HB5278eng 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB5278 Engrossed LRB096 19870 JAM 35328 b

AN ACT concerning elections.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Election Code is amended by changing Section 2A-1.2 as follows:

(10 ILCS 5/2A-1.2) (from Ch. 46, par. 2A-1.2)

Sec. 2A-1.2. Consolidated Schedule of Elections - Offices Designated.

(a) At the general election in the appropriate even-numbered years, the following offices shall be filled or shall be on the ballot as otherwise required by this Code:

(1) Elector of President and Vice President of the United States;

(2) United States Senator and United States Representative;

(3) State Executive Branch elected officers;

(4) State Senator and State Representative;

(5) County elected officers, including State's Attorney, County Board member, County Commissioners, and elected President of the County Board or County Chief Executive;

(6) Circuit Court Clerk;

(7) Regional Superintendent of Schools, except in counties or educational service regions in which that office has been abolished;

(8) Judges of the Supreme, Appellate and Circuit Courts, on the question of retention, to fill vacancies and newly created judicial offices;

(9) (Blank);

(10) Trustee of the Metropolitan Sanitary District of Chicago, and elected Trustee of other Sanitary Districts;

(11) Special District elected officers, not otherwise designated in this Section, where the statute creating or authorizing the creation of the district requires an annual election and permits or requires election of candidates of political parties.

(b) At the general primary election:

(1) in each even-numbered year candidates of political parties shall be nominated for those offices to be filled at the general election in that year, except where pursuant to law nomination of candidates of political parties is made by caucus.

(2) in the appropriate even-numbered years the political party offices of State central committeeman, township committeeman, ward committeeman, and precinct committeeman shall be filled and delegates and alternate delegates to the National nominating conventions shall be elected as may be required pursuant to this Code. In the even-numbered years in which a Presidential election is to be held, candidates in the Presidential preference primary shall also be on the ballot.

(3) in each even-numbered year, where the municipality has provided for annual elections to elect municipal officers pursuant to Section 6(f) or Section 7 of Article VII of the Constitution, pursuant to the Illinois Municipal Code or pursuant to the municipal charter, the offices of such municipal officers shall be filled at an election held on the date of the general primary election, provided that the municipal election shall be a nonpartisan election where required by the Illinois Municipal Code. For partisan municipal elections in even-numbered years, a primary to nominate candidates for municipal office to be elected at the general primary election shall be held on the Tuesday 6 weeks preceding that election.

(4) in each school district which has adopted the provisions of Article 33 of the School Code, successors to the members of the board of education whose terms expire in the year in which the general primary is held shall be elected.

(c) At the consolidated election in the appropriate odd-numbered years, the following offices shall be filled:

(1) Municipal officers, provided that in municipalities in which candidates for alderman or other municipal office are not permitted by law to be candidates of political parties, the runoff election where required by law, or the nonpartisan election where required by law, shall be held on the date of the consolidated election; and provided further, in the case of municipal officers provided for by an ordinance providing the form of government of the municipality pursuant to Section 7 of Article VII of the Constitution, such offices shall be filled by election or by runoff election as may be provided by such ordinance;

(2) Village and incorporated town library directors;

(3) City boards of stadium commissioners;

(4) Commissioners of park districts;

(5) Trustees of public library districts;

(6) Special District elected officers, not otherwise designated in this section, where the statute creating or authorizing the creation of the district permits or requires election of candidates of political parties;

(7) Township officers, including township park commissioners, township library directors, and boards of managers of community buildings, and Multi-Township Assessors;

(8) Highway commissioners and road district clerks;

(9) Members of school boards in school districts which adopt Article 33 of the School Code;

(10) The directors and chairman of the Chain O Lakes - Fox River Waterway Management Agency;

(11) Forest preserve district commissioners elected under Section 3.5 of the Downstate Forest Preserve District Act;

(12) Elected members of school boards, school trustees, directors of boards of school directors, trustees of county boards of school trustees (except in counties or educational service regions having a population of 2,000,000 or more inhabitants) and members of boards of school inspectors, except school boards in school districts that adopt Article 33 of the School Code;

(13) Members of Community College district boards;

(14) Trustees of Fire Protection Districts;

(15) Commissioners of the Springfield Metropolitan Exposition and Auditorium Authority;

(16) Elected Trustees of Tuberculosis Sanitarium Districts;

(17) Elected Officers of special districts not otherwise designated in this Section for which the law governing those districts does not permit candidates of political parties.

(d) At the consolidated primary election in each odd-numbered year, candidates of political parties shall be nominated for those offices to be filled at the consolidated election in that year, except where pursuant to law nomination of candidates of political parties is made by caucus, and except those offices listed in paragraphs (12) through (17) of subsection (c).

