(134th General Assembly)

(Senate Bill Number 80)

AN ACT

To amend sections 3501.01, 3505.03, 3505.04, and 3513.257 of the Revised Code to require certain judicial candidates to appear on the ballot with a party designation.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio:

Section 1. That sections 3501.01, 3505.03, 3505.04, and 3513.257 of the Revised Code be amended to read as follows:

Sec. 3501.01. As used in the sections of the Revised Code relating to elections and political communications:

(A) "General election" means the election held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in each November.

(B) "Regular municipal election" means the election held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in each odd-numbered year.

(C) "Regular state election" means the election held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in each even-numbered year.

(D) "Special election" means any election other than those elections defined in other divisions of this section. A special election may be held only on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in May, August, or November, or on the day authorized by a particular municipal or county charter for the holding of a primary election, except that in any year in which a presidential primary election is held, no special election shall be held in May, except as authorized by a municipal or county charter, but may be held on the third Tuesday after the first Monday in March.

(E)(1) "Primary" or "primary election" means an election held for the purpose of nominating persons as candidates of political parties for election to offices, and for the purpose of electing persons as members of the controlling committees of political parties and as delegates and alternates to the conventions of political parties. Primary elections shall be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in May of each year except in years in which a presidential primary election is held.

(2) "Presidential primary election" means a primary election as defined by division (E)(1) of this section at which an election is held for the purpose of choosing delegates and alternates to the national conventions of the major political parties pursuant to section 3513.12 of the Revised Code. Unless otherwise specified, presidential primary elections are included in references to primary elections. In years in which a presidential primary election is held, all primary elections shall be held on the third Tuesday after the first Monday in March except as otherwise authorized by a municipal or county charter.

(F) "Political party" means any group of voters meeting the requirements set forth in section 3517.01 of the Revised Code for the formation and existence of a political party.

(1) "Major political party" means any political party organized under the laws of this state whose candidate for governor or nominees for presidential electors received not less than twenty per cent of the total vote cast for such office at the most recent regular state election.

(2) "Minor political party" means any political party organized under the laws of this state that meets either of the following requirements:

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this division, the political party's candidate for governor or nominees for presidential electors received less than twenty per cent but not less than three per cent of the total vote cast for such office at the most recent regular state election. A political party that meets the requirements of this division remains a political party for a period of four years after meeting those requirements.

(b) The political party has filed with the secretary of state, subsequent to its failure to meet the requirements of division (F)(2)(a) of this section, a petition that meets the requirements of section 3517.01 of the Revised Code.

A newly formed political party shall be known as a minor political party until the time of the first election for governor or president which occurs not less than twelve months subsequent to the formation of such party, after which election the status of such party shall be determined by the vote for the office of governor or president.

(G) "Dominant party in a precinct" or "dominant political party in a precinct" means that political party whose candidate for election to the office of governor at the most recent regular state election at which a governor was elected received more votes than any other person received for election to that office in such precinct at such election.

(H) "Candidate" means any qualified person certified in accordance with the provisions of the Revised Code for placement on the official ballot of a primary, general, or special election to be held in this state, or any qualified person who claims to be a write-in candidate, or who knowingly assents to being represented as a write-in candidate by another at either a primary, general, or special election to be held in this state.

(I) "Independent candidate" means any candidate who claims not to be affiliated with a political party, and whose name has been certified on the office-type ballot at a general or special election through the filing of a statement of candidacy and nominating petition, as prescribed in section 3513.257 of the Revised Code.

(J) "Nonpartisan candidate" means any candidate whose name is required, pursuant to section 3505.04 of the Revised Code, to be listed on the nonpartisan ballot, including all candidates for judicial office judge of a municipal court, county court, or court of common pleas, for member of any board of education, for municipal or township offices in which primary elections are not held for nominating candidates by political parties, and for offices of municipal corporations having charters that provide for separate ballots for elections for these offices.

(K) "Party candidate" means any candidate who claims to be a member of a political party and who has been certified to appear on the office-type ballot at a general or special election as the nominee of a political party because the candidate has won the primary election of the candidate's party for the public office the candidate seeks, has been nominated under section 3517.012, or is selected by party committee in accordance with section 3513.31 of the Revised Code.

