Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3868 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

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1		-	By: Murr, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Hughes) H.B. No. 3868
2		-	(In the Senate - Received from the House May 12, 2021;
3		-	May 19, 2021, read first time and referred to Committee on State
4		-	Affairs; May 21, 2021, reported favorably by the following vote:
5		-	Yeas 9, Nays 0; May 21, 2021, sent to printer.)
6		-	Click here to see the committee vote
	1	+	87R19411 JON-D
	2	+	By: Murr, Swanson, Bucy, Cain, H.B. No. 3868
	3	+	A. Johnson of Harris
7	4
8	5
9	6		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
10	7		AN ACT
11	8		relating to the presidential electors of this state.
12	9		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	10		SECTION 1. The heading to Section 192.004, Election Code,
14	11		is amended to read as follows:
15	12		Sec. 192.004. ELECTOR CANDIDATE WITHDRAWAL [VACANCY].
16	13		SECTION 2. Section 192.006(b), Election Code, is amended to
17	14		read as follows:
18	15		(b) The secretary of state shall arrange for the meeting
19	16		place, notify the electors, and call the meeting to order. [The
20	17		secretary shall act as temporary chair of the meeting until the
21	18		electors elect a chair from among themselves.]
22	19		SECTION 3. Subchapter A, Chapter 192, Election Code, is
23	20		amended by adding Section 192.009 to read as follows:
24	21		Sec. 192.009. REPLACEMENT NOMINEE. An elector shall
25	22		consider a replacement candidate certified under Subchapter C to be
26	23		the presidential or vice-presidential candidate for whom the
27	24		elector is the corresponding presidential elector candidate.
28	25		SECTION 4. The heading to Subchapter C, Chapter 192,
29	26		Election Code, is amended to read as follows:
30	27		SUBCHAPTER C. WITHDRAWAL, DEATH, AND INELIGIBILITY OF PRESIDENTIAL
31	28		AND VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES; CERTIFICATION OF ABILITY TO
32	29		SERVE
33	30		SECTION 5. Section 192.062(a), Election Code, is amended to
34	31		read as follows:
35	32		(a) The secretary of state shall certify in writing [for
36	33		placement on the ballot] the name of a political party's
37	34		replacement nominee for president or vice-president of the United
38	35		States as follows [if]:
39	36		(1) for placement on the ballot for an [the] original
40	37		nominee who withdraws, dies, or is declared ineligible on or before
41	38		the 74th day before presidential election day if [; and
42	39		[(2)] the party's state chair delivers certification of
43	40		the replacement nominee's name, signed by the state chair, to the
44	41		secretary of state not later than 5 p.m. of the 71st day before
45	42		presidential election day; or
46	43		(2) to the nominating party's presidential elector
47	44		candidates for an original nominee who withdraws, dies, or is
48	45		declared ineligible after the 74th day before presidential election
49	46		day if the party's state chair delivers certification of the
50	47		replacement nominee's name, signed by the state chair, to the
51	48		secretary of state not later than 2 p.m. on the Monday after the
52	49		second Wednesday in December of a presidential election year.
53	50		SECTION 6. Section 192.064(a), Election Code, is amended to
54	51		read as follows:
55	52		(a) The secretary of state shall certify in writing [for
56	53		placement on the ballot] the name of a replacement
57	54		vice-presidential running mate for an independent candidate for
58	55		president of the United States as follows [if]:
59	56		(1) for placement on the ballot for an [the] original
60	57		running mate who withdraws, dies, or is declared ineligible on or
61	58		before the 74th day before presidential election day if [; and
62	59		[(2)] the independent presidential candidate delivers
63	60		certification of the replacement running mate's name, signed by the
64	61		presidential candidate, to the secretary of state not later than 5
65	62		p.m. of the 71st day before presidential election day; or
66	63		(2) to the presidential candidate's corresponding
67	64		presidential elector candidates for an original running mate who
68	65		withdraws, dies, or is declared ineligible after the 74th day
69	66		before presidential election day if the independent presidential
70	67		candidate delivers certification of the replacement running mate's
71	68		name, signed by the presidential candidate, to the secretary of
72	69		state not later than 2 p.m. on the Monday after the second Wednesday
73	70		in December of a presidential election year.
74	71		SECTION 7. Subchapter C, Chapter 192, Election Code, is
75	72		amended by adding Section 192.065 to read as follows:
76	73		Sec. 192.065. CERTIFICATION OF ABILITY TO SERVE BY WINNING
77	74		CANDIDATE; AFFIRMATION OR DENIAL BY ELECTORS. (a) The candidates
78	75		for president and vice president who received the most votes in this
79	76		state in the general presidential election, or a legal
80	77		representative of such a candidate, shall certify not later than
81	78		the seventh day before the meeting of electors that the candidate is
82	79		willing and able to serve in the position for which the candidate
83	80		was elected.
84	81		(b) At the meeting of electors, the electors shall first
85	82		vote to affirm or deny the certification made under Subsection (a).
