Bill Text: IA HF134 | 2021-2022 | 89th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to straight party voting, and including applicability provisions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 10-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-01-21 - Introduced, referred to State Government. H.J. 134. [HF134 Detail]
Download: Iowa-2021-HF134-Introduced.html
House
File
134
-
Introduced
HOUSE
FILE
134
BY
HUNTER
,
OLSON
,
JACOBY
,
ANDERSON
,
KRESSIG
,
CAHILL
,
WILBURN
,
STAED
,
WINCKLER
,
and
MASCHER
A
BILL
FOR
An
Act
relating
to
straight
party
voting,
and
including
1
applicability
provisions.
2
BE
IT
ENACTED
BY
THE
GENERAL
ASSEMBLY
OF
THE
STATE
OF
IOWA:
3
TLSB
1614YH
(3)
89
ss/jh
H.F.
134
Section
1.
Section
49.37,
Code
2021,
is
amended
by
striking
1
the
section
and
inserting
in
lieu
thereof
the
following:
2
49.37
Arrangement
of
ballot.
3
1.
For
general
elections,
and
for
other
elections
in
which
4
more
than
one
partisan
office
will
be
filled,
the
first
section
5
of
the
ballot
shall
be
for
straight
party
voting.
6
a.
Each
political
party
or
organization
which
has
7
nominated
candidates
for
more
than
one
office
shall
be
listed.
8
Instructions
to
the
voter
for
straight
party
or
organization
9
voting
shall
be
in
substantially
the
following
form:
10
To
vote
for
all
candidates
from
a
single
party
or
11
organization,
mark
the
voting
target
next
to
the
party
or
12
organization
name.
Not
all
parties
or
organizations
have
13
nominated
candidates
for
all
offices.
Marking
a
straight
party
14
or
organization
vote
does
not
include
votes
for
nonpartisan
15
offices,
judges,
or
questions.
16
b.
Political
parties
and
nonparty
political
organizations
17
which
have
nominated
candidates
for
only
one
office
shall
18
be
listed
below
the
other
political
organizations
under
the
19
following
heading:
20
Other
Political
Organizations.
The
following
organizations
21
have
nominated
candidates
for
only
one
office:
22
c.
Offices
shall
be
arranged
in
groups.
Partisan
offices,
23
nonpartisan
offices,
judges,
and
public
measures
shall
be
24
separated
by
a
distinct
line
appearing
on
the
ballot.
25
2.
The
commissioner
shall
arrange
the
ballot
in
conformity
26
with
the
certificate
issued
by
the
state
commissioner
under
27
section
43.73,
in
that
the
names
of
the
respective
candidates
28
for
each
political
party
shall
appear
in
the
order
they
29
appeared
on
the
certificate,
above
or
to
the
left
of
the
30
nonparty
political
organization
candidates.
31
3.
The
commissioner
shall
arrange
the
partisan
county
32
offices
on
the
ballot
with
the
board
of
supervisors
first,
33
followed
by
the
other
county
offices
in
the
same
sequence
in
34
which
they
appear
in
section
39.17.
Nonpartisan
offices
shall
35
-1-
LSB
1614YH
(3)
89
ss/jh
1/
5
H.F.
134
be
listed
after
partisan
offices.
1
Sec.
2.
Section
49.57,
subsection
2,
Code
2021,
is
amended
2
to
read
as
follows:
3
2.
In
the
area
of
the
general
election
ballot
for
straight
4
party
voting,
the
party
or
organization
names
shall
be
printed
5
in
upper
case
and
lower
case
letters
using
a
uniform
font
size
6
for
each
political
party
or
nonparty
political
organization.
7
The
font
size
shall
not
be
less
than
twelve
point
type.
After
8
the
name
of
each
candidate
for
a
partisan
office
the
name
of
9
the
candidate’s
political
party
shall
be
printed
in
at
least
10
six
point
type.
The
names
of
political
parties
and
nonparty
11
political
organizations
may
be
abbreviated
on
the
remainder
of
12
the
ballot
if
both
the
full
name
and
the
abbreviation
appear
in
13
the
voter
instruction
area
and
“Straight
Party”
areas
of
the
14
ballot.
15
Sec.
3.
NEW
SECTION
.
49.94
How
to
mark
a
straight
ticket.
16
If
all
the
candidates
for
whom
a
voter
desires
to
vote
in
any
17
election
other
than
the
primary
election
were
nominated
by
the
18
same
political
party
or
nonparty
political
organization,
and
19
the
voter
desires
to
vote
for
all
candidates
nominated
by
that
20
political
party
or
organization,
the
voter
may
do
so
in
any
one
21
of
the
following
ways:
22
1.
The
voter
may
mark
the
voting
target
next
to
the
name
of
23
the
political
party
or
nonparty
political
organization
in
the
24
straight
party
or
organization
section
of
the
ballot
without
25
marking
any
voting
target
next
to
the
name
of
a
candidate
26
nominated
by
the
party
or
organization.
27
2.
The
voter
may
mark
the
voting
target
next
to
the
name
28
of
the
political
party
or
nonparty
political
organization
in
29
the
straight
party
or
organization
section
of
the
ballot
and
30
also
mark
any
or
all
of
the
voting
targets
next
to
the
names
of
31
candidates
nominated
by
that
party
or
organization.
32
Sec.
