Bill Text: NY A01860 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Sets out the procedures and requirements for special elections; implements a timetable for the special primary and special election, including the number of signatures required for the petition.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to election law [A01860 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A01860-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          1860

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 23, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL, DINOWITZ, PAULIN, EPSTEIN -- read
          once and referred to the Committee on Election Law

        AN ACT to amend the  election  law  and  the  public  officers  law,  in
          relation to creating a special primary election to take place prior to
          a  special election and mandating the governor to proclaim all special
          elections within ten days of the vacancy

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  Section  6-114  of the election law is amended to read as
     2  follows:
     3    § 6-114. Party nominations; special election. Party nominations for an
     4  office to be filled at a special election shall be made [in  the  manner
     5  prescribed  by  the  rules  of  the party] at a special primary election
     6  pursuant to section 6-161  of  this  article,  at  which  the  candidate
     7  receiving the most votes shall be the nominee of the party.
     8    § 2. The election law is amended by adding a new section 6-161 to read
     9  as follows:
    10    §  6-161.  Special  primary elections. 1. The special primary election
    11  shall take place on the first Tuesday occurring at least thirty days but
    12  no more than thirty-six days prior to the special election.
    13    2. Designating petitions for a primary nomination shall  be  subjected
    14  to  the  same form and rules set out in sections 6-132 and 6-134 of this
    15  article. Designating petitions shall be filed within twelve days of  the
    16  date the governor proclaims the need for a special election.
    17    3.  Notwithstanding section 6-136 of this article, the required amount
    18  of signatures for a designating  petition,  pursuant  to  this  section,
    19  shall  be  five  hundred for a state senatorial district and two hundred
    20  fifty for an assembly district.
    21    4. Petitions for independent nominations shall be filed within fifteen
    22  days of the date the governor proclaims the need for a special election.
    23  Notwithstanding section 6-138 of this article, the  required  amount  of

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06692-01-3
        A. 1860                             2

     1  signatures  for  a designating petition, pursuant to this section, shall
     2  be one thousand for a state senatorial district and five hundred for  an
     3  assembly district.
     4    § 3. Subdivisions 1, 3 and 4 of section 42 of the public officers law,
     5  subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 5 of the laws of 2019, subdivision 3
     6  as  amended  by  chapter  164  of  the laws of 2022 and subdivision 4 as
     7  amended by chapter 320 of the laws of 2021, are amended and a new subdi-
     8  vision 4-b is added to read as follows:
     9    1. A vacancy occurring three months before the general election in any
    10  year in any office authorized to be filled at a general election, except
    11  in the offices of governor [or], lieutenant-governor, state  senator  or
    12  member  of  assembly,  shall be filled at the general election held next
    13  thereafter, unless otherwise provided by  the  constitution,  or  unless
    14  previously filled at a special election.
    15    3. Upon the failure to elect to any office, except that of governor or
    16  lieutenant-governor,  at  a  general  or special election, at which such
    17  office is authorized to be filled, or upon the death or disqualification
    18  of a person elected to office before the  commencement  of  his  or  her
    19  official  term,  or  upon  the  occurrence  of a vacancy in any elective
    20  office which cannot be filled by appointment for a period  extending  to
    21  or  beyond  the  next  general election at which a person may be elected
    22  thereto, the governor shall, unless otherwise provided for by authorized
    23  local law, resolution or  ordinance,  make  proclamation  of  a  special
    24  election  to  fill  such  office  within ten days of the occurrence of a
    25  vacancy, specifying the district or county in which the election  is  to
    26  be  held, and the day thereof, which shall be: a. [not less than seventy
    27  nor more than eighty] ninety days or on the first Tuesday following  the
    28  ninety  days  from the date of the proclamation to fill a vacancy in the
    29  office of a representative in congress or for a  vacancy  in  any  other
    30  office  that  is  not  in the state senate or assembly; and b.  not less
    31  than forty days nor more than fifty days from the date of the  proclama-
    32  tion to fill a vacancy in the state senate or assembly, provided, howev-
    33  er,  that  the  governor may issue a proclamation to fill any subsequent
    34  vacancy in the state senate or assembly for the same date as any  previ-
    35  ously  scheduled  special election as long as the proclamation is issued
    36  at least thirty days before the occurrence of the special election.
    37    4. a. A special election shall not be held to fill a  vacancy  in  the
    38  office  of a representative in congress unless such vacancy occurs on or
    39  before the first day of July of the last year of the term of office,  or
    40  unless  it occurs thereafter and a special session of congress is called
    41  to meet before the next general election,  or  be  called  after  [three
    42  months before the general election in such year.
    43    b.  A  special  election  shall  not  be held to fill a vacancy in the
    44  office of state senator or in the office of member of  assembly,  unless
    45  the vacancy occurs before the first day of April of the last year of the
    46  term  of  office,  or unless the vacancy occurs in either such office of
    47  senator or member of assembly after  such  first  day  of  April  and  a
    48  special  session of the legislature be called to meet between such first
    49  day of April and the next general election  or  be  called  after  three
    50  months before the next general election in such year.
    51    c. A special election shall not be held to fill a vacancy in any other
    52  office subject to a proclamation by the governor pursuant to subdivision
    53  three  of this section unless the vacancy occurs before the first day of
    54  April of the last year of the term of office]  September  nineteenth  of
    55  such year.
        A. 1860                             3

     1    [d.]  b.  If a special election to fill an office shall not be held as
     2  required by law,  the  office  shall  be  filled  at  the  next  general
     3  election.
     4    4-b.  If  a  vacancy  occurs  in the office of state senator or in the
     5  office of member of assembly between one hundred eighty and ninety  days
     6  prior  to  an annual primary election or if a vacancy occurs between one
     7  hundred eighty and ninety days prior to a general election, the  special
     8  election  shall  be  held  on  the day of the annual primary election or
     9  general election respectively, with the special primary election  to  be
    10  held  on  the  first  Tuesday occurring at least thirty days but no more
    11  than thirty-six days prior to the special election.
    12    § 4.  If any section of this act or any part thereof shall be adjudged
    13  by any court of competent jurisdiction  to  be  invalid,  such  judgment
    14  shall  not  affect,  impair  or  invalidate  the  remainder or any other
    15  section or part thereof.
    16    § 5. This act shall take effect on the first of January next  succeed-
    17  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.