SENATE, No. 1432

 

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

 

INTRODUCED JULY 25, 1996

 

 

By Senators SCHLUTER, Bubba and Bassano

 

 

An Act concerning political parties, supplementing Title 19 of the Revised Statutes, amending various parts of the statutory law, and repealing R.S.19:34-52.

 

    Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

    1. (New section) a. Sections 1 through 6 of this act shall be known and may be cited as the "Primary Ballot Reform Act."

    b. As used in sections 1 through 6 of this act:

     "party line" means either the horizontal line or the vertical column into which candidates are grouped on a primary election ballot; and

    "ballot slating convention" means a convention called by a county or municipal political party for the purpose of determining ballot structure.

 

    2. (New section) The Legislature finds and declares that:

    a. primary elections are a critical part of the democratic process in this country and in this State because it is through this procedure that qualified candidates for elective office are initially screened;

    b. the great political reform movements of the early part of this century, which promoted the primary system, recognized the importance of primaries in curbing the unbridled power of party bosses;

    c. the significance of primary elections is further highlighted by the fact that, in many parts of this State, dominance by one party means that candidates selected at that party's primary will be elected to office at the general election; 

    d. the present system by which political parties in this State select primary candidates has permitted too much power and discretion to vest in certain individuals, usually the chair of the county committee of a political party;

    e. often this one person, with considerable ease, is able to make unilateral decisions as to which candidates will receive the party endorsement and have their names appear on the primary ballot on the party line under a common designation or slogan, thereby giving favored candidates a virtually unbeatable advantage over opponents;

    f. this has frequently resulted in primary candidates being selected in a grossly unfair and undemocratic manner without participation by the party membership;

    g. the essential purpose of a primary election, which is to give the members of a political party the opportunity to select the party's standard-bearers at the general election, is subverted when a small minority within the party is able to stifle the voice of the party membership by manipulating the process in an arbitrary and discriminatory manner which distorts the primary ballot structure and alignment and effects the election's outcome;

    h. in Eu v. San Francisco County Democratic Central Committee, 489 U.S. 214 (1989), the United States Supreme Court invalidated on First Amendment grounds certain California statutes which regulated the internal affairs of political parties;

    i. nevertheless, the Supreme Court recognized that restrictions which infringe upon a party's right to freedom of association may be justified when there is a sufficiently strong State interest;

    j. the need to reform the process by which a political party in this State designates the candidates who will be the party's standard-bearers on that party's primary election ballot is one of those instances in which the possible infringement on associational rights is justified by the State's compelling interest in ensuring an orderly and fundamentally fair system of structuring primary election ballots;

    k. by providing for an orderly method of structuring a primary election ballot, the State protects the due process and equal protection interests of all involved, promotes openness and accountability in representative government and avoids arbitrary and discriminatory actions by individual party functionaries which detract from the contributions political parties have made to good government and American democracy;

    l. improving the primary ballot structuring process would help to eliminate unfair and discriminatory ballot placements which have often meant the difference between success and failure in a primary election, thereby affecting the ultimate selection of the person who represents a constituency;

    m. since under New Jersey law a political party is entitled to the use of a primary ballot, that party has a responsibility to properly structure that ballot; and

    n. these legitimate and worthwhile objectives may be accomplished in a manner which intrudes upon internal party activities to an extent which is no greater than the provisions of law which allow a political party organization to fill certain vacancies in elective public office.


    3. (New section) a. Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law to the contrary, in any county in which voting machines are used, primary election candidates shall appear on the primary ballot, by joint or individual petition, in an order determined by a random drawing conducted by the county clerk, except that if a political party holds a ballot slating convention in the manner provided by subsection b. of this section, candidates designated by the convention shall be grouped together on the party line, which may include a common designation or slogan.

    b. The county organization of a political party may hold a ballot slating convention between 21 days and seven days prior to the deadline for the filing of primary election petitions. The members of the county committee of the political party who have served for a period of at least 30 days immediately preceding the convention shall be delegates to the convention. The county chair and municipal chairs who have served for a period of at least 30 days immediately preceding the convention and who are not members of the county committee shall also be delegates to the convention. Delegates shall receive seven days' notice of the convention. One-third of the delegates shall constitute a quorum. The delegates shall vote by secret ballot to determine which individuals seeking nomination for election shall be designated by the county organization to appear on the party line. Only delegates who reside in the district for which nomination for election is sought shall vote on that particular designation.

    A candidate seeking designation by a ballot slating convention must submit a standard nominating petition or a copy thereof to the convention at least three days prior to the convening thereof. A candidate for nomination for election to an office from a district which crosses county lines may seek designation at the convention of each county included in the district. Voting by proxy or by unit rule is prohibited. A candidate seeking designation must be nominated by a delegate.

