinct-level election results, in an electronic format specified by the Department of State, for that election cycle, including any primary elections. Precinct-level election results shall separately record for each precinct all demographic data associated with each precinct at book close for each election, individual vote history, the returns of ballots cast at the precinct location, to which have been added the returns of absentee ballots cast by voters registered in the precinct, and the returns of early ballots cast by voters registered in the precinct. The data are required to be cross referenced by political party and other demographic information as defined by the Department of State. The Department of State shall create a uniform system for the collection and reporting of such precinct-level election results and vote history.

Section 29. Subsections (6) and (8) of section 101.6103, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
101.6103 Mail ballot election procedure.--

(6) The canvassing board may begin the canvassing of mail ballots at 7 a.m. on the sixth fourth day before the election, including processing the ballots through the tabulating equipment. However, results may not be released until after 7 p.m. on election day. Any canvassing board member or election employee who releases any result before 7 p.m. on election day commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

(8) Effective July 1, 2005, A ballot that otherwise satisfies the requirements of subsection (5) shall be counted even if the elector dies after mailing the ballot but before election day, as long as, prior to the death of the voter, the ballot was:

(a) Postmarked by the United States Postal Service;

(b) Date-stamped with a verifiable tracking number by common carrier; or

(c) Already in the possession of the supervisor of elections.

Section 30. Effective July 1, 2007, subsections (1) and (4) of section 101.62, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
101.62 Request for absentee ballots.--

(1)

(a) The supervisor may accept a request for an absentee ballot from an elector in person or in writing. Except as provided in s. 101.694, one request shall be deemed sufficient to receive an absentee ballot for all elections through the next two regularly scheduled general elections which are held within a calendar year, unless the elector or the elector's designee indicates at the time the request is made the elections for which the elector desires to receive an absentee ballot. Such request may be considered canceled when any first-class mail sent by the supervisor to the elector is returned as undeliverable.

(b) The supervisor may accept a written or telephonic request for an absentee ballot from the elector, or, if directly instructed by the elector, a member of the elector's immediate family, or the elector's legal guardian. For purposes of this section, the term "immediate family" has the same meaning as specified in paragraph (4)(b). The person making the request must disclose:

1.  The name of the elector for whom the ballot is requested;

2.  The elector's address;

3. The elector's date of birth;

4. The requester's name;

5.  The requester's address;

6. The requester's driver's license number, if available;

7. The requester's relationship to the elector; and

8. The requester's signature (written requests only).

(4)

(a) To each absent qualified elector overseas who has requested an absentee ballot, the supervisor of elections shall mail an absentee ballot not less fewer than 35 days before the primary election and not less than 45 days before the or general election.

(b) The supervisor shall provide an absentee ballot to each elector by whom a request for that ballot has been made by one of the following means:

1. By nonforwardable, return-if-undeliverable mail to the elector's current mailing address on file with the supervisor, unless the elector specifies in the request that:

1. The elector is absent from the county and does not plan to return before the day of the election;

2. The elector is temporarily unable to occupy the residence because of hurricane, tornado, flood, fire, or other emergency or natural disaster; or

3. The elector is in a hospital, assisted-living facility, nursing home, short-term medical or rehabilitation facility, or correctional facility, in which case the supervisor shall mail the ballot by nonforwardable, return-if-undeliverable mail to any other address the elector specifies in the request.

2. By forwardable mail to voters who are entitled to vote by absentee ballot under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act.

3. By personal delivery before 7 p.m. on election day to the elector, upon presentation of the identification required in s. 101.043 s. 101.657.

4. By delivery to a designee on election day or up to 5 4 days prior to the day of an election. Any elector may designate in writing a person to pick up the ballot for the elector; however, the person designated may not pick up more than two absentee ballots per election, other than the designee's own ballot, except that additional ballots may be picked up for members of the designee's immediate family. For purposes of this section, "immediate family" means the designee's spouse or the parent, child, grandparent, or sibling of the designee or of the designee's spouse. The designee shall provide to the supervisor the written authorization by the elector and a picture identification of the designee and must complete an affidavit.

The designee shall state in the affidavit that the designee is authorized by the elector to pick up that ballot and shall indicate if the elector is a member of the designee's immediate family and, if so, the relationship. The department shall prescribe the form of the affidavit. If the supervisor is satisfied that the designee is authorized to pick up the ballot and that the signature of the elector on the written authorization matches the signature of the elector on file, the supervisor shall give the ballot to that designee for delivery to the elector.