(L) "Officer of a political party" includes, but is not limited to, any member, elected or appointed, of a controlling committee, whether representing the territory of the state, a district therein, a county, township, a city, a ward, a precinct, or other territory, of a major or minor political party.

(M) "Question or issue" means any question or issue certified in accordance with the Revised Code for placement on an official ballot at a general or special election to be held in this state.

(N) "Elector" or "qualified elector" means a person having the qualifications provided by law to be entitled to vote.

(O) "Voter" means an elector who votes at an election.

(P) "Voting residence" means that place of residence of an elector which shall determine the precinct in which the elector may vote.

(Q) "Precinct" means a district within a county established by the board of elections of such county within which all qualified electors having a voting residence therein may vote at the same polling place.

(R) "Polling place" means that place provided for each precinct at which the electors having a voting residence in such precinct may vote.

(S) "Board" or "board of elections" means the board of elections appointed in a county pursuant to section 3501.06 of the Revised Code.

(T) "Political subdivision" means a county, township, city, village, or school district.

(U) "Election officer" or "election official" means any of the following:

(1) Secretary of state;

(2) Employees of the secretary of state serving the division of elections in the capacity of attorney, administrative officer, administrative assistant, elections administrator, office manager, or clerical supervisor;

(3) Director of a board of elections;

(4) Deputy director of a board of elections;

(5) Member of a board of elections;

(6) Employees of a board of elections;

(7) Precinct election officials;

(8) Employees appointed by the boards of elections on a temporary or part-time basis.

(V) "Acknowledgment notice" means a notice sent by a board of elections, on a form prescribed by the secretary of state, informing a voter registration applicant or an applicant who wishes to change the applicant's residence or name of the status of the application; the information necessary to complete or update the application, if any; and if the application is complete, the precinct in which the applicant is to vote.

(W) "Confirmation notice" means a notice sent by a board of elections, on a form prescribed by the secretary of state, to a registered elector to confirm the registered elector's current address.

(X) "Designated agency" means an office or agency in the state that provides public assistance or that provides state-funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons with disabilities and that is required by the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 to implement a program designed and administered by the secretary of state for registering voters, or any other public or government office or agency that implements a program designed and administered by the secretary of state for registering voters, including the department of job and family services, the program administered under section 3701.132 of the Revised Code by the department of health, the department of mental health and addiction services, the department of developmental disabilities, the opportunities for Ohioans with disabilities agency, and any other agency the secretary of state designates. "Designated agency" does not include public high schools and vocational schools, public libraries, or the office of a county treasurer.

(Y) "National Voter Registration Act of 1993" means the "National Voter Registration Act of 1993," 107 Stat. 77, 42 U.S.C.A. 1973gg.

(Z) "Voting Rights Act of 1965" means the "Voting Rights Act of 1965," 79 Stat. 437, 42 U.S.C.A. 1973, as amended.

(AA) "Photo identification" means a document that meets each of the following requirements:

(1) It shows the name of the individual to whom it was issued, which shall conform to the name in the poll list or signature pollbook.

(2) It shows the current address of the individual to whom it was issued, which shall conform to the address in the poll list or signature pollbook, except for a driver's license or a state identification card issued under section 4507.50 of the Revised Code, which may show either the current or former address of the individual to whom it was issued, regardless of whether that address conforms to the address in the poll list or signature pollbook.

(3) It shows a photograph of the individual to whom it was issued.

(4) It includes an expiration date that has not passed.

(5) It was issued by the government of the United States or this state.

Sec. 3505.03. (A) On the office type ballot shall be printed the names of all candidates for election to offices, except judicial offices the office of judge of a municipal court, county court, or court of common pleas, who were nominated at the most recent primary election as candidates of a political party or who were nominated in accordance with section 3513.02 of the Revised Code, and the names of all candidates for election to offices who were nominated by nominating petitions, except candidates for judicial offices the office of judge of a municipal court, county court, or court of common pleas, for member of the state board of education, for member of a board of education, for municipal offices, and for township offices.