    A candidate for nomination for election to an office who receives the votes of more than 50% of the delegates who are present and who reside in the district for which nomination for election is sought shall be the designated candidate, shall be eligible to be placed on the party line on the primary ballot, and shall be eligible to receive the same slogan or designation assigned by the campaign manager of the county freeholders' slate as other candidates on the party line. If another candidate for nomination for election to that office receives between 20% and 50% of the vote, that candidate shall also be eligible to be placed on the party line, but without the slogan or designation of the designated candidates on the party line and in a position below or to the right, as appropriate, of the candidate who received more than 50% of the vote. If two or more candidates receive between 20% and 50% of the vote, those candidates shall be eligible to be placed on the party line in order of the number of votes received but without the official party designation or slogan given to designated candidates on the party line. A candidate who receives less than 20% of the vote shall not be eligible to be placed on the party line and that candidate's ballot position shall be determined by a random drawing conducted by the county clerk unless that candidate is part of a county slate entitled to a separate line as provided in section 4 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (now pending before the Legislature as this bill). Whenever any candidate submits a petition seeking designation by a party convention, the convention shall hold a vote on designating a candidate for the office sought. The results of the balloting shall be reported forthwith to the county clerk. In the event of a tie vote, the ballot position of the candidates shall be determined by a random drawing conducted by the county clerk.

 

    4. (New section) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law to the contrary, the campaign manager for candidates for nomination for election to the office of county freeholder shall cross certify candidates designated by a convention into the party line. Any other group filing a petition for all candidates eligible for nomination to the office of county freeholder shall be eligible for a separate line on the primary ballot. If there is more than one group of freeholder candidates choosing to have a separate line, including a group selected at a ballot slating convention, ballot position of each group shall be determined by a random drawing conducted by the county clerk.

    A candidate whose name appears on a party line may have listed therewith the candidate's own slogan or designation or the slogan or designation of an incorporated entity with the permission of the person having authority to permit the use thereof and with permission of the campaign manager as provided in this section.

    The municipal organization of a political party, consisting of the party's county committee members residing in the municipality, may conduct a ballot slating convention at any time after the holding of a convention by the party's county organization in the county in which the municipality is situated but not later than three days prior to the filing deadline for the primary. A municipal ballot slating convention shall be conducted in a manner which is similar to the procedures set forth above for a county convention and may designate candidates for placement on the party line or on a separate ballot line.

    To qualify for a separate ballot line, a municipal slate of candidates must include candidates for all eligible positions on the municipal governing body, but need not have candidates for all county committee positions in that municipality. The candidates for the municipal governing body shall appoint a campaign manager, who will allow other candidates, including county committee persons of that municipality, to be admitted to the same municipal ballot line.

    A municipal slate may request permission from the campaign manager of a group of county candidates having a separate ballot line to be included on the same line as the county candidates. If there is more than one municipal slate entitled to a separate line, but not the same line as a separate group of county candidates, the order of placement of the municipal slates shall be by draw of the county clerk.

    A municipal candidate, including candidates for county committee in that municipality, who has not been designated by the municipal convention process or who is not part of a municipal ballot line shall be placed on the ballot in an order determined by a random drawing conducted by the county clerk but not on the same line as county candidates who have a separate line, and in a position on the ballot to the right or below, as the case may be, of any municipal slate of candidates.

 

    5. (New section) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law to the contrary, the county committee of a political party shall have the authority, by a majority vote of the membership, to break a tie when two candidates for membership on the county committee receive the same number of votes in the primary election, when two candidates to fill a vacancy in the membership of the county committee receive the same number of votes, or when two candidates for the office of chairman of a municipal committee of the political party receive the same number of votes. A county committee shall also have the authority to vote to accept as a member of the county committee an individual from a municipality having no county committee member who submits a petition for county committee membership signed by at least eight party members residing in that individual's district of that municipality. At least seven days' notice shall be given of any meeting held pursuant to this section. One-third of the membership of a county committee shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of conducting business at any such meeting.

 

    6. (New section) The State, county or municipal committee of any political party, as well as any officer or member thereof, may endorse the candidacy of any candidate for nomination for election at a primary election.

 

    7. R.S.19:1-1 is amended to read as follows:

    19:1-1. As used in this Title:

    "Election" means the procedure whereby the electors of this State or any political subdivision thereof elect persons to fill public office or pass on public questions.

    "General election" means the annual election to be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November.

    "Primary election" means the procedure whereby the members of a political party in this State or any political subdivision thereof nominate candidates to be voted for at general elections, or elect persons to fill party offices, or delegates and alternates to national conventions.

    "Municipal election" means an election to be held in and for a single municipality only, at regular intervals.

    "Special election" means an election which is not provided for by law to be held at stated intervals.

