Assembly Bill No. 344–Assemblyman Perkins

 

CHAPTER..........

 

AN ACT relating to elections; providing for a special election to fill a vacancy in the office of Representative in Congress; requiring that the election be held sooner in the event of certain catastrophes; 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. Chapter 304 of NRS is hereby amended by adding

thereto the provisions set forth as sections 2 to 7, inclusive, of this

act.

    Sec. 2.  As used in sections 2 to 7, inclusive, of this act, unless

the context otherwise requires, the words and terms defined in

sections 3 and 4 of this act have the meanings ascribed to them in

those sections.

    Sec. 3.  “Catastrophe” means a natural or man-made event

that causes, by death or disappearance, a vacancy in at least one-

fourth of the total number of offices in the United States House of

Representatives, including any number of offices representing the

State of Nevada, or at least one-half of the total number of offices

representing the State of Nevada.

    Sec. 4.  “Disappearance” means the inability to establish

conclusively whether a Representative in Congress has survived a

catastrophe.

    Sec. 5.  1.  In the event of a vacancy in the office of

Representative in Congress, the Governor shall, within 7 days

after the event giving rise to the vacancy, issue an election

proclamation calling for a special election to fill the vacancy. The

Governor shall specify the date of the special election in

the proclamation. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2,

the election must be conducted:

    (a) As soon as practicable after the issuance of the

proclamation;

    (b) On a Tuesday; and

    (c) Not more than 180 days after the issuance of the

proclamation. If the vacancy is caused by a catastrophe,

the election must be conducted not more than 90 days after the

issuance of the proclamation.

    2.  A special election required pursuant to subsection 1 may

be consolidated with a statewide election or local election

scheduled to be conducted within 90 days after the issuance of the

proclamation. The special election may be consolidated with a

local election occurring wholly or partially within the same

territory in which the vacancy exists only if the voters eligible to

vote in the local election comprise at least 50 percent of all voters

eligible to vote on the vacancy.

    Sec. 6.  1.  If the Governor issues an election proclamation

calling for a special election pursuant to section 5 of this act, no

primary election may be held. Except as otherwise provided in this

subsection, a candidate must be nominated in the manner

provided in chapter 293 of NRS and must file a declaration or

acceptance of candidacy within the time prescribed by the

Secretary of State pursuant to NRS 293.204, which must be

established to allow a sufficient amount of time for the mailing of

election ballots. A candidate of a major political party is

nominated by filing a declaration or acceptance of candidacy

within the time prescribed by the Secretary of State pursuant to

NRS 293.204. A minor political party that wishes to place its

candidates on the ballot must file a list of its candidates with the

Secretary of State not more than 46 days before the special

election and not less than 32 days before the special election. To

have his name appear on the ballot, an independent candidate

must file his petition of candidacy with the appropriate filing

officer not more than 46 days before the special election and not

less than 32 days before the special election.

    2.  Except as otherwise provided in sections 2 to 7, inclusive,

of this act:

    (a) The election must be conducted pursuant to the provisions

of chapter 293 of NRS.

    (b) The general election laws of this state apply to the election.

    Sec. 7.  The Secretary of State shall adopt such regulations as

are necessary for conducting elections pursuant to the provisions

of sections 2 to 7, inclusive, of this act.

    Sec. 8.  NRS 304.040 is hereby amended to read as follows:

    304.040  [Party] Except as otherwise provided in sections 2 to

7, inclusive, of this act, party candidates for Representative in

Congress shall be nominated in the same manner as state officers are

nominated.

    Sec. 9.  This act becomes effective upon passage and approval.

 

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