| 1 | 1 | | S.B. No. 1089 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | AN ACT |
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| 5 | 5 | | relating to repealing the ability to declare certain unopposed |
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| 6 | 6 | | candidates for office as elected. |
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| 7 | 7 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 8 | 8 | | SECTION 1. Section 2.051(a), Election Code, is amended to |
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| 9 | 9 | | read as follows: |
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| 10 | 10 | | (a) Except as provided by Section [Sections] 2.055 [and |
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| 11 | 11 | | 2.056], this subchapter applies only to an election for officers of |
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| 12 | 12 | | a political subdivision other than a county in which write-in votes |
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| 13 | 13 | | may be counted only for names appearing on a list of write-in |
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| 14 | 14 | | candidates and in which each candidate for an office that is to |
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| 15 | 15 | | appear on the ballot is unopposed, except as provided by Subsection |
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| 16 | 16 | | (b). For purposes of this section, a special election of a |
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| 17 | 17 | | political subdivision is considered to be a separate election with |
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| 18 | 18 | | a separate ballot from: |
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| 19 | 19 | | (1) a general election for officers of the political |
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| 20 | 20 | | subdivision held at the same time as the special election; or |
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| 21 | 21 | | (2) another special election of the political |
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| 22 | 22 | | subdivision held at the same time as the special election. |
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| 23 | 23 | | SECTION 2. Section 52.092(a), Election Code, is amended to |
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| 24 | 24 | | read as follows: |
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| 25 | 25 | | (a) Except as provided by Section 2.053(c) [or 2.056(e)], |
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| 26 | 26 | | for an election at which offices regularly filled at the general |
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| 27 | 27 | | election for state and county officers are to appear on the ballot, |
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| 28 | 28 | | the offices shall be listed in the following order: |
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| 29 | 29 | | (1) offices of the federal government; |
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| 30 | 30 | | (2) offices of the state government: |
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| 31 | 31 | | (A) statewide offices; |
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| 32 | 32 | | (B) district offices; |
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| 33 | 33 | | (3) offices of the county government: |
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| 34 | 34 | | (A) county offices; |
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| 35 | 35 | | (B) precinct offices. |
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| 36 | 36 | | SECTION 3. Sections 2.056 and 124.003(e), Election Code, |
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| 37 | 37 | | are repealed. |
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| 38 | 38 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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| 39 | 39 | | ______________________________ ______________________________ |
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| 40 | 40 | | President of the Senate Speaker of the House |
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| 41 | 41 | | I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1089 passed the Senate on |
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| 42 | 42 | | March 28, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 29, Nays 1. |
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| 43 | 43 | | ______________________________ |
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| 44 | 44 | | Secretary of the Senate |
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| 45 | 45 | | I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1089 passed the House on |
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| 46 | 46 | | May 18, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 117, Nays 27, one |
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| 47 | 47 | | present not voting. |
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| 48 | 48 | | ______________________________ |
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| 49 | 49 | | Chief Clerk of the House |
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| 50 | 50 | | Approved: |
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| 51 | 51 | | ______________________________ |
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| 52 | 52 | | Date |
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| 53 | 53 | | ______________________________ |
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| 54 | 54 | | Governor |
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