| 1 | 1 | | 85R9714 GRM-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Campbell S.B. No. 1989 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the elimination of straight-party voting for judicial |
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| 8 | 8 | | offices. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 52.071(b), Election Code, is amended to |
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| 11 | 11 | | read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (b) The following instruction shall be added to the |
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| 13 | 13 | | instruction required by Section 52.070(b): "You may cast a |
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| 14 | 14 | | straight-party vote (that is, cast a vote for all the nominees of |
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| 15 | 15 | | one party other than nominees for a judicial office) by placing |
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| 16 | 16 | | an 'X' in the square beside the name of the party of your choice. If |
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| 17 | 17 | | you cast a straight-party vote for all the nominees of one party and |
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| 18 | 18 | | also cast a vote for an opponent of one of that party's nominees, |
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| 19 | 19 | | your vote for the opponent will be counted as well as your vote for |
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| 20 | 20 | | all the other nominees of the party other than nominees for a |
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| 21 | 21 | | judicial office for which the straight-party vote was cast. A |
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| 22 | 22 | | straight-party vote will not be counted for the nominee of a party |
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| 23 | 23 | | for a judicial office." |
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| 24 | 24 | | SECTION 2. Section 52.092, Election Code, is amended by |
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| 25 | 25 | | amending Subsections (a), (c), (d), (e), (f), and (j) and adding |
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| 26 | 26 | | Subsection (f-1) to read as follows: |
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| 27 | 27 | | (a) For an election at which offices regularly filled at the |
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| 28 | 28 | | general election for state and county officers are to appear on the |
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| 29 | 29 | | ballot, the offices shall be listed in the following order: |
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| 30 | 30 | | (1) offices of the federal government; |
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| 31 | 31 | | (2) offices of the state government: |
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| 32 | 32 | | (A) statewide offices; |
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| 33 | 33 | | (B) district offices; |
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| 34 | 34 | | (3) offices of the county government: |
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| 35 | 35 | | (A) county offices; |
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| 36 | 36 | | (B) precinct offices; |
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| 37 | 37 | | (4) judicial offices. |
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| 38 | 38 | | (c) Statewide offices of the state government shall be |
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| 39 | 39 | | listed in the following order: |
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| 40 | 40 | | (1) governor; |
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| 41 | 41 | | (2) lieutenant governor; |
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| 42 | 42 | | (3) attorney general; |
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| 43 | 43 | | (4) comptroller of public accounts; |
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| 44 | 44 | | (5) commissioner of the General Land Office; |
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| 45 | 45 | | (6) commissioner of agriculture; |
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| 46 | 46 | | (7) railroad commissioner[; |
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| 47 | 47 | | [(8) chief justice, supreme court; |
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| 48 | 48 | | [(9) justice, supreme court; |
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| 49 | 49 | | [(10) presiding judge, court of criminal appeals; |
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| 50 | 50 | | [(11) judge, court of criminal appeals]. |
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| 51 | 51 | | (d) District offices of the state government shall be listed |
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| 52 | 52 | | in the following order: |
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| 53 | 53 | | (1) member, State Board of Education; |
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| 54 | 54 | | (2) state senator; |
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| 55 | 55 | | (3) state representative; |
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| 56 | 56 | | (4) [chief justice, court of appeals; |
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| 57 | 57 | | [(5) justice, court of appeals; |
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| 58 | 58 | | [(6) district judge; |
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| 59 | 59 | | [(7) criminal district judge; |
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| 60 | 60 | | [(8) family district judge; |
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| 61 | 61 | | [(9)] district attorney; |
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| 62 | 62 | | (5) [(10)] criminal district attorney. |
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| 63 | 63 | | (e) County offices shall be listed in the following order: |
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| 64 | 64 | | (1) county judge; |
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| 65 | 65 | | (2) [judge, county court at law; |
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| 66 | 66 | | [(3) judge, county criminal court; |
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| 67 | 67 | | [(4) judge, county probate court; |
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| 68 | 68 | | [(5)] county attorney; |
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| 69 | 69 | | (3) [(6)] district clerk; |
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| 70 | 70 | | (4) [(7)] district and county clerk; |