(B) The face of the ballot below the stub shall be substantially in the following form:

"OFFICIAL OFFICE TYPE BALLOT

(A) (1) To vote for a candidate record your vote in the manner provided next to the name of such candidate.

(B) (2) If you tear, soil, deface, or erroneously mark this ballot, return it to the precinct election officers or, if you cannot return it, notify the precinct election officers, and obtain another ballot."

(C) The order in which the offices shall be listed on the ballot shall be prescribed by, and certified to each board of elections by, the secretary of state; provided that for state, district, and county offices the order from top to bottom shall be as follows: governor and lieutenant governor, attorney general, auditor of state, secretary of state, treasurer of state, chief justice of the supreme court, justice of the supreme court, United States senator, representative to congress, state senator, state representative, judge of a court of appeals, county commissioner, county auditor, prosecuting attorney, clerk of the court of common pleas, sheriff, county recorder, county treasurer, county engineer, and coroner. The offices of governor and lieutenant governor shall be printed on the ballot in a manner that requires a voter to cast one vote jointly for the candidates who have been nominated by the same political party or petition.

(D) Within the rectangular space within which the title of each judicial office listed in division (C) of this section is printed on the ballot and immediately below the title shall be printed the date of the commencement of the term of the office, if it is a full term, as follows: "Full term commencing _______(Date)_______," or the date of the end of the term of the office, if it is an unexpired term, as follows: "Unexpired term ending _______(Date)________"

(E)(1) The names of all candidates for an office shall be arranged in a group under the title of that office, and, except for absentee ballots or when the number of candidates for a particular office is the same as the number of candidates to be elected for that office, shall be rotated from one precinct to another. On absentee ballots, the names of all candidates for an office shall be arranged in a group under the title of that office and shall be so alternated that each name shall appear, insofar as may be reasonably possible, substantially an equal number of times at the beginning, at the end, and in each intermediate place, if any, of the group in which such name belongs, unless the number of candidates for a particular office is the same as the number of candidates to be elected for that office.

(2) The method of printing the ballots to meet the rotation requirement of this section shall be as follows: the least common multiple of the number of names in each of the several groups of candidates shall be used, and the number of changes made in the printer's forms in printing the ballots shall correspond with that multiple. The board of elections shall number all precincts in regular serial sequence. In the first precinct, the names of the candidates in each group shall be listed in alphabetical order. In each succeeding precinct, the name in each group that is listed first in the preceding precinct shall be listed last, and the name of each candidate shall be moved up one place. In each precinct using paper ballots, the printed ballots shall then be assembled in tablets.

(F) Under the name of each candidate nominated at a primary election, nominated by petition under section 3517.012 of the Revised Code, or certified by a party committee to fill a vacancy under section 3513.31 of the Revised Code shall be printed, in less prominent type face than that in which the candidate's name is printed, the name of the political party by which the candidate was nominated or certified. Under the name of each candidate appearing on the ballot who filed a nominating petition and requested a ballot designation as a nonparty candidate under section 3513.257 of the Revised Code shall be printed, in less prominent type face than that in which the candidate's name is printed, the designation of "nonparty candidate." Under the name of each candidate appearing on the ballot who filed a nominating petition and requested a ballot designation as an other-party candidate under section 3513.257 of the Revised Code shall be printed, in less prominent type face than that in which the candidate's name is printed, the designation of "other-party candidate." No designation shall appear under the name of a candidate appearing on the ballot who filed a nominating petition and requested that no ballot designation appear under the candidate's name under section 3513.257 of the Revised Code, or who filed a nominating petition and failed to request a ballot designation either as a nonparty candidate or as an other-party candidate under that section.

(G) Except as provided in this section, no words, designations, or emblems descriptive of a candidate or the candidate's political affiliation, or indicative of the method by which the candidate was nominated or certified, shall be printed under or after a candidate's name that is printed on the ballot.

