71st OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2001 Regular Session
NOTE: Matter within { + braces and plus signs + } in an
amended section is new. Matter within { - braces and minus
signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within
{ + braces and plus signs + } .
LC 4069
A-Engrossed
Senate Bill 747
Ordered by the Senate May 22
Including Senate Amendments dated May 22
Sponsored by Senator GEORGE (at the request of Richard P. Burke)
SUMMARY
The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the
measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject to
consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor's
brief statement of the essential features of the measure.
Modifies requirements for qualification as major political
party. Allows affiliation of electors to qualify as major
political party in state { - , county or other electoral
district - } if at least { - three - } { + five + } percent
of number of registered voters in state { - , county or
electoral district - } are registered as members of party.
A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to major political parties; creating new provisions; and
amending ORS 248.006, 248.008, 249.016 and 249.068.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. ORS 248.006 is amended to read:
248.006. { - (1) An affiliation of electors becomes a major
political party when: - }
{ - (a) Its candidates for presidential elector polled at the
last general election at which candidates for President and Vice
President of the United States were listed on the ballot at least
15 percent of the total votes cast for presidential elector;
or - }
{ - (b) Its candidate for any state office to be voted upon
in the state at large for which nominations by political parties
are permitted by law polled at the last general election at which
such a candidate was listed on the ballot at least 15 percent of
the total votes cast for that office. - }
{ + (1) An affiliation of electors becomes a major political
party in this state and is qualified to make nominations at a
biennial primary election when a number of electors equal to at
least five percent of the number of electors registered in this
state are registered as members of the party not later than the
275th day before the date of a biennial primary election. An
affiliation of electors satisfying the requirements of this
subsection shall be subject to the provisions of ORS 248.007 on
the date the Secretary of State determines the registration
requirements are satisfied. + }
{ - (2) After an affiliation of electors becomes a major
political party under subsection (1) of this section, a number of
electors equal to at least three percent of the number of
electors registered in this state must have registered as members
of the party not later than 50 months following the date of the
election at which an affiliation of electors became a major
political party under subsection (1) of this section. A major
political party satisfying the requirements of this subsection
shall be subject to the provisions of ORS 248.007 on the date the
registration requirements are satisfied. - }
{ - (3) - } { + (2) + } The number of electors described in
subsection
{ - (2) - } { + (1) + } of this section shall be calculated
based on the number of electors registered in this state and
eligible to vote, as reported on the official abstracts of the
election, at the
{ - election at which the affiliation of electors became a
major political party under subsection (1) of this section - }
{ + general election immediately preceding the deadline
specified in subsection (1) of this section + }.
{ - (4) During the period beginning on the date an
affiliation of electors became a major political party under
subsection (1) of this section and ending on the date that the
requirements of subsection (2) of this section are satisfied, the
party shall not be subject to the provisions of ORS 248.007 and
248.012 to 248.315 and may not nominate candidates at the
biennial primary election. If the requirements of subsection (2)
of this section are satisfied after the 275th day before the
biennial primary election, the major political party shall be
subject to the provisions of ORS 248.007 after the date of the
biennial primary election. The major political party shall
nominate candidates in the manner provided by law for minor
political parties. - }
{ - (5) After an affiliation of electors becomes a major
political party under subsection (1) of this section and
satisfies the requirements of subsection (2) of this section, in
order to maintain status as a major political party subject to
ORS 248.007, a candidate or candidates of the party must poll a
number of votes described in subsection (1) of this section at
the general election immediately following the deadline specified
in subsection (2) of this section. If the 15 percent requirement
is satisfied, the party shall again be subject to subsections (2)
to (4) of this section, except that: - }
{ - (a) The registration deadline shall be not later than 50
months following the date of the general election at which the 15
percent requirement is again satisfied; - }
{ - (b) The number of electors required to register as
members of the party shall be calculated based on the number of
electors registered in this state and eligible to vote, as
reported on the official abstracts of the election, at the
general election at which the 15 percent requirement is again
satisfied; and - }
{ - (c) Subsection (4) of this section applies beginning on
the date of the election at which the 15 percent requirement is
again satisfied - }
{ + (3) After an affiliation of electors becomes a major
political party under subsection (1) of this section, in order to
maintain status as a major political party subject to ORS
248.007, the party must satisfy the registration requirement of
subsection (1) of this section not later than the 275th day
before each biennial primary election + }.
