PRINTER'S NO. 2824
No. 2007 Session of 2007
INTRODUCED BY HARHAI, BELFANTI, BIANCUCCI, BRENNAN, CALTAGIRONE,
CASORIO, COHEN, DALEY, DePASQUALE, DeWEESE, FABRIZIO,
FREEMAN, GEIST, GERGELY, GRUCELA, HALUSKA, HANNA, HARKINS,
HERSHEY, KING, KOTIK, KULA, LENTZ, LEVDANSKY, LONGIETTI,
MAHONEY, MARKOSEK, McCALL, MELIO, PETRARCA, PETRONE,
READSHAW, SAINATO, SAMUELSON, SANTONI, SURRA, TANGRETTI,
WALKO, WANSACZ AND GODSHALL, NOVEMBER 2, 2007
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, NOVEMBER 2, 2007
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320), entitled
2 "An act concerning elections, including general, municipal,
3 special and primary elections, the nomination of candidates,
4 primary and election expenses and election contests; creating
5 and defining membership of county boards of elections;
6 imposing duties upon the Secretary of the Commonwealth,
7 courts, county boards of elections, county commissioners;
8 imposing penalties for violation of the act, and codifying,
9 revising and consolidating the laws relating thereto; and
10 repealing certain acts and parts of acts relating to
11 elections," further providing for affidavits of candidates,
12 for examination of nomination petitions, certificates and
13 papers; return of rejected nomination petitions, certificates
14 and papers, for affidavits of candidates, for filling of
15 certain vacancies in public office by means of nomination
16 certificates and nomination papers and for substituted
17 nominations to fill certain vacancies for a November
18 election.
19 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
20 hereby enacts as follows:
21 Section 1. Sections 630.1 and 910 of the act of June 3, 1937
22 (P.L.1333, No.320), known as the Pennsylvania Election Code,
23 amended May 12, 2006 (P.L.178, No.45), are amended to read:
1 Section 630.1. Affidavits of Candidates.--Each candidate for
2 any State, county, city, borough, incorporated town, township,
3 school district or poor district office, or for the office of
4 United States Senator or Representative in Congress, selected as
5 provided in section 630 of this act, shall file with the
6 nomination certificate an affidavit stating--(a) his residence,
7 with street and number, if any, and his post-office address; (b)
8 his election district, giving city, borough, town or township;
9 (c) the name of the office for which he consents to be a
10 candidate; (d) that he is eligible for such office; (e) that he
11 will not knowingly violate any provision of this act, or of any
12 law regulating and limiting election expenses and prohibiting
13 corrupt practices in connection therewith; (f) unless he is a
14 candidate for judge of a court of common pleas, the Philadelphia
15 Municipal Court or the Traffic Court of Philadelphia, or for the
16 office of school board in a district where that office is
17 elective or for the office of [justice of the peace] magisterial
18 district judge, that he is not a candidate for the same office
19 of any party or political body and not a registered and enrolled
20 member of any party other than the one designated in such
21 certificate; (g) that he is aware of the provisions of section
22 1626 of this act requiring election and post-election reporting
23 of campaign contributions and expenditures; and (h) that he is
24 not a candidate for an office which he already holds, the term
25 of which is not set to expire in the same year as the office
26 subject to the affidavit.
27 Section 910. Affidavits of Candidates.--Each candidate for
28 any State, county, city, borough, incorporated town, township,
29 ward, school district, poor district, election district, party
30 office, party delegate or alternate, or for the office of United
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1 States Senator or Representative in Congress, shall file with
2 his nomination petition his affidavit stating--(a) his
3 residence, with street and number, if any, and his post-office
4 address; (b) his election district, giving city, borough, town
5 or township; (c) the name of the office for which he consents to
6 be a candidate; (d) that he is eligible for such office; (e)
7 that he will not knowingly violate any provision of this act, or
8 of any law regulating and limiting nomination and election
9 expenses and prohibiting corrupt practices in connection
10 therewith; (f) unless he is a candidate for judge of a court of
11 common pleas, the Philadelphia Municipal Court or the Traffic
12 Court of Philadelphia, or for the office of school director in a
13 district where that office is elective or for the office of
14 [justice of the peace] magisterial district judge that he is not
15 a candidate for nomination for the same office of any party and
16 not a registered and enrolled member of any party other than the
17 one designated in such petition; (g) if he is a candidate for a
18 delegate, or alternate delegate, member of State committee,
19 National committee or party officer, that he is a registered and
20 enrolled member of the designated party; (h) if he is a
21 candidate for delegate or alternate delegate the presidential
22 candidate to whom he is committed or the term "uncommitted"; (i)
23 that he is aware of the provisions of section 1626 of this act
24 requiring pre-election and post-election reporting of campaign
25 contributions and expenditures; and (j) that he is not a
26 candidate for an office which he already holds, the term of
27 which is not set to expire in the same year as the office
28 subject to the affidavit. In cases of petitions for delegate and
29 alternate delegate to National conventions, the candidate's
30 affidavit shall state that his signature to the delegate's
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1 statement, as hereinafter set forth, if such statement is signed
2 by said candidate, was affixed to the sheet or sheets of said
3 petition prior to the circulation of same. In the case of a
4 candidate for nomination as President of the United States, it
5 shall not be necessary for such candidate to file the affidavit
6 required in this section to be filed by candidates, but the
7 post-office address of such candidate shall be stated in such
8 nomination petition.
