Washington State House of Representatives Office of Program Research | BILL ANALYSIS |
State Government & Tribal Affairs Committee |
HB 1917
This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative members in their deliberations. This analysis is not a part of the legislation nor does it constitute a statement of legislative intent. |
Brief Description: Counting original ballots in the event of a manual recount.
Sponsors: Representatives Shea, Armstrong, Short, Orcutt, Kristiansen and Condotta.
Brief Summary of Bill |
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Hearing Date: 2/13/09
Staff: Marsha Reilly (786-7135)
Background:
The conditions under which a recount may be made are provided by law.
Recounts may be requested of any election by a candidate or an officer of a political party, or by a group of five or more people for a ballot question or issue. Applications for recounts must indicate whether the recount be conducted manually or by the vote tallying system. Persons requesting a recount must pay for the recount; however, if the result of the recount changes the outcome of the election, the charge is refunded.
If the official canvass of the returns of an election results in a difference in the number of votes for a candidate apparently nominated or elected and the closest opponent is less than 2,000 votes and also less that one-half of 1 percent of the total number of votes cast for both candidates, the county canvassing board must conduct a recount. For a statewide election, if the difference in the number of votes is less than 1,000 votes and less than one-fourth of 1 percent the votes must be recounted manually. For a manual recount of an election other than statewide, the difference in the number of votes must be less than 150 and less than one-fourth of 1 percent of the total number of votes cast for both candidates.
Summary of Bill:
For mandatory manual recounts of an election, the original ballots must be counted and not those that have been duplicated.
Appropriation: None.
Fiscal Note: Not requested.
Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of the session in which the bill is passed.