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| 2 | + | (In the Senate - Filed January 31, 2025; February 24, 2025, |
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| 3 | + | read first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs; |
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| 4 | + | March 17, 2025, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 11, |
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| 5 | + | Nays 0; March 17, 2025, sent to printer.) |
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| 6 | + | Click here to see the committee vote |
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| 4 | 7 | | |
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| 5 | 8 | | |
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| 6 | 9 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 7 | 10 | | AN ACT |
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| 8 | 11 | | relating to the withdrawal of a candidate in a runoff primary |
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| 9 | 12 | | election. |
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| 10 | 13 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 11 | 14 | | SECTION 1. Section 2.023(a), Election Code, is amended to |
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| 12 | 15 | | read as follows: |
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| 13 | 16 | | (a) Except as provided by Subsections (b) and (c) or Section |
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| 14 | 17 | | 172.059, the candidates in a runoff election are the candidates who |
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| 15 | 18 | | receive the highest and second highest number of votes in the main |
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| 16 | 19 | | election or who tie for the highest number of votes. |
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| 17 | 20 | | SECTION 2. Section 172.059, Election Code, is amended by |
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| 18 | 21 | | amending Subsections (a) and (c) and adding Subsection (d) to read |
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| 19 | 22 | | as follows: |
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| 20 | 23 | | (a) A candidate for nomination may not withdraw from the |
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| 21 | 24 | | runoff primary election after 5 p.m. of the fifth [3rd] day after |
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| 22 | 25 | | the last day on which the state canvass may be conducted for the |
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| 23 | 26 | | election under Section 172.120(b) [172.120]. |
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| 24 | 27 | | (c) If a runoff candidate withdraws from the election on or |
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| 25 | 28 | | before 5 p.m. of the fifth day after the last day on which the state |
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| 26 | 29 | | canvass may be conducted for the election, the candidate who |
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| 27 | 30 | | received the third highest number of votes in the general primary |
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| 28 | 31 | | election is entitled to a place on the runoff ballot. |
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| 29 | 32 | | (d) If a runoff candidate withdraws after 5 p.m. of the |
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| 30 | 33 | | fifth day after the last day on which the state canvass may be |
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| 31 | 34 | | conducted for the election, the remaining candidate is the nominee |
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| 32 | 35 | | and the runoff election for that office is not held. |
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| 33 | 36 | | SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act apply to an |
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| 34 | 37 | | election ordered on or after the effective date of this Act. An |
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| 35 | 38 | | election ordered before the effective date of this Act is governed |
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| 36 | 39 | | by the law in effect when the election was ordered, and the former |
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| 37 | 40 | | law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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| 38 | 41 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |
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