Sec. 3505.04. On the nonpartisan ballot shall be printed the names of all nonpartisan candidates for election to judicial the office of judge of a municipal court, county court, or court of common pleas, the office of member of the state board of education, the office of member of a board of education, municipal or township offices for municipal corporations and townships in which primary elections are not held for nomination of candidates by political parties, and municipal offices of municipal corporations having charters which provide for separate ballots for elections for such municipal offices.

Such ballots shall have printed across the top, and below the stubs, "Official Nonpartisan Ballot."

The order in which the offices are listed on the ballot shall be prescribed by, and certified to each board of elections by, the secretary of state; provided that the office of member of the state board of education shall be listed first on the ballot, then state, district, and county judicial offices shall be listed on the ballot in such order, followed by municipal and township offices, and by offices of member of a board of education, in the order stated.

Within the rectangular space within which the title of each judicial office is printed on the ballot and immediately below such title shall be printed the date of the commencement of the term of the office, if a full term, as follows: "Full term commencing _______(Date)_______," or the date of the end of the term of the office, if an unexpired term, as follows: "Unexpired term ending _______(Date)________"

The secretary of state shall prescribe the information and directions to the voter to be printed on the ballot within the rectangular space in which the title of office of member of the state board of education appears.

Within the rectangular space within which the title of each office for member of a board of education is printed on the ballot shall be printed "For Member of Board of Education," and the number to be elected, directions to the voter as to voting for one, two, or more, and, if the office to be voted for is member of a board of education of a city school district, words shall be printed in said space on the ballot to indicate whether candidates are to be elected from subdistricts or at large.

The names of all nonpartisan candidates for an office shall be arranged in a group under the title of that office, and shall be rotated and printed on the ballot as provided in section 3505.03 of the Revised Code.

No name or designation of any political party nor any words, designations, or emblems descriptive of a candidate or histhe candidate's political affiliation, or indicative of the method by which such candidate was nominated or certified, shall be printed under or after any nonpartisan candidate's name which is printed on the ballot.

Sec. 3513.257. Each person desiring to become an independent candidate for an office for which candidates may be nominated at a primary election, except persons desiring to become independent joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor and for the offices of president and vice-president of the United States, shall file no later than four p.m. of the day before the day of the primary election immediately preceding the general election at which such candidacy is to be voted for by the voters, a statement of candidacy and nominating petition as provided in section 3513.261 of the Revised Code. Persons desiring to become independent joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor shall file, not later than four p.m. of the day before the day of the primary election, one statement of candidacy and one nominating petition for the two of them. Persons desiring to become independent joint candidates for the offices of president and vice-president of the United States shall file, not later than four p.m. of the ninetieth day before the day of the general election at which the president and vice-president are to be elected, one statement of candidacy and one nominating petition for the two of them. The prospective independent joint candidates' statement of candidacy shall be filed with the nominating petition as one instrument.

The statement of candidacy and separate petition papers of each candidate or pair of joint candidates shall be filed at the same time as one instrument.

The nominating petition shall contain signatures of qualified electors of the district, political subdivision, or portion of a political subdivision in which the candidacy is to be voted on in an amount to be determined as follows:

(A) If the candidacy is to be voted on by electors throughout the entire state, the nominating petition, including the nominating petition of independent joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor, shall be signed by no less than five thousand qualified electors, provided that no petition shall be accepted for filing if it purports to contain more than fifteen thousand signatures.

(B) If the candidacy is to be voted on by electors in any district, political subdivision, or part thereof in which less than five thousand electors voted for the office of governor at the most recent election for that office, the nominating petition shall contain signatures of not less than twenty-five qualified electors of the district, political subdivision, or part thereof, or a number of qualified signatures equal to at least five per cent of that vote, if this number is less than twenty-five.

(C) If the candidacy is to be voted on by electors in any district, political subdivision, or part thereof in which five thousand or more electors voted for the office of governor at the most recent election for that office, the nominating petition shall contain a number of signatures equal to at least one per cent of those electors.

