BILL REQ. #:  S-4296.3 

Read first time 01/23/08.   Referred to Committee on Judiciary.

     AN ACT Relating to nonpartisan prosecuting attorneys; amending RCW 29A.52.111, 29A.52.231, 29A.36.121, and 29A.36.171; reenacting and amending RCW 29A.36.170; and providing a contingent effective date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1   RCW 29A.52.111 and 2004 c 271 s 173 are each amended to read as follows:
     Candidates for the following offices shall be nominated at partisan primaries held pursuant to the provisions of this chapter:
     (1) Congressional offices;
     (2) All state offices except (a) judicial offices and (b) the office of superintendent of public instruction;
     (3) All county offices except (a) judicial offices ((and)), (b) the office of prosecuting attorney, and (c) those offices where a county home rule charter provides otherwise.

Sec. 2   RCW 29A.52.231 and 2004 c 271 s 174 are each amended to read as follows:
     The offices of superintendent of public instruction, prosecuting attorney, justice of the supreme court, judge of the court of appeals, judge of the superior court, and judge of the district court shall be nonpartisan and the candidates therefor shall be nominated and elected as such.
     All city, town, and special purpose district elective offices shall be nonpartisan and the candidates therefor shall be nominated and elected as such.

Sec. 3   RCW 29A.36.121 and 2004 c 271 s 129 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1)(a) The positions or offices on a primary consolidated ballot shall be arranged in substantially the following order: United States senator; United States representative; governor; lieutenant governor; secretary of state; state treasurer; state auditor; attorney general; commissioner of public lands; superintendent of public instruction; insurance commissioner; state senator; state representative; county officers; justices of the supreme court; judges of the court of appeals; judges of the superior court; and judges of the district court. For all other jurisdictions on the primary consolidated ballot, the offices in each jurisdiction shall be grouped together and be in the order of the position numbers assigned to those offices, if any.
     (b)(i) The positions or offices on a primary party ballot must be arranged in substantially the following order: United States senator; United States representative; governor; lieutenant governor; secretary of state; state treasurer; state auditor; attorney general; commissioner of public lands; insurance commissioner; state senator; state representative; and partisan county officers. For all other jurisdictions on the primary party ballot, the offices in each jurisdiction must be grouped together and be in the order of the position numbers assigned to those offices, if any.
     (ii) The positions or offices on a primary nonpartisan ballot must be arranged in substantially the following order: Superintendent of public instruction; prosecuting attorney; justices of the supreme court; judges of the court of appeals; judges of the superior court; and judges of the district court. For all other jurisdictions on the primary nonpartisan ballot, the offices in each jurisdiction must be grouped together and be in the order of the position numbers assigned to those offices, if any.
     (2) The order of the positions or offices on an election ballot shall be substantially the same as on a primary consolidated ballot except that state ballot issues must be placed before all offices. The offices of president and vice president of the United States shall precede all other offices on a presidential election ballot. The positions on a ballot to be assigned to ballot measures regarding local units of government shall be established by the secretary of state by rule.
     (3) The political party or independent candidacy of each candidate for partisan office shall be indicated next to the name of the candidate on the primary and election ballot. A candidate shall file a written notice with the filing officer within three business days after the close of the filing period designating the political party to be indicated next to the candidate's name on the ballot if either: (a) The candidate has been nominated by two or more minor political parties or independent conventions; or (b) the candidate has both filed a declaration of candidacy declaring an affiliation with a major political party and been nominated by a minor political party or independent convention. If no written notice is filed the filing officer shall give effect to the party designation shown upon the first document filed. A candidate may be deemed nominated by a minor party or independent convention only if all documentation required by chapter 29A.20 RCW has been timely filed.

Sec. 4   RCW 29A.36.171 and 2004 c 271 s 170 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Except as provided in RCW 29A.36.180 and in subsection (2) of this section, on the ballot at the general election for a nonpartisan office for which a primary was held, only the names of the candidate who received the greatest number of votes and the candidate who received the next greatest number of votes for that office shall appear under the title of that office, and the names shall appear in that order. If a primary was conducted, no candidate's name may be printed on the subsequent general election ballot unless he or she receives at least one percent of the total votes cast for that office at the preceding primary. On the ballot at the general election for any other nonpartisan office for which no primary was held, the names of the candidates shall be listed in the order determined under RCW 29A.36.131.
     (2) On the ballot at the general election for the office of justice of the supreme court, judge of the court of appeals, judge of the superior court, judge of the district court, prosecuting attorney, or state superintendent of public instruction, if a candidate in a contested primary receives a majority of all the votes cast for that office or position, only the name of that candidate may be printed under the title of the office for that position.

Sec. 5   RCW 29A.36.170 and 2005 c 2 s 6 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
     (1) For any office for which a primary was held, only the names of the top two candidates will appear on the general election ballot; the name of the candidate who received the greatest number of votes will appear first and the candidate who received the next greatest number of votes will appear second. No candidate's name may be printed on the subsequent general election ballot unless he or she receives at least one percent of the total votes cast for that office at the preceding primary, if a primary was conducted. On the ballot at the general election for an office for which no primary was held, the names of the candidates shall be listed in the order determined under RCW ((29A.36.130)) 29A.36.131.
     (2) For the office of justice of the supreme court, judge of the court of appeals, judge of the superior court, prosecuting attorney, or state superintendent of public instruction, if a candidate in a contested primary receives a majority of all the votes cast for that office or position, only the name of that candidate may be printed for that position on the ballot at the general election.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   Section 5 of this act takes effect if the United States Supreme Court finds Initiative Measure No. 872 constitutional in Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican Party (No. 06-713) and Washington v. Washington State Republican Party (No. 06-730). Section 5 of this act is null and void if the United States Supreme Court finds Initiative Measure No. 872 unconstitutional in the aforementioned cases.