    "Any election" includes all primary, general, municipal , school and special elections, as defined herein.

    "Municipality" includes any city, town, borough, village, or township.

    "School election" means any annual or special election to be held in and for a local or regional school district established pursuant to chapter 8 or chapter 13 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.

    "Public office" includes any office in the government of this State or any of its political subdivisions filled at elections by the electors of the State or political subdivision.

    "Public question" includes any question, proposition or referendum required by the legislative or governing body of this State or any of its political subdivisions to be submitted by referendum procedure to the voters of the State or political subdivision for decision at elections.

    "Political party" means a party which, at the election held for all of the members of the General Assembly next preceding the holding of any primary election held pursuant to this Title, polled for members of the General Assembly at least [10%] 3% of the total vote cast in this State.

    "Party office" means the office of delegate or alternate to the national convention of a political party or member of the State, county or municipal committees of a political party.

    "Masculine" includes the feminine, and the masculine pronoun wherever used in this Title shall be construed to include the feminine.

    "Presidential year" means the year in which electors of President and Vice-President of the United States are voted for at the general election.

    "Election district" means the territory within which or for which there is a polling place or room for all voters in the territory to cast their ballots at any election.

    "District board" means the district board of registry and election in an election district.

    "County board" means the county board of elections in a county.

    "Superintendent" means the superintendent of elections in counties wherein the same shall have been appointed.

    "Commissioner" means the commissioner of registration in counties.

    "File" or "filed" means deposited in the regularly maintained office


 of the public official wherever said regularly maintained office is designated by statute, ordinance or resolution.

(cf: P.L.1995, c.278, s.13)

 

    8. R.S.19:5-1 is amended to read as follows:

    19:5-1. A political party may nominate candidates for public office at primary elections provided for in this Title, elect committees for the party within the State, county or municipality, as the case may be, and in every other respect may exercise the rights and shall be subject to the restrictions herein provided for political parties; except that no political party which fails to poll at any primary election for a general election at least [ten] three per centum [(10%)] (3%) of the votes cast in the State for members of the General Assembly at the next preceding general election, held for the election of all of the members of the General Assembly, shall be entitled to have a party column on the official ballot at the general election for which the primary election has been held. In such case the names of the candidates so nominated at the primary election shall be printed in the column or columns designated "Nomination by Petition" on the official ballot under the respective titles of office for which the nominations have been made, followed by the designation of the political party of which the candidates are members.

(cf: P.L.1948, c.438, s.4)

  

    9. R.S.19:34-52 is repealed.

 

    10. This act shall take effect immediately and sections 1 through 6 thereof shall apply to primary elections occurring more than 30 days thereafter.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

    This bill provides that, in any county in which voting machines are used, the order in which candidates appear on a primary election ballot shall be determined by a random drawing conducted by the county clerk, unless the county organization of a political party holds a ballot slating convention for the purpose of designating candidates and determining the order in which those candidates will appear on the party line on the primary ballot. The members of the county committee would be delegates to the convention. The county chair and any municipal chairs who are not members of the county committee would also be delegates to the convention. Only delegates who reside in the district for which nomination for election is sought shall vote on that particular designation. Designations would be determined by secret ballot. Voting by proxy or by unit rule would be prohibited. A candidate for nomination for election from a district which involves parts of more than one county may seek designation from a convention in each county.

    The bill also provides that the campaign manager for candidates for nomination for election to the office of county freeholder shall cross-certify candidates designated by a convention into the party line; allows the municipal organization of a political party to conduct a ballot slating convention to designate candidates into a municipal line; and authorizes the county committee of a political party to break tie votes in elections for county committee member or for the chair of a municipal committee, and to vote to accept as a member of the county committee an individual from a municipality having no county committee members in that municipality. In addition, the bill reduces from 10% to 3% the total number of votes which a party must have polled at an election for members of the General Assembly in order to be recognized as a political party under New Jersey law.

    The bill repeals R.S.19:34-52 which prohibits political party committees from endorsing primary candidates. That section of law was invalidated by a consent order of the Superior Court based upon the decision of the United States Supreme Court in Eu v. San Francisco County Democratic Committee, 109 S.Ct. 1013 (1989). The bill expressly authorizes political party committees, as well as officers and members thereof, to endorse primary candidates.

    Although the bill affects the internal affairs of political parties, and may, therefore, infringe to some extent upon the associational rights of parties and party members, its provisions are necessary to further the State's compelling interest in ensuring that party primary ballot structure is determined in a fair, equitable and democratic manner and in guaranteeing an orderly primary election process.

 

 

                             

 

The "Primary Ballot Reform Act"; establishes procedure for determining party designations and position on primary ballots; effectuates certain other electoral reforms.