{ - (6) An affiliation of electors ceases to be a major
political party if: - }
{ - (a) The registration requirements of subsection (2) of
this section are not satisfied by the deadline specified in
subsection (2) of this section. The affiliation of electors
ceases to be a major political party on the date of the deadline;
or - }
{ - (b) The registration requirements of subsection (2) of
this section are satisfied by the deadline specified in
subsection (2) of this section and: - }
{ - (A) A candidate or candidates of the major political
party do not satisfy the 15 percent requirement described in
subsection (1) of this section at the next general election
following the deadline specified in subsection (2) of this
section. The affiliation of electors ceases to be a major
political party on the date of the election; or - }
{ - (B) Following the deadline specified in subsection (2) of
this section, the major political party fails to maintain a
number of electors registered as party members equal to three
percent of the number of electors registered in this state and
eligible to vote, according to the official abstracts of the
election, at the last election at which the affiliation of
electors qualified or maintained status as a major political
party. The affiliation of electors ceases to be a major political
party on the date the Secretary of State determines that the
registration requirement is not satisfied. - }
{ + (4) An affiliation of electors ceases to be a major
political party if the registration requirements of subsection
(1) of this section are not satisfied by the 275th day before
each biennial primary election. The affiliation of electors
ceases to be a major political party on the date the Secretary of
State determines that the registration requirement is not
satisfied. + }
{ - (7) - } { + (5) + } { - Where a major political
party - } { + When an affiliation of electors + } has not
satisfied the registration requirement of subsection
{ - (2) - } { + (1) + } of this section for the first time
{ - following the election at which the affiliation of electors
qualified or maintained status as a major political party - } ,
{ + at the request of a representative of the affiliation of
electors, + } the Secretary of State shall determine not less
than once each month whether at least { - three - }
{ + five + } percent of the number of eligible electors
registered in this state are registered as members of the party.
After { - the deadline specified in subsection (2) of this
section - } { + an affiliation of electors has qualified as a
major political party + }, the Secretary of State shall determine
on the 274th day before { - the - } { + each + } biennial
primary election whether { - a - } { + the + } major
political party { - that has satisfied the registration
requirement of subsection (2) of this section has maintained a
sufficient number of electors registered as members of the
party - } { + has satisfied the registration requirements
described in subsection (3) of this section + }.
SECTION 2. { + (1) An affiliation of electors that qualified
as a major political party and is eligible to nominate candidates
at a biennial primary election under ORS 248.006 (1999 Edition)
prior to the effective date of this 2001 Act shall continue in
existence as a major political party for purposes of the biennial
primary and general elections conducted in 2002, but shall be
subject to the requirements of ORS 248.006, as amended by section
1 of this 2001 Act, after the general election held in 2002. + }
{ + (2) An affiliation of electors that did not qualify as a
major political party under ORS 248.006 (1999 Edition) prior to
the effective date of this 2001 Act may satisfy the requirements
of ORS 248.006, as amended by section 1 of this 2001 Act, and
first nominate candidates at the biennial primary election
conducted in May 2004. + }
SECTION 3. ORS 248.008 is amended to read:
248.008. (1) An affiliation of electors becomes a minor
political party in the state, a county or other electoral
district, qualified to make nominations for public office in that
electoral district and in any other electoral district wholly
contained within the electoral district, when either of the
following events occurs:
(a) When the affiliation of electors has filed with the
Secretary of State a petition with the signatures of at least a
number of electors equal to one and one-half percent of the total
votes cast in the electoral district for all candidates for
Governor at the most recent election at which a candidate for
Governor was elected to a full term. The petition also shall
state the intention to form a new political party and give the
designation of it. The filed petition shall contain only original
signatures. The petition shall be filed not later than two years
following the date the prospective petition is filed. The
circulator shall certify on each signature sheet that the
individuals signed the sheet in the presence of the circulator
and that the circulator believes each individual is an elector
registered in the electoral district. The Secretary of State
shall verify whether the petition contains the required number of
signatures of electors. The petition shall not be accepted for
filing if it contains less than 100 percent of the required
number of signatures. The Secretary of State by rule shall
designate a statistical sampling technique to verify whether a
petition contains the required number of signatures of electors.
