Act No. 72

Public Acts of 1999

Approved by the Governor

June 28, 1999

Filed with the Secretary of State

June 28, 1999

EFFECTIVE DATE: June 28, 1999

STATE OF MICHIGAN

90TH LEGISLATURE

REGULAR SESSION OF 1999

Introduced by Reps. Mortimer, Garcia, Vear, Mead, Pumford, DeRossett, Bishop, Koetje, Richner, Faunce and Jansen

ENROLLED HOUSE BILL No. 4408

AN ACT to amend 1954 PA 116, entitled "An act to reorganize, consolidate, and add to the election laws; to provide for election officials and prescribe their powers and duties; to prescribe the powers and duties of certain state departments, state agencies, and state and local officials and employees; to provide for the nomination and election of candidates for public office; to provide for the resignation, removal, and recall of certain public officers; to provide for the filling of vacancies in public office; to provide for and regulate primaries and elections; to provide for the purity of elections; to guard against the abuse of the elective franchise; to define violations of this act; to provide appropriations; to prescribe penalties and provide remedies; and to repeal certain acts and all other acts inconsistent with this act," by amending sections 613a, 614a, and 615a (MCL 168.613a, 168.614a, and 168.615a), sections 613a and 615a as amended by 1995 PA 87 and section 614a as added by 1988 PA 275.

The People of the State of Michigan enact:

Sec. 613a. (1) A statewide presidential primary election shall be conducted under this act on the fourth Tuesday in February in each presidential election year.

(2) A political party that received 5% or less of the total vote cast nationwide for the office of president in the last presidential election shall not participate in the presidential primary election.

(3) Except as otherwise provided in sections 614a, 615a, 616a, 624g, and 879a, the statewide presidential primary election shall be conducted under the provisions of this act that govern the conduct of general primary elections.

Sec. 614a. (1) Not later than 4 p.m. of the second Friday in November of the year before the presidential election, the secretary of state shall issue a list of the individuals generally advocated by the national news media to be potential presidential candidates for each party's nomination by the political parties for which a presidential primary election will be held under section 613a.

(2) Not later than 4 p.m. of the Tuesday following the second Friday in November of the year before the presidential election, the state chairperson of each political party for which a presidential primary election will be held under section 613a shall file with the secretary of state a list of individuals whom they consider to be potential presidential candidates for that political party.

(3) After the issuance of the list under subsection (1) and after receipt of names from the state chairperson of each political party under subsection (2), the secretary of state shall notify each potential presidential candidate on the lists of the provisions of this act relating to the presidential primary election.

Sec. 615a. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the secretary of state shall cause the name of a presidential candidate notified by the secretary of state under section 614a to be printed on the presidential primary ballot under the appropriate political party heading. A presidential candidate notified by the secretary of state under section 614a may file an affidavit with the secretary of state indicating his or her party preference if different than the party preference contained in the secretary of state notification and the secretary of state shall cause that presidential candidate's name to be printed under the appropriate party heading on the presidential primary ballot. A presidential candidate notified by the secretary of state under section 614a may file an affidavit with the secretary of state indicating that he or she does not wish to have his or her name printed on the presidential primary ballot and the secretary of state shall not have that presidential candidate's name printed on the presidential primary ballot. A presidential candidate shall file an affidavit described in this subsection with the secretary of state no later than 4 p.m. on the second Friday in December of the year before the presidential election year or the affidavit is considered void.

(2) The name of an individual who is not listed as a potential presidential candidate under section 614a shall be printed on the ballot for the presidential primary under the appropriate political party heading if he or she files a nominating petition with the secretary of state no later than 4 p.m. on the second Friday in December of the year before the presidential election year. The nominating petition shall contain valid signatures of registered and qualified electors equal to not less than 1/2 of 1% of the total votes cast in the state at the previous presidential election for the presidential candidate of the political party for which the individual is seeking this nomination. However, the total number of signatures required on a nominating petition under this subsection shall not exceed 1,000 times the total number of congressional districts in this state. A signature on a nominating petition is not valid if obtained before October 1 of the year before the presidential election year in which the individual seeks nomination. To be valid, a nominating petition must conform to the requirements of this act regarding nominating petitions, but only to the extent that those requirements do not conflict with the requirements of this subsection.

(3) The names of the presidential candidates under each political party heading shall be rotated on the ballot. The ballot shall contain a space for an elector to vote uncommitted.

Enacting section 1. This amendatory act does not take effect unless Senate Bill No. 51 of the 90th Legislature is enacted into law.

This act is ordered to take immediate effect.

Clerk of the House of Representatives.

Secretary of the Senate.

Approved

Governor.