At the consolidated primary election in the appropriate odd-numbered years, the mayor, clerk, treasurer, and aldermen shall be elected in municipalities in which candidates for mayor, clerk, treasurer, or alderman are not permitted by law to be candidates of political parties, subject to runoff elections to be held at the consolidated election as may be required by law, and municipal officers shall be nominated in a nonpartisan election in municipalities in which pursuant to law candidates for such office are not permitted to be candidates of political parties.

At the consolidated primary election in the appropriate odd-numbered years, municipal officers shall be nominated or elected, or elected subject to a runoff, as may be provided by an ordinance providing a form of government of the municipality pursuant to Section 7 of Article VII of the Constitution.

(e) (Blank).

(f) At any election established in Section 2A-1.1, public questions may be submitted to voters pursuant to this Code and any special election otherwise required or authorized by law or by court order may be conducted pursuant to this Code.

Notwithstanding the regular dates for election of officers established in this Article, whenever a referendum is held for the establishment of a political subdivision whose officers are to be elected, the initial officers shall be elected at the election at which such referendum is held if otherwise so provided by law. In such cases, the election of the initial officers shall be subject to the referendum.

Notwithstanding the regular dates for election of officials established in this Article, any community college district which becomes effective by operation of law pursuant to Section 6-6.1 of the Public Community College Act, as now or hereafter amended, shall elect the initial district board members at the next regularly scheduled election following the effective date of the new district.

(g) At any election established in Section 2A-1.1, if in any precinct there are no offices or public questions required to be on the ballot under this Code then no election shall be held in the precinct on that date. At any election established in subsection (b) of Section 2A-1.1, if in any precinct there are no public questions required to be on the ballot under this Code and if the offices to be nominated or elected are uncontested, then no election shall be held in the precinct on that date. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Code or other law of this State to the contrary, the name of any unopposed candidate in any election established in subsection (b) of Section 2A-1.1 shall not appear on the ballot at that election and that unopposed candidate shall be deemed nominated or elected, as the case may be.

(h) There may be conducted a referendum in accordance with the provisions of Division 6-4 of the Counties Code.

(Source: P.A. 89-5, eff. 1-1-96; 89-95, eff. 1-1-96; 89-626, eff. 8-9-96; 90-358, eff. 1-1-98.)

Section 10. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by changing Sections 3.1-20-45, 3.1-25-20, 3.1-25-40, 4-3-16, 4-3-16.1, and 5-2-13 as follows:

(65 ILCS 5/3.1-20-45)

Sec. 3.1-20-45. Nonpartisan primary elections; uncontested office. A city incorporated under this Code that elects municipal officers at nonpartisan primary and general elections shall conduct the elections as provided in the Election Code, except that no office for which nomination is uncontested shall be included on the primary ballot and no primary shall be held for that office. For the purposes of this Section, an office is uncontested when not more than 4 persons to be nominated for each office have timely filed valid nominating papers seeking nomination for the election to that office.

For the purposes of preparing a primary ballot and holding a primary election under this Section, a write-in candidate shall not be construed as having timely filed valid nominating papers.

Notwithstanding the preceding paragraph, when a person (i) who has not timely filed valid nomination papers and (ii) who intends to become a write-in candidate for nomination for any office for which nomination is uncontested files a written statement or notice of that intent with the proper election official with whom the nomination papers for that office are filed, if the write-in candidate becomes the fifth candidate filed, a primary ballot must be prepared and a primary must be held for the office. The statement or notice must be filed on or before the 61st day before the consolidated primary election. The statement must contain (i) the name and address of the person intending to become a write-in candidate, (ii) a statement that the person intends to become a write-in candidate, and (iii) the office the person is seeking as a write-in candidate. An election authority has no duty to conduct a primary election or prepare a primary ballot unless a statement meeting the requirements of this paragraph is filed in a timely manner.

(Source: P.A. 95-699, eff. 11-9-07.)

(65 ILCS 5/3.1-25-20) (from Ch. 24, par. 3.1-25-20)