A petition shall not be rejected for the reason that it contains
less than the required number of signatures unless two separate
sampling processes both establish that the petition lacks the
required number of signatures. The second sampling must contain a
larger number of signatures than the first sampling. The
Secretary of State may employ professional assistance to
determine the sampling technique. The statistical sampling
technique may be the same as that adopted under ORS 250.105.
Before circulating the petition, the chief sponsor of the
petition shall file with the Secretary of State a signed copy of
the prospective petition. The chief sponsor shall include with
the prospective petition a statement declaring whether one or
more persons will be paid money or other valuable consideration
for obtaining signatures of electors on the petition. After the
prospective petition is filed, the chief sponsor shall notify the
filing officer not later than the 10th day after the chief
sponsor first has knowledge or should have had knowledge that:
(A) Any person is being paid for obtaining signatures, when the
statement included with the prospective petition declared that no
such person would be paid.
(B) No person is being paid for obtaining signatures, when the
statement included with the prospective petition declared that
one or more such persons would be paid.
(b) When the affiliation of electors has polled for any one of
its candidates for any public office in the electoral district at
least one percent of the total votes cast in the electoral
district for all candidates for:
(A) Presidential elector at the last general election at which
candidates for President and Vice President of the United States
were listed on the ballot; or
(B) Any single state office to be voted upon in the state at
large for which nominations by political parties are permitted by
law at the most recent election at which a candidate for the
office was elected to a full term.
(2) After satisfying either requirement of subsection (1) of
this section, the minor political party may nominate candidates
at the next general election if at any time during the period
beginning on the date of the next biennial primary election and
ending on the 90th day before the next general election, a number
of electors equal to at least one-tenth of one percent of the
total votes cast in the state or electoral district for all
candidates for Governor at the most recent election at which a
candidate for Governor was elected to a full term are registered
as members of the party.
(3) A filing officer shall not accept a certificate of
nomination of a candidate nominated by a minor political party
unless the minor political party has satisfied the registration
requirement of subsection (2) of this section.
(4) After a minor political party qualifies to nominate
candidates, in order to maintain status as a minor political
party:
(a) A candidate or candidates of the party must poll a number
of votes described in subsection (1)(b) of this section at each
subsequent general election; and
(b) Following each general election, the registration
requirement of subsection (2) of this section must be satisfied.
(5) An affiliation of electors ceases to be a minor political
party in the state or electoral district if:
(a) The registration requirement of subsection (2) of this
section is not satisfied. The affiliation of electors ceases to
be a minor political party on the date of the deadline for
satisfying the registration requirement; or
(b) In the case of a minor political party qualified to
nominate candidates, a candidate or candidates of the minor
political party do not satisfy the one percent requirement
specified in subsection (1)(b) of this section at the next
general election. The affiliation of electors ceases to be a
minor political party on the date of the election.
(6) During the period beginning on the date of the biennial
primary election and ending on the 90th day before the date of
the general election, the Secretary of State shall determine not
less than once each month whether the registration requirement of
subsection (2) of this section has been satisfied. If the party
changes its name, only those electors who register on or after
the effective date of the name change as members of the party
under the new party name shall be counted as members of the party
under this subsection.
