SUMMARY--Changes date of primary election. (BDR 24-1362)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: No.
Effect on the State or on Industrial Insurance: No.
EXPLANATION - Matter in italics is new; matter in brackets [ ] is material to be omitted.
AN ACT relating to elections; changing the date of the primary election; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1 NRS 293.165 is hereby amended to read as follows:
293.1651. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 293.166, a vacancy occurring in a major or minor political party nomination for office may be filled by a candidate designated by the party central committee of the county or state, as the case may be, subject to the provisions of subsections 4 and 5.
2. A vacancy occurring in a nonpartisan nomination after the close of filing and before the [first] fourth Tuesday in [September] August must be filled by filing a nominating petition that is signed by at least 1 percent of the persons who are registered to vote and who voted for the office in question in the state, county, district or municipality at the last preceding general election. The petition must be filed not earlier than the first Tuesday in June and not later than the [third] second Tuesday in September. A candidate nominated pursuant to the provisions of this subsection may be elected only at a general election and his name must not appear on the ballot for a primary election.
3. A vacancy occurring in a nonpartisan nomination after a primary election and before the [second] first Tuesday in September must be filled by the person who received the next highest vote for the nomination in the primary.
4. Except to place a candidate nominated pursuant to subsection 2 on the ballot, no change may be made on the ballot after the [second] first Tuesday in September of the year in which the general election is held. If a nominee dies after that date, his name must remain on the ballot and, if elected, a vacancy exists.
5. All designations provided for in this section must be filed before 5 p.m. on the [second] first Tuesday in September. In each case, the statutory filing fee must be paid and an acceptance of the designation must be filed before 5 p.m. on that date.
Sec. 2 NRS 293.166 is hereby amended to read as follows:
293.1661. A vacancy occurring in a party nomination for the office of state senator or assemblyman from a legislative district comprising more than one county may be filled as follows, subject to the provisions of subsections 2 and 3. The county commissioners of each county all or part of which is included within the legislative district, shall meet to appoint a person of the same political party as the former nominee to fill the vacancy, under the chairmanship of the chairman of the board of county commissioners of the county whose population residing within the district is the greatest. Each board of county commissioners shall first meet separately and determine the single candidate it will nominate to fill the vacancy. Then the boards shall meet jointly and the chairmen on behalf of the boards shall cast a proportionate number of votes according to the percent, rounded to the nearest whole percent, which the population of its county is of the population of the entire district. Populations must be determined by the last decennial census or special census conducted by the Bureau of the Census of the United States Department of Commerce. The person who receives a plurality of these votes is appointed to fill the vacancy. If no person receives a plurality of the votes, the boards of county commissioners of the respective counties shall each as a group select one candidate, and the nominee must be chosen by drawing lots among the persons so selected.
2. No change may be made on the ballot for a general election after the [second] first Tuesday in September of the year in which the general election is held. If a nominee dies after that date, his name must remain on the ballot and, if elected, a vacancy exists.
3. The designation of a nominee pursuant to this section must be filed with the secretary of state before 5 p.m. of the [second] first Tuesday in September, and the statutory filing fee must be paid with the designation.
Sec. 3 NRS 293.175 is hereby amended to read as follows:
293.1751. The primary election must be held on the [first] fourth Tuesday of [September] August in each even-numbered year.
2. Candidates of a major political party and candidates for nonpartisan offices must be nominated at the primary election.
3. Candidates of a minor political party must be nominated in the manner prescribed pursuant to NRS 293.171.
4. Independent candidates for partisan office must be nominated in the manner provided in NRS 293.200.
5. The provisions of NRS 293.175 to 293.203, inclusive, do not apply to:
(a) Special elections to fill vacancies.
(b) The nomination of the officers of incorporated cities.
(c) The nomination of district officers whose nomination is otherwise provided for by statute.
Sec. 4 NRS 293.345 is hereby amended to read as follows:
293.3451. The county clerk shall mail to each registered voter in each mailing precinct and in each absent ballot mailing precinct, before 5 p.m. on the [third] second Thursday in August and before 5 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday in October of any year in which a general election is to be held, an official mailing ballot to be voted by him at the election.
2. The city clerk shall mail to each registered voter in each mailing precinct and in each absent ballot mailing precinct, before 5 p.m. on the third Thursday in April and before 5 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday in May of any year in which a general city election is to be held, an official mailing ballot to be voted by him at the election.
Sec. 5 NRS 293.368 is hereby amended to read as follows:
293.3681. Whenever a candidate whose name appears upon the ballot at a:
(a) General election dies after 5 p.m. [of the 3rd] on the second Tuesday in September; or
(b) General city election dies after 5 p.m. [of the 3rd] on the third Tuesday in May,
and before the time of the closing of the polls on the day of the election, the votes cast for the deceased candidate must be counted in determining the results of the election for the office for which the decedent was a candidate.
2. If the deceased candidate receives the majority of the votes cast for the office, he shall be considered elected and the office to which he was elected shall be considered vacant at the beginning of the term for which he was elected. The vacancy thus created must be filled in the same manner as if the candidate had died after taking office for that term.
Sec. 6 Section 5.020 of the charter of the City of Reno, being chapter 662, Statutes of Nevada 1971, as last amended by chapter 462, Statutes of Nevada 1993, at page 1468, is hereby amended to read as follows:
Sec. 5.020 Primary elections; declaration of candidacy.
1. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a candidate for any office to be voted for at an election [shall] must file an affidavit of candidacy with the city clerk not less than 30 nor more than 40 days before the day of the primary election. A candidate for any office to be voted for at an election held after June 1995 [shall] must file an affidavit of candidacy with the city clerk not earlier than January 1 of the year in which the election is to be held nor later than 5 p.m. on the second Tuesday in May. The city clerk shall charge and collect from the candidate and the candidate [shall] must pay to the city clerk, at the time of filing the affidavit of candidacy, a filing fee of $25 for filing an affidavit of candidacy. All filing fees so collected by the city clerk must be deposited to the credit of the general fund of the city.
2. [If for any general municipal election held before July 1995, there are three or more candidates for any office to be filled at that election, a primary election for any such office must be held on the Tuesday following the first Monday in May preceding the general election. If for any general municipal election there are two or fewer candidates for any office to be filled at that election, their names must not be placed on the ballot for the primary municipal election but must be placed on the ballot for the general election.
3.] If for any general election [held after June 1995,] there are three or more candidates for any office to be filled at that election, a primary election for any such office must be held on the [first] fourth Tuesday in [September] August preceding the general election. If for any general election there are two or fewer candidates for any office to be filled at that election, their names must not be placed on the ballot for the primary election but must be placed on the ballot for the general election.
[4.] 3. In the primary election:
(a) The names of the two candidates for municipal judge, city attorney, or a particular city council seat, as the case may be, who receive the highest number of votes must be placed on the ballot for the general election.
(b) Candidates for councilman who represent a specific ward must be voted upon only by the registered voters of that ward.
(c) Candidates for mayor and councilman at large must be voted upon by all registered voters of the city.
[5.] 4. The mayor and all councilmen must be voted upon by all registered voters of the city at the general election.