Sec. 3.1-25-20. Primary election. A village incorporated under this Code shall nominate and elect candidates for president and trustees in nonpartisan primary and general elections as provided in Sections 3.1-25-20 through 3.1-25-55 until the electors of the village vote to require the partisan election of the president and trustees at a referendum in the manner provided in Section 3.1-25-65 after January 1, 1992. The provisions of Sections 3.1-25-20 through 3.1-25-55 shall apply to all villages incorporated under this Code that have operated under those Sections without the adoption of those provisions by the referendum provided in Section 3.1-25-60 as well as those villages that have adopted those provisions by the referendum provided in Section 3.1-25-60 until the electors of those villages vote to require the partisan election of the president and trustees in the manner provided in Section 3.1-25-65. Villages that have nominated and elected candidates for president and trustees in partisan elections prior to January 1, 1992, may continue to hold partisan elections without conducting a referendum in the manner provided in Section 3.1-25-65. All candidates for nomination to be voted for at all general municipal elections at which a president or trustees, or both, are to be elected under this Article shall be nominated from the village at large by a primary election.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no primary shall be held in any village when the nomination for every office to be voted upon by the electors of the village is uncontested. If the nomination of candidates is uncontested as to one or more, but not all, of the offices to be voted upon by the electors of the village, then a primary must be held in the village, provided that the primary ballot shall not include those offices in the village for which the nomination is uncontested. For the purposes of this Section, an office is uncontested when not more than the number of persons to be nominated to the office have timely filed valid nominating papers seeking nomination for election to that office.

For the purposes of preparing a primary ballot and holding a primary election under this Section, a write-in candidate shall not be construed as having timely filed valid nominating papers.

Notwithstanding the preceding paragraph, when a person (i) who has not timely filed valid nomination papers and (ii) who intends to become a write-in candidate for nomination for any office for which nomination is uncontested files a written statement or notice of that intent with the proper election official with whom the nomination papers for that office are filed, a primary ballot must be prepared and a primary must be held for the office. The statement or notice must be filed on or before the 61st day before the consolidated primary election. The statement must contain (i) the name and address of the person intending to become a write-in candidate, (ii) a statement that the person intends to become a write-in candidate, and (iii) the office the person is seeking as a write-in candidate. An election authority has no duty to conduct a primary election or prepare a primary ballot unless a statement meeting the requirements of this paragraph is filed in a timely manner.

Only the names of those persons nominated in the manner prescribed in Sections 3.1-25-20 through 3.1-25-65 shall be placed on the ballot at the general municipal election. The village clerk shall certify the offices to be filled and the candidates for those offices to the proper election authority as provided in the general election law. A primary for those offices, if required, shall be held in accordance with the general election law.

(Source: P.A. 91-57, eff. 6-30-99.)

(65 ILCS 5/3.1-25-40) (from Ch. 24, par. 3.1-25-40)

Sec. 3.1-25-40. Ballots.

(a) If the office of president is to be filled, only the names of the 4 candidates receiving the highest number of votes for president shall be placed on the ballot for president at the next succeeding general municipal election. The names of candidates in a number equal to 4 times the number of trustee positions to be filled receiving the highest number of votes for trustee, or the names of all candidates if less than 4 times the number of trustee positions to be filled, shall be placed on the ballot for that office at the municipal election.

(b) An elector, however, at either a primary election or a general municipal election held under Sections 3.1-25-20 through 3.1-25-55, may write in the names of the candidates of that elector's choice in accordance with the general election law. If, however, the name of only one candidate for a particular office appeared on the primary ballot, the name of the person having the largest number of write-in votes shall not be placed upon the ballot at the general municipal election unless the number of votes received in the primary election by that person was at least 10% of the number of votes received by the candidate for the same office whose name appeared on the primary ballot.

(c) If a nominee at a general primary election dies or withdraws before the general municipal election, there shall be placed on the ballot the name of the candidate receiving the next highest number of votes, and so on in case of the death or withdrawal of more than one nominee.

(d) If in the application of this Section there occurs the condition provided for in Section 3.1-25-45, there shall be placed on the ballot the name of the candidate who was not chosen by lot under that Section where one of 2 tied candidates had been placed on the ballot before the death or withdrawal occurred. If, however, in the application of this Section, the candidate with the next highest number of votes cannot be determined because of a tie among 2 or more candidates, the successor nominee whose name shall be placed on the ballot shall be determined by lot as provided in Section 3.1-25-45.

(Source: P.A. 95-699, eff. 11-9-07.)

(65 ILCS 5/4-3-16) (from Ch. 24, par. 4-3-16)

Sec. 4-3-16. Upon the ballots for the general municipal election the names of the nominees for mayor shall be placed first, in substantially the form specified in this section. Following these names, the names of the nominees for commissioners shall appear under each office, in substantially the form specified in this section; provided that if the municipality has voted, as provided in Section 4-3-19, to require candidates for commissioner to run for a specific office, the names of the candidates for commissioner of public accounts and finances, commissioner of public health and safety, commissioner of streets and public improvements, and commissioner of public property, respectively, shall appear under the designation of the applicable office, in substantially the form specified in Section 4-3-16.1. If under Section 2A-1.1 of the Election Code no general municipal election (consolidated election) is to be held in any precinct, then the name of an unopposed candidate shall not appear on any ballot, and that candidate shall be deemed elected.

