97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012
HB5204

 

Introduced 2/8/2012, by Rep. Mike Fortner

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
10 ILCS 5/7-61  from Ch. 46, par. 7-61
10 ILCS 5/8-17  from Ch. 46, par. 8-17

    Amends the Election Code. Provides that, if a vacancy in nomination occurs as a result of a failure to nominate a candidate at the general primary election, the vacancy shall be filled only by a person nominated (now, designated) by the appropriate committee of the political party. Provides that the person nominated to fill the vacancy shall file his or her nominating petitions and other required documents, including the committee's resolution to fill a vacancy in nomination (now, notice of appointment), on or before the 75th day following the date of the general primary election (now, there is no time limit on filing the petitions and other documents). Effective July 1, 2012.


LRB097 18253 PJG 63479 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB5204LRB097 18253 PJG 63479 b

1    AN ACT concerning elections.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Election Code is amended by changing
5Sections 7-61 and 8-17 as follows:
 
6    (10 ILCS 5/7-61)  (from Ch. 46, par. 7-61)
7    Sec. 7-61.
8    (a) Whenever a special election is necessary the provisions
9of this Article are applicable to the nomination of candidates
10to be voted for at such special election.
11    (b) In cases where a primary election is required the
12officer or board or commission whose duty it is under the
13provisions of this Act relating to general elections to call an
14election, shall fix a date for the primary for the nomination
15of candidates to be voted for at such special election. Notice
16of such primary shall be given at least 15 days prior to the
17maximum time provided for the filing of petitions for such a
18primary as provided in Section 7-12.
19    (c) The provisions of this subsection (c) and subsections
20(d) through (i) shall not apply to a situation where a vacancy
21in nomination occurred as a result of a failure to nominate a
22candidate at the general primary election. A Any vacancy in
23nomination under the provisions of this Article 7 occurring on

 

 

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1or after the primary and prior to certification of candidates
2by the certifying board or officer, must be filled prior to the
3date of certification. Any vacancy in nomination occurring
4after certification but prior to 15 days before the general
5election shall be filled within 8 days after the event creating
6the vacancy. The resolution filling the vacancy shall be sent
7by U. S. mail or personal delivery to the certifying officer or
8board within 3 days of the action by which the vacancy was
9filled; provided, if such resolution is sent by mail and the U.
10S. postmark on the envelope containing such resolution is dated
11prior to the expiration of such 3 day limit, the resolution
12shall be deemed filed within such 3 day limit. Failure to so
13transmit the resolution within the time specified in this
14Section shall authorize the certifying officer or board to
15certify the original candidate. Vacancies shall be filled by
16the officers of a local municipal or township political party
17as specified in subsection (h) of Section 7-8, other than a
18statewide political party, that is established only within a
19municipality or township and the managing committee (or
20legislative committee in case of a candidate for State Senator
21or representative committee in the case of a candidate for
22State Representative in the General Assembly or State central
23committee in the case of a candidate for statewide office,
24including but not limited to the office of United States
25Senator) of the respective political party for the territorial
26area in which such vacancy occurs.

 

 

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1    (d) The resolution to fill a vacancy in nomination shall be
2duly acknowledged before an officer qualified to take
3acknowledgements of deeds and shall include, upon its face, the
4following information:
5        (i) (a) the name of the original nominee and the office
6    vacated;
7        (ii) (b) the date on which the vacancy occurred;
8        (iii) (c) the name and address of the nominee selected
9    to fill the vacancy and the date of selection.
10    (e) The resolution to fill a vacancy in nomination shall be
11accompanied by a Statement of Candidacy, as prescribed in
12Section 7-10, completed by the selected nominee and a receipt
13indicating that such nominee has filed a statement of economic
14interests as required by the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act.
15    (f) The provisions of Section 10-8 through 10-10.1 relating
16to objections to certificates of nomination and nomination
17papers, hearings on objections, and judicial review, shall
18apply to and govern objections to resolutions for filling a
19vacancy in nomination.
20    (g) Any vacancy in nomination occurring 15 days or less
21before the consolidated election or the general election shall
22not be filled. In this event, the certification of the original
23candidate shall stand and his name shall appear on the official
24ballot to be voted at the general election.
25    (h) A vacancy in nomination occurs when a candidate who has
26been nominated under the provisions of this Article 7 dies

 

 