9 Section 2. The first paragraph of section 976 of the act,
10 amended February 19, 1986 (P.L.29, No.11), is amended to read:
11 Section 976. Examination of Nomination Petitions,
12 Certificates and Papers; Return of Rejected Nomination
13 Petitions, Certificates and Papers.--When any nomination
14 petition, nomination certificate or nomination paper is
15 presented in the office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth or
16 of any county board of elections for filing within the period
17 limited by this act, it shall be the duty of the said officer or
18 board to examine the same. No nomination petition, nomination
19 paper or nomination certificate shall be permitted to be filed
20 if--(a) it contains material errors or defects apparent on the
21 face thereof, or on the face of the appended or accompanying
22 affidavits; or (b) it contains material alterations made after
23 signing without the consent of the signers; or (c) it does not
24 contain a sufficient number of signatures as required by law;
25 Provided, however, That the Secretary of the Commonwealth or the
26 county board of elections, although not hereby required so to
27 do, may question the genuineness of any signature or signatures
28 appearing thereon, and if he or it shall thereupon find that any
29 such signature or signatures are not genuine, such signature or
30 signatures shall be disregarded in determining whether the
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1 nomination petition, nomination paper or nomination certificate
2 contains a sufficient number of signatures as required by law;
3 or (d) in the case of nomination petitions, if nomination
4 petitions have been filed for a person registered and enrolled
5 in any party other than the one designated in the nominating
6 petition or for printing the name of the same person for the
7 same office, except the office of judge of a court of common
8 pleas, the Philadelphia Municipal Court or the Traffic Court of
9 Philadelphia, or the office of school director in districts
10 where that office is elective or the office of [justice of the
11 peace] magisterial district judge upon the official ballot of
12 more than one political party; or (e) in the case of nomination
13 papers, if the candidate named therein has filed a nomination
14 petition for any public office for the ensuing primary, or has
15 been nominated for any such office by nomination papers
16 previously filed; or (f) if the nomination petitions or papers
17 are not accompanied by the filing fee or certified check
18 required for said office; or (g) in the case of nomination
19 papers, the appellation set forth therein is identical with or
20 deceptively similar to the words used by any existing party or
21 by any political body which has already filed nomination papers
22 for the same office, or if the appellation set forth therein
23 contains part of the name, or an abbreviation of the name or
24 part of the name of an existing political party, or of a
25 political body which has already filed nomination papers for the
26 same office. The invalidity of any sheet of a nomination
27 petition or nomination paper shall not affect the validity of
28 such petition or paper if a sufficient petition or paper remains
29 after eliminating such invalid sheet. The action of said officer
30 or board in refusing to receive and file any such nomination
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1 petition, certificate or paper, may be reviewed by the court
2 upon an application to compel its reception as of the date when
3 it was presented to the office of such officer or board:
4 Provided, however, That said officer or board shall be entitled
5 to a reasonable time in which to examine any petitions,
6 certificates or papers, and to summon and interrogate the
7 candidates named therein, or the persons presenting said
8 petitions, certificates or papers, and his or their retention of
9 same for the purpose of making such examination or interrogation
10 shall not be construed as an acceptance or filing.