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| 71 | 71 | | (5) [(8)] county clerk; |
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| 72 | 72 | | (6) [(9)] sheriff; |
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| 73 | 73 | | (7) [(10)] sheriff and tax assessor-collector; |
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| 74 | 74 | | (8) [(11)] county tax assessor-collector; |
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| 75 | 75 | | (9) [(12)] county treasurer; |
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| 76 | 76 | | (10) [(13)] county school trustee (county with |
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| 77 | 77 | | population of 3.3 million or more); |
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| 78 | 78 | | (11) [(14)] county surveyor. |
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| 79 | 79 | | (f) Precinct offices shall be listed in the following order: |
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| 80 | 80 | | (1) county commissioner; |
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| 81 | 81 | | (2) [justice of the peace; |
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| 82 | 82 | | [(3)] constable. |
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| 83 | 83 | | (f-1) Judicial offices shall be listed in the following |
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| 84 | 84 | | order: |
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| 85 | 85 | | (1) chief justice, supreme court; |
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| 86 | 86 | | (2) justice, supreme court; |
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| 87 | 87 | | (3) presiding judge, court of criminal appeals; |
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| 88 | 88 | | (4) judge, court of criminal appeals; |
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| 89 | 89 | | (5) chief justice, court of appeals; |
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| 90 | 90 | | (6) justice, court of appeals; |
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| 91 | 91 | | (7) district judge; |
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| 92 | 92 | | (8) criminal district judge; |
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| 93 | 93 | | (9) family district judge; |
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| 94 | 94 | | (10) judge, county court at law; |
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| 95 | 95 | | (11) judge, county criminal court; |
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| 96 | 96 | | (12) judge, county probate court; |
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| 97 | 97 | | (13) justice of the peace. |
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| 98 | 98 | | (j) The office of judge of a multicounty statutory county |
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| 99 | 99 | | court created under Subchapter D, Chapter 25, Government Code, is |
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| 100 | 100 | | considered to be a judicial [county] office for purposes of listing |
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| 101 | 101 | | the office on the ballot and Section 52.0921, and to be a district |
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| 102 | 102 | | office for all other purposes under this code. |
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| 103 | 103 | | SECTION 3. Subchapter D, Chapter 52, Election Code, is |
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| 104 | 104 | | amended by adding Section 52.0921 to read as follows: |
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| 105 | 105 | | Sec. 52.0921. JUDICIAL OFFICES. (a) Notwithstanding any |
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| 106 | 106 | | other provision of this code, a straight-party vote does not count |
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| 107 | 107 | | in an election for a judicial office listed in Section 52.092(f-1). |
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| 108 | 108 | | Candidates for judicial offices appear with their party affiliation |
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| 109 | 109 | | or independent status displayed next to the candidate's name in a |
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| 110 | 110 | | format prescribed by the secretary of state. |
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| 111 | 111 | | (b) The secretary of state shall prescribe procedures to |
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| 112 | 112 | | inform voters that a straight-party vote does not count in an |
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| 113 | 113 | | election for a judicial office. The procedures shall include signs |
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| 114 | 114 | | posted in the polling place and notice on the ballot or through the |
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| 115 | 115 | | voting system on which a vote is cast. |
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| 116 | 116 | | SECTION 4. Sections 65.007(b) and (c), Election Code, are |
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| 117 | 117 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 118 | 118 | | (b) Except as provided by Subsection (c) or (d), each |
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| 119 | 119 | | straight-party vote shall be tallied for the party receiving the |
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| 120 | 120 | | vote instead of being tallied for the individual candidates of the |
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| 121 | 121 | | party. The total number of straight-party votes tallied for each |
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| 122 | 122 | | party shall be added to the total votes received for each of the |
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| 123 | 123 | | party nominees individually, subject to Section 52.0921. |
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| 124 | 124 | | (c) If a ballot indicates a straight-party vote and a vote |
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| 125 | 125 | | for an opponent of one or more of that party's nominees, a vote |
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| 126 | 126 | | shall be counted for the opponent and for each of the party's other |
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| 127 | 127 | | nominees, subject to Section 52.0921, whether or not any of those |
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| 128 | 128 | | nominees have received individual votes. |
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| 129 | 129 | | SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |
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