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1before the election (whether death occurs prior to, on or after
2the day of the primary), or declines the nomination; provided
3that nominations may become vacant for other reasons.
4    (i) If the name of no established political party candidate
5was printed on the consolidated primary ballot for a particular
6office and if no person was nominated as a write-in candidate
7for such office, a vacancy in nomination shall be created which
8may be filled in accordance with the requirements of this
9Section prior to the date of certification for the consolidated
10election as provided in Section 7-60.1.
11    (j) The provisions of this subsection (j) shall only apply
12in situations where a vacancy in nomination has occurred as a
13result of a failure to nominate a candidate at the general
14primary election due to the fact that If the name of no
15established political party candidate was printed on the
16general primary ballot for a particular office and that if no
17person was nominated as a write-in candidate for such office.
18In such situations, a vacancy in nomination shall be filled
19only by a person nominated designated by the appropriate
20committee of the political party and only if that designated
21person files nominating petitions with the number of signatures
22required for an established party candidate for that office
23within 75 days after the day of the general primary. The
24circulation period for those petitions begins on the day the
25appropriate committee nominates designates that person. The
26person shall file his or her nominating petitions, statements

 

 

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1of candidacy, resolution to fill a vacancy in nomination notice
2of appointment by the appropriate committee, and receipt of
3filing his or her statement of economic interests together on
4or before the 75th day following the date of the general
5primary election. These documents shall be filed at the same
6location as provided in Section 7-12. The electoral boards
7having jurisdiction under Section 10-9 to hear and pass upon
8objections to nominating petitions also shall hear and pass
9upon objections to nomination petitions filed by candidates
10under this paragraph. For purposes of this Section, the
11appropriate committees of the political parties shall be those
12committees listed in Section 7-7 of this Code and the
13legislative committee for the office of State senator and the
14representative committee for the office of State
15representative, established by Section 8-5 of this Code.
16Nominations to fill vacancies by the appropriate committees
17shall be in accordance with the provisions of Sections 7-8,
187-8.01, and 7-8.02 and, for vacancies in the office of State
19senator or State representative, shall be in accordance with
20Sections 8-6 and 8-17.1.
21    (k) A candidate for whom a nomination paper has been filed
22as a partisan candidate at a primary election, and who is
23defeated for his or her nomination at such primary election, is
24ineligible to be listed on the ballot at that general or
25consolidated election as a candidate of another political
26party.

 

 

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1    (l) A candidate seeking election to an office for which
2candidates of political parties are nominated by caucus who is
3a participant in the caucus and who is defeated for his or her
4nomination at such caucus, is ineligible to be listed on the
5ballot at that general or consolidated election as a candidate
6of another political party.
7    (m) In the proceedings to nominate a candidate to fill a
8vacancy or to fill a vacancy in the nomination, each precinct,
9township, ward, county or congressional district, as the case
10may be, shall through its representative on such central or
11managing committee, be entitled to one vote for each ballot
12voted in such precinct, township, ward, county or congressional
13district, as the case may be, by the primary electors of its
14party at the primary election immediately preceding the meeting
15at which such vacancy is to be filled.
16    (n) For purposes of this Section, the words "certify" and
17"certification" shall refer to the act of officially declaring
18the names of candidates entitled to be printed upon the
19official ballot at an election and directing election
20authorities to place the names of such candidates upon the
21official ballot. "Certifying officers or board" shall refer to
22the local election official, election authority or the State
23Board of Elections, as the case may be, with whom nomination
24papers, including certificates of nomination and resolutions
25to fill vacancies in nomination, are filed and whose duty it is
26to "certify" candidates.

 

 

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1(Source: P.A. 96-809, eff. 1-1-10; 96-848, eff. 1-1-10.)
 
2    (10 ILCS 5/8-17)  (from Ch. 46, par. 8-17)
3    Sec. 8-17. The death of any candidate prior to, or on, the
4date of the primary shall not affect the canvass of the
5ballots. If the result of such canvass discloses that such
6candidate, if he had lived, would have been nominated, such
7candidate shall be declared nominated.
8    In the event that a candidate of a party who has been
9nominated under the provisions of this Article shall die before
10election (whether death occurs prior to, or on, or after, the
11date of the primary) or decline the nomination or should the
12nomination for any other reason become vacant, the legislative
13or representative committee of such party for such district
14shall nominate a candidate of such party to fill such vacancy.
15However, if there was no candidate for the nomination of the
16party in the primary, no candidate of that party for that
17office may be listed on the ballot at the general election,
18unless the legislative or representative committee of the party
19nominates a candidate to fill the vacancy in nomination and
20such candidate complies with the provisions of subsection (j)
21of Section 7-61 of this Code within 75 days after the date of
22the general primary election. All other vacancies Vacancies in
23nomination occurring under this Article shall be filled by the
24appropriate legislative or representative committee in
25accordance with the provisions of Section 7-61 of this Code. In

 

 

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1proceedings to fill the vacancy in nomination, including
2vacancies occurring for failure to nominate at the primary, the
3voting strength of the members of the legislative or
4representative committee shall be as provided in Section 8-6.
5(Source: P.A. 96-1008, eff. 7-6-10.)
 
6    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1,
72012.