All nominating petitions of candidates for offices to be voted on by electors throughout the entire state shall be filed in the office of the secretary of state. No nominating petition for the offices of president and vice-president of the United States shall be accepted for filing unless there is submitted to the secretary of state, at the time of filing the petition, a slate of presidential electors sufficient in number to satisfy the requirement of the United States Constitution. The secretary of state shall not accept for filing the statement of candidacy of a person who desires to be an independent candidate for the office of governor unless it also shows the joint candidacy of a person who desires to be an independent candidate for the office of lieutenant governor, shall not accept for filing the statement of candidacy of a person who desires to be an independent candidate for the office of lieutenant governor unless it also shows the joint candidacy of a person who desires to be an independent candidate for the office of governor, and shall not accept for filing the statement of candidacy of a person who desires to be an independent candidate to the office of governor or lieutenant governor who, for the same election, has already filed a declaration of candidacy, a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or a statement of candidacy, or has become a candidate by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 of the Revised Code for any other state office or any federal or county office.

Nominating petitions of candidates for offices to be voted on by electors within a district or political subdivision comprised of more than one county but less than all counties of the state shall be filed with the boards of elections of that county or part of a county within the district or political subdivision which had a population greater than that of any other county or part of a county within the district or political subdivision according to the last federal decennial census.

Nominating petitions for offices to be voted on by electors within a county or district smaller than a county shall be filed with the board of elections for such county.

No petition other than the petition of a candidate whose candidacy is to be considered by electors throughout the entire state shall be accepted for filing if it appears on its face to contain more than three times the minimum required number of signatures. A board of elections shall not accept for filing a nominating petition of a person seeking to become a candidate if that person, for the same election, has already filed a declaration of candidacy, a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or a nominating petition, or has become a candidate by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 of the Revised Code for any federal, state, or county office, if the nominating petition is for a state or county office, or for any municipal or township office, for member of a city, local, or exempted village board of education, or for member of a governing board of an educational service center, if the nominating petition is for a municipal or township office, or for member of a city, local, or exempted village board of education, or for member of a governing board of an educational service center. When a petition of a candidate has been accepted for filing by a board of elections, the petition shall not be deemed invalid if, upon verification of signatures contained in the petition, the board of elections finds the number of signatures accepted exceeds three times the minimum number of signatures required. A board of elections may discontinue verifying signatures when the number of verified signatures on a petition equals the minimum required number of qualified signatures.

Any nonjudicial candidate, other than a candidate for judge of a municipal court, county court, or court of common pleas, who files a nominating petition may request, at the time of filing, that the candidate be designated on the ballot as a nonparty candidate or as an other-party candidate, or may request that the candidate's name be placed on the ballot without any designation. Any such candidate who fails to request a designation either as a nonparty candidate or as an other-party candidate shall have the candidate's name placed on the ballot without any designation.

The purpose of establishing a filing deadline for independent candidates prior to the primary election immediately preceding the general election at which the candidacy is to be voted on by the voters is to recognize that the state has a substantial and compelling interest in protecting its electoral process by encouraging political stability, ensuring that the winner of the election will represent a majority of the community, providing the electorate with an understandable ballot, and enhancing voter education, thus fostering informed and educated expressions of the popular will in a general election. The filing deadline for independent candidates required in this section prevents splintered parties and unrestrained factionalism, avoids political fragmentation, and maintains the integrity of the ballot. The deadline, one day prior to the primary election, is the least drastic or restrictive means of protecting these state interests. The general assembly finds that the filing deadline for independent candidates in primary elections required in this section is reasonably related to the state's purpose of ensuring fair and honest elections while leaving unimpaired the political, voting, and associational rights secured by the first and fourteenth amendments to the United States Constitution.

Section 2. That existing sections 3501.01, 3505.03, 3505.04, and 3513.257 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.

Speaker ___________________ of the House of Representatives.

President ___________________ of the Senate.

Passed ________________________, 20____

Approved ________________________, 20____

Governor.

The section numbering of law of a general and permanent nature is complete and in conformity with the Revised Code.

Director, Legislative Service Commission.

Filed in the office of the Secretary of State at Columbus, Ohio, on the ____ day of ___________, A. D. 20____.

Secretary of State.

File No. _________ Effective Date ___________________