86	83		If a majority of electors vote to deny the certification that the
87	84		candidate is willing and able to serve, Subchapter D does not apply
88	85		to that meeting of electors with respect to the candidate for which
89	86		the certification was denied.
90	87		(c) If before the meeting of electors a candidate fails to
91	88		certify that the candidate is willing and able to serve as provided
92	89		by Subsection (a), the electors shall first vote on the issue of
93	90		whether each candidate is willing and able to serve in the position
94	91		for which the candidate was elected. If a majority of electors vote
95	92		that the candidate is not willing or able to serve in the position
96	93		for which the candidate was elected, Subchapter D does not apply to
97	94		that meeting of electors with respect to that candidate.
98	95		SECTION 8. Chapter 192, Election Code, is amended by adding
99	96		Subchapter D to read as follows:
100	97		SUBCHAPTER D. REQUIRED ACTION BY PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS;
101	98		REPLACEMENT OF ELECTOR
102	99		Sec. 192.101. DESIGNATION OF STATE'S ELECTORS. Each
103	100		elector position in this state must be nominated in accordance with
104	101		political party rules or by an independent or write-in presidential
105	102		candidate, as applicable. Except as otherwise provided in Sections
106	103		192.103 and 192.104, this state's electors are the winning elector
107	104		nominees under the laws of this state.
108	105		Sec. 192.102. OATH. (a) Not later than the seventh day
109	106		before the meeting of electors, each elector nominee and alternate
110	107		elector nominee of a political party shall execute the following
111	108		oath: "If selected for the position of elector, I swear to serve and
112	109		to mark my ballots for president and vice president for the nominees
113	110		for those offices of the party that nominated me."
114	111		(b) Not later than the seventh day before the meeting of
115	112		electors, each elector nominee and alternate elector nominee of an
116	113		independent presidential candidate shall execute the following
117	114		oath: "If selected for the position of elector as a nominee of an
118	115		independent presidential candidate, I swear to serve and to mark my
119	116		ballots for that candidate and for that candidate's
120	117		vice-presidential running mate."
121	118		(c) The executed oaths must accompany the submission of the
122	119		corresponding names to the secretary of state.
123	120		Sec. 192.103. PRESIDING OFFICER; ELECTOR VACANCY. (a) The
124	121		secretary of state shall preside at the meeting of electors
125	122		described in Section 192.104.
126	123		(b) The position of an elector who is not present to vote or
127	124		who has failed to execute the oath under Section 192.102 is vacant.
128	125		The secretary of state shall fill a vacancy with a substitute
129	126		elector nominated in accordance with political party rules or named
130	127		by an independent or write-in candidate for president, as
131	128		applicable.
132	129		(c) To qualify as a substitute elector under Subsection (b),
133	130		an individual who has not executed the oath required under Section
134	131		192.102 shall execute the following oath: "I swear to serve and to
135	132		mark my ballots for president and vice president consistent with
136	133		the oath of the individual to whose elector position I have
137	134		succeeded."
138	135		Sec. 192.104. ELECTOR VOTING. (a) At the time designated
139	136		for elector voting and after all vacant positions have been filled
140	137		under Section 192.103, the secretary of state shall provide each
141	138		elector with a presidential and a vice-presidential ballot. The
142	139		elector shall mark the elector's presidential and
143	140		vice-presidential ballots with the elector's votes for the offices
144	141		of president and vice president, respectively, along with the
145	142		elector's signature and the elector's legibly printed name.
146	143		(b) Except as otherwise provided by law of this state other
147	144		than this subchapter, each elector shall present both completed
148	145		ballots to the secretary of state. The secretary of state shall
149	146		examine the ballots, read each vote publicly, and accept as cast all
150	147		ballots of electors whose votes are consistent with their oaths
151	148		executed under Section 192.102 or 192.103(c). Except as otherwise
152	149		provided by law, the secretary of state may not accept and may not
153	150		count either an elector's presidential or vice-presidential ballot
154	151		if the elector has not marked both ballots or has marked a ballot in
155	152		violation of the elector's oath.
156	153		(c) An elector who refuses to present a ballot, presents an
157	154		unmarked ballot, or presents a ballot marked in violation of the
158	155		elector's oath executed under Section 192.102 or 192.103(c) vacates
159	156		the office of elector, creating a vacant position to be filled under
160	157		Section 192.103.
161	158		(d) The secretary of state shall distribute ballots to and
162	159		collect ballots from a substitute elector and repeat the process
163	160		under this section of examining ballots, publicly reading the
164	161		votes, declaring and filling vacant positions as required, and
165	162		recording appropriately completed ballots from the substituted
166	163		electors, until all of this state's electoral votes have been cast
167	164		and recorded.
168	165		SECTION 9. The following provisions of the Election Code
169	166		are repealed:
170	167		(1) Sections 192.004(b), (c), and (d);
171	168		(2) Section 192.006(c); and
172	169		(3) Section 192.007.
173	170		SECTION 10. This Act takes effect immediately if it
174	171		receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
175	172		house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
176	173		If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
177	174		effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
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