(7) An affiliation of electors { - , a major political party
subject to ORS 248.006 (4) - } or a minor political party may
not satisfy the one percent requirement referred to in subsection
(1)(b) of this section by nominating a candidate who is the
nominee of another political party at the same election.
SECTION 4. ORS 249.016 is amended to read:
249.016. { - Except as provided in ORS 248.006 (4), - } A
candidate of a major political party for public office or a
candidate for nonpartisan office shall be nominated only in the
manner provided in ORS 249.016 to 249.205.
SECTION 5. ORS 249.068 is amended to read:
249.068. (1) Except as otherwise provided for a candidate for
nonpartisan office in ORS 249.072:
(a) A nominating petition for an office to be voted for in the
state at large or for a candidate for Representative in Congress
shall contain signatures of members of the same major political
party as the candidate. Except as provided in this subsection,
there shall be at least 1,000 signatures or the number of
signatures at least equal to two percent of the vote cast in the
state or congressional district, as the case may be, for the
candidates of that major political party for presidential
electors at the last presidential election, whichever is less;
(b) For an election next following any change in the boundaries
of a congressional district, there shall be at least 1,000
signatures or the number of signatures at least equal to two
percent of the average number of votes cast in all congressional
districts in this state, as the case may be, for the candidates
of that major political party for presidential electors at the
last presidential election, whichever is less;
(c) In the case of a candidate nominated by a major political
party that did not nominate presidential electors at the last
presidential election, there shall be at least 1,000 signatures
{ - or the number of signatures at least equal to two percent
of the total number of votes cast for the candidate described in
ORS 248.006 (1)(b) at the general election at which the
affiliation of electors last became a major political party. If
more than one candidate described in ORS 248.006 (1)(b) received
at least 15 percent of the total votes cast for an office, the
number of signatures required shall be two percent of the lower
number of votes received - } ; and
(d) If the office is one to be voted for in the state at large
the signatures shall include those of electors registered in at
least five percent of the precincts in each of at least seven
counties. If the office is one to be voted for in a congressional
district the signatures shall include those of electors
registered in at least five percent of the precincts in each of
at least one-fourth of the counties in the congressional
district.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in this section or for a
candidate for nonpartisan office in ORS 249.072:
(a) A nominating petition for an office not provided for in
subsection (1) of this section shall contain the signatures of
electors who are members of the same major political party as the
candidate. There shall be at least 500 signatures or the number
of signatures at least equal to two percent of the vote in the
electoral district for the candidates of that major political
party for presidential electors at the last presidential
election, whichever is less;
(b) In the case of major political party candidates for the
office of state Senator or state Representative, for an election
next following any change in the boundaries of the districts of
state Senators or state Representatives under section 6, Article
IV of the Oregon Constitution, there shall be at least 500
signatures or the number of signatures at least equal to two
percent of the average number of votes cast in all state
Senatorial or state Representative districts in this state, as
the case may be, for the candidates of that major political party
for presidential electors at the last presidential election,
whichever is less;
(c) In the case of a candidate nominated by a major political
party that did not nominate presidential electors at the last
presidential election, there shall be at least 1,000 signatures
{ - or the number of signatures at least equal to two percent
of the total number of votes cast for the candidate described in
ORS 248.006 (1)(b) at the general election at which the
affiliation of electors last became a major political party. If
more than one candidate described in ORS 248.006 (1)(b) received
at least 15 percent of the total votes cast for an office, the
number of signatures required shall be two percent of the lower
number of votes received - } ;
(d) If the office under this subsection is to be voted for in
more than one county, the signatures shall include those of
electors registered in at least six percent of the precincts in
the electoral district that are located in each of two or more of
the counties, or portions of the counties, within which the
electoral district is located. If six percent of the precincts of
the electoral district in one of the counties or portion thereof
does not constitute a whole precinct, the nominating petition
shall contain signatures from at least one precinct in that
county; and
(e) If the office is to be voted for in only one county or in a
city, the signatures shall include those of electors registered
in at least 10 percent of the precincts in the electoral
district.
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