The ballots shall be in the form provided by the general election law, except as herein otherwise provided, but they shall designate no party, platform, political principle, appellation, or mark whatever. Nor shall any circle be printed at the head of the ballots. Except where candidates for commissioner are required to run for a specific office, the ballots shall be in substantially the following form:

OFFICIAL BALLOT

NOMINEES FOR MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS

OF THE CITY (OR VILLAGE) OF....

AT THE GENERAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION.

FOR MAYOR

(VOTE FOR ONE)

( ) JOHN JONES.

( ) JAMES SMITH.

FOR COMMISSIONERS

(VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN FOUR)

( ) HARRY BROWN.

( ) ROBERT BUCK.

( ) WILLIAM BURKE.

( ) GEORGE MILLER.

( ) ARTHUR ROBBINS.

( ) EDWARD STUART.

( ) JOSEPH TROUT.

( ) THOMAS WILLIAMS.

(Source: P.A. 95-862, eff. 8-19-08.)

(65 ILCS 5/4-3-16.1) (from Ch. 24, par. 4-3-16.1)

Sec. 4-3-16.1. If the municipality has voted, as provided in Section 4-3-19, to require candidates for commissioner to run for a specific office, the ballots for the general municipal election shall be in substantially the following form. If under Section 2A-1.1 of the Election Code no general municipal election (consolidated election) is to be held in any precinct, then the name of an unopposed candidate shall not appear on any ballot, and that candidate shall be deemed elected. :

OFFICIAL BALLOT

NOMINEES FOR MAYOR AND COMMISSIONERS

OF THE CITY (OR VILLAGE) OF ....

AT THE GENERAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION.

FOR MAYOR

(VOTE FOR ONE)

( ) JOHN JONES.

( ) JAMES SMITH.

FOR COMMISSIONER OF ACCOUNTS

AND FINANCES

(VOTE FOR ONE)

( ) HARRY BROWN.

( ) ROBERT BUCK.

FOR COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC HEALTH

AND SAFETY

(VOTE FOR ONE)

( ) GEORGE MILLER.

( ) ARTHUR ROBBINS.

FOR COMMISSIONER OF STREETS AND

PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS

(VOTE FOR ONE)

( ) JOSEPH TROUT.

( ) THOMAS WILLIAMS.

FOR COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC PROPERTY

(VOTE FOR ONE)

( ) JAMES J. JEFFRIES.

( ) JAMES SMITH.

(Source: Laws 1965, p. 2677.)

(65 ILCS 5/5-2-13) (from Ch. 24, par. 5-2-13)

Sec. 5-2-13. In addition to the requirements of the general election law, the ballots for the municipal primary election provided for in Section 5-2-12 shall be in substantially the following form. If under Section 2A-1.1 of the Election Code no municipal primary election (consolidated primary election) is to be held in any precinct, then the name of an unopposed candidate shall not appear on any ballot, and that candidate shall be deemed nominated. :

OFFICIAL PRIMARY BALLOT.

CANDIDATES FOR NOMINATION FOR MAYOR

AND COUNCILMEN OF THE CITY (OR

VILLAGE) OF.... AT THE PRIMARY

ELECTION.

FOR MAYOR

VOTE FOR ONE

( ) JOHN JONES.

( ) JAMES SMITH.

( ) HENRY WHITE.

( ) RALPH WILSON.

( ) FOR COUNCILMEN.

VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN....(insert proper number as provided in Section 5-2-12).

( ) HARRY BROWN.

( ) ROBERT BUCK.

( ) WILLIAM BURKE.

( ) GEORGE MILLER.

( ) ARTHUR ROBBINS.

( ) EDWARD STUART.

( ) JOSEPH TROUT.

( ) THOMAS WILLIAMS.

In addition to the requirements of the general election law, the general municipal election ballots for the election provided for in Section 5-2-12 shall be substantially in the following form:

OFFICIAL BALLOT

NOMINEES FOR MAYOR AND COUNCILMEN OF

THE CITY (OR VILLAGE) OF.... AT

THE GENERAL MUNICIPAL ELECTION.

FOR MAYOR

VOTE FOR ONE

( ) JOHN JONES.

( ) JAMES SMITH.

( ) FOR COUNCILMEN.

VOTE FOR NOT MORE THAN....(insert proper number as provided in Section 5-2-12).

( ) HARRY BROWN.

( ) ROBERT BUCK.

( ) WILLIAM BURKE.

( ) GEORGE MILLER.

( ) ARTHUR ROBBINS.

( ) EDWARD STUART.

( ) JOSEPH TROUT.

( ) THOMAS WILLIAMS.

(Source: P.A. 95-862, eff. 8-19-08.)