4.
NEW
SECTION
.
49.95
Voting
part
of
ticket
only.
33
If
all
the
candidates
for
whom
the
voter
desires
to
vote
were
34
nominated
by
the
same
political
party
or
nonparty
political
35
-2-
LSB
1614YH
(3)
89
ss/jh
2/
5
H.F.
134
organization
but
the
voter
does
not
desire
to
vote
for
all
of
1
the
candidates
nominated
by
the
party
or
organization,
the
2
voter
shall
mark
the
voting
target
next
to
the
name
of
each
3
candidate
for
whom
the
voter
desires
to
vote
without
marking
4
the
target
next
to
the
name
of
the
party
or
organization
in
the
5
straight
party
or
organization
section
of
the
ballot.
6
Sec.
5.
NEW
SECTION
.
49.96
Offices
with
more
than
one
7
person
to
be
elected.
8
Where
more
than
one
person
is
to
be
elected
to
the
same
9
office
at
the
same
election,
and
all
of
the
candidates
for
10
that
office
for
whom
the
voter
desires
to
vote
were
nominated
11
by
the
political
party
or
nonparty
political
organization
for
12
which
the
voter
has
marked
a
straight
party
or
organization
13
vote,
the
voter
need
not
otherwise
indicate
the
vote
for
that
14
office.
However,
if
a
voter
who
has
marked
a
straight
party
15
or
organization
ticket
also
marks
the
voting
targets
next
to
16
the
names
of
one
or
more
candidates
for
any
office,
only
the
17
votes
cast
separately
for
individual
candidates
for
that
office
18
shall
be
counted.
If
the
voter
wishes
to
vote
for
candidates
19
who
were
nominated
by
different
political
parties
or
nonparty
20
political
organizations,
the
voter
must
mark
the
voting
target
21
for
each
candidate
the
voter
has
chosen,
whether
or
not
the
22
voter
has
also
marked
a
straight
party
or
organization
vote.
23
Sec.
6.
NEW
SECTION
.
49.97
How
to
mark
a
mixed
ticket.
24
If
all
candidates
for
whom
a
voter
desires
to
vote
were
not
25
nominated
by
the
same
political
party
or
nonparty
political
26
organization,
the
voter
may
indicate
the
candidates
of
27
the
voter’s
choice
by
marking
the
ballot
in
any
one
of
the
28
following
ways:
29
1.
The
voter
may
mark
a
straight
party
or
organization
30
vote
for
the
party
or
nonparty
political
organization
which
31
nominated
some
of
the
candidates
for
whom
the
voter
desires
32
to
vote
and
vote
for
candidates
of
other
parties
or
nonparty
33
political
organizations
by
marking
the
voting
targets
next
to
34
their
names.
35
-3-
LSB
1614YH
(3)
89
ss/jh
3/
5
H.F.
134
2.
The
voter
may
vote
for
each
candidate
separately
without
1
marking
any
straight
party
or
organization
vote.
2
Sec.
7.
Section
49.98,
Code
2021,
is
amended
to
read
as
3
follows:
4
49.98
Counting
ballots.
5
The
ballots
shall
be
counted
according
to
the
voters’
marks
6
on
them
as
provided
in
sections
49.92
and
49.93
through
49.97
,
7
and
not
otherwise.
If,
for
any
reason,
it
is
impossible
8
to
determine
from
a
ballot,
as
marked,
the
choice
of
the
9
voter
for
any
office,
the
vote
for
that
office
shall
not
be
10
counted.
When
there
is
a
conflict
between
a
straight
party
or
11
organization
vote
for
one
political
party
or
nonparty
political
12
organization
and
the
vote
cast
by
marking
the
voting
target
13
next
to
the
name
of
a
candidate
for
another
political
party
or
14
nonparty
political
organization
on
the
ballot,
the
mark
next
15
to
the
name
of
the
candidate
shall
be
held
to
control,
and
the
16
straight
party
or
organization
vote
in
that
case
shall
not
17
apply
as
to
that
office.
A
ballot
shall
be
rejected
if
the
18
voter
used
a
mark
to
identify
the
voter’s
ballot.
The
For
each
19
voting
system,
the
state
commissioner
shall,
by
rule
adopted
20
pursuant
to
chapter
17A
,
develop
uniform
definitions
of
what
21
constitutes
a
vote.
22
Sec.
8.
APPLICABILITY.
This
Act
applies
to
elections
held
23
on
or
after
the
effective
date
of
this
Act.
24
EXPLANATION
25
The
inclusion
of
this
explanation
does
not
constitute
agreement
with
26
the
explanation’s
substance
by
the
members
of
the
general
assembly.
27
This
bill
relates
to
straight
party
voting.
The
bill
allows
28
a
voter
to
vote
for
all
candidates
of
a
single
party
that
has
29
multiple
candidates
on
a
ballot
by
marking
a
voting
target
on
30
the
first
section
of
the
ballot.
In
cases
where
more
than
one
31
person
is
being
elected
to
a
single
office,
the
voter
must
32
mark
each
candidate
for
whom
the
voter
desires
to
vote
if
the
33
candidates
do
not
all
belong
to
the
party
for
which
the
voter
34
cast
a
straight
party
vote.
If
there
is
a
conflict
between
35
-4-
LSB
1614YH
(3)
89
ss/jh
4/
5