11 * * *
12 Section 3. Section 981.1 of the act, amended May 12, 2006
13 (P.L.178, No.45), is amended to read:
14 Section 981.1. Affidavits of Candidates.--Each candidate for
15 any State, county, city, borough, incorporated town, township,
16 ward, school district, poor district or election district
17 office, or for the office of United States Senator or
18 Representative in Congress, selected as provided in sections 979
19 and 980 of this act, shall file with the substituted nomination
20 certificate an affidavit stating--(a) his residence, with street
21 and number, if any, and his post-office address; (b) his
22 election district, giving city, borough, town or township; (c)
23 the name of the office for which he consents to be a candidate;
24 (d) that he is eligible for such office; (e) that he will not
25 knowingly violate any provision of this act, or of any law
26 regulating and limiting election expenses and prohibiting
27 corrupt practices in connection therewith; (f) unless he is a
28 candidate for judge of a court of common pleas, the Philadelphia
29 Municipal Court or the Traffic Court of Philadelphia, or for the
30 office of school board in a district where that office is
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1 elective or for the office of [justice of the peace] magisterial
2 district judge, that he is not a candidate for the same office
3 of any party or political body and not a registered and enrolled
4 member of any party other than the one designated in such
5 certificate; (g) that he is aware of the provisions of section
6 1626 of this act requiring election and post-election reporting
7 of campaign contributions and expenditures; and (h) that he is
8 not a candidate for an office which he already holds, the term
9 of which is not set to expire in the same year as the office
10 subject to the affidavit.
11 Section 4. Sections 993(a) and 998(a) and (b) of the act,
12 amended February 19, 1986 (P.L.29, No.11), are amended to read:
13 Section 993. Filling of Certain Vacancies in Public Office
14 by Means of Nomination Certificates and Nomination Papers.--(a)
15 In all cases where a vacancy shall occur for any cause in an
16 elective public office, including that of judge of a court of
17 record, at a time when such vacancy is required by the
18 provisions of the Constitution or the laws of this Commonwealth
19 to be filled at the ensuing election but at a time when
20 nominations for such office cannot be made under any other
21 provision of this act, nominations to fill such vacancies shall
22 be made by political parties in accordance with party rules
23 relating to the filling of vacancies by means of nomination
24 certificates in the form prescribed in section nine hundred
25 ninety-four of this act, and by political bodies by means of
26 nomination papers in accordance with the provisions of sections
27 nine hundred fifty-one, nine hundred fifty-two and nine hundred
28 fifty-four of this act. No such nomination certificate shall
29 nominate any person who is a registered and enrolled member of
30 any party other than the one designated in the nominating
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1 petition or has already been nominated by any other political
2 party or by any political body for the same office unless such
3 person is a candidate for the office of judge of a court of
4 common pleas, the Philadelphia Municipal Court or the Traffic
5 Court of Philadelphia, or for the office of school director in
6 districts where that office is elective or for the office of
7 [justice of the peace] magisterial district judge. No such
8 nomination papers shall nominate any person who is a registered
9 and enrolled member of any party other than the one designated
10 in the nominating petition or has already been nominated by any
11 political party or by any other political body for any office to
12 be filled at the ensuing November election, unless such person
13 is a candidate for the office of judge of a court of common
14 pleas, the Philadelphia Municipal Court or the Traffic Court of
15 Philadelphia, or for the office of school director in districts
16 where that office is elective or for the office of [justice of
17 the peace] magisterial district judge.
18 * * *
19 Section 998. Substituted Nominations to Fill Certain
20 Vacancies for a November Election.--(a) Any vacancy happening
21 or existing in any party nomination made in accordance with the
22 provisions of section nine hundred ninety-three of this act for
23 a November election by reason of the death or withdrawal of any
24 candidate may be filled by a substituted nomination made by such
25 committee as is authorized by the rules of the party to make
26 nominations in the event of vacancies on the party ticket, in
27 the form prescribed by section nine hundred ninety-four of this
28 act. But no substituted nomination certificate shall nominate
29 any person who is a registered and enrolled member of any party
30 other than the one designated in the nominating petition or has
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1 already been nominated by any other political party or by any
2 political body for the same office, unless such person is a
3 candidate for the office of judge of a court of common pleas,
4 the Philadelphia Municipal Court or the Traffic Court of
5 Philadelphia, or for the office of school director in districts
6 where that office is elective or for the office of [justice of
7 the peace] magisterial district judge.
8 (b) In case of the death or withdrawal of any candidate
9 nominated by a political body for an election, the committee
10 named in the original nomination papers may nominate a
11 substitute in his place by filing a substituted nomination
12 certificate in the form and manner prescribed by section nine
13 hundred eighty of this act. In the case of a vacancy caused by
14 the death of any candidate, said nomination certificate shall be
15 accompanied by a death certificate properly certified. No
16 substituted nomination certificate shall nominate any person who
17 is a registered and enrolled member of any party other than the
18 one designated in the nominating petition or has already been
19 nominated by any political party or by any other political body
20 for any office to be filled at the ensuing November election,
21 unless such person is a candidate for the office of judge of a
22 court of common pleas, the Philadelphia Municipal Court or the
23 Traffic Court of Philadelphia, or for the office of school
24 director in districts where that office is elective or for the
25 office of [justice of the peace] magisterial district judge.
26 * * *
27 Section 5. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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