A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to reduce the number of signatures required of a new party and of a statewide unaffiliated candidate to achieve ballot eligibility; to reduce the number of votes a new party must gain for a nominee in order to maintain ballot eligibility; and to move to a date before the party primaries the deadlines for filing new party petitions and nominating new party candidates.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 163‑96(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	Definition. – A political party within the meaning of the election laws of this State shall be either:
(1)	Any group of voters which, at the last preceding general State election, polled for its candidate for Governor, or for presidential electors, at least two percent  (2%) of the entire vote cast in the State for Governor or for presidential electors; or
(2)	Any group of voters which shall have filed with the State Board of Elections petitions for the formulation of a new political party which are signed by registered and qualified voters in this State equal in number to one-half of one percent (0.5%) of the total number of voters who voted in the most recent general election for Governor. Also the petition must be signed by at least 200 registered voters from each of four congressional districts in North Carolina. To be effective, the petitioners must file their petitions with the State Board of Elections before 12:00 noon on the first day of April preceding the day on which is to be held the first general State election in which the new political party desires to participate. The State Board of Elections shall forthwith determine the sufficiency of petitions filed with it and shall immediately communicate its determination to the State chairman of the proposed new political party."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 163‑97 reads as rewritten:
"§ 163‑97.  Termination of status as political party.
When any political party fails to poll for its candidate or group of candidates in at least one of the following races, governor or presidential electors, at least two percent (2%) of the entire vote cast in the State in that race at a general election, it shall cease to be a political party within the meaning of the primary and general election laws and all other provisions of this Chapter."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 163‑98 reads as rewritten:
"§ 163‑98.  General election participation by new political party.
In the first general election following the date on which a new political party qualifies under the provisions of G.S. 163‑96, it shall be entitled to have the names of its candidates for national, State, congressional, and local offices printed on the official ballots.
For the first general election following the date on which it qualifies under G.S. 163‑96, a new political party shall select its candidates by party convention. Following adjournment of the nominating convention, but not later than the first day of May prior to the general election, the president of the convention shall certify to the State Board of Elections the names of persons chosen in the convention as the new party's candidates in the ensuing general election. The State Board of Elections shall print names thus certified on the appropriate ballots as the nominees of the new party. The State Board of Elections shall send to each county board of elections the list of any new party candidates so that the county board can add those names to the appropriate ballot."
SECTION 4.  G.S. 163‑122(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	Procedure for Having Name Printed on Ballot as Unaffiliated Candidate. – Any qualified voter who seeks to have his name printed on the general election ballot as an unaffiliated candidate shall:
(1)	If the office is a statewide office, file written petitions with the State Board of Elections supporting his candidacy for a specified office. These petitions must be filed with the State Board of Elections on or before 12:00 noon on the last Friday in June preceding the general election and must be signed by qualified voters of the State equal in number to one-half of one percent  (0.5%) of the total number of voters who voted in the most recent general election for Governor. Also the petition must be signed by at least 200 registered voters from each of four congressional districts in North Carolina. No later than 5:00 p.m. on the fifteenth day preceding the date the petitions are due to be filed with the State Board of Elections, each petition shall be presented to the chairman of the board of elections of the county in which the signatures were obtained. Provided the petitions are timely submitted, the chairman shall examine the names on the petition and place a check mark on the petition by the name of each signer who is qualified and registered to vote in his county and shall attach to the petition his signed certificate. Said certificates shall state that the signatures on the petition have been checked against the registration records and shall indicate the number of signers to be qualified and registered to vote in his county. The chairman shall return each petition, together with the certificate required in this section, to the person who presented it to him for checking. Verification by the chairman of the county board of elections shall be completed within two weeks from the date such petitions are presented.
(2)	If the office is a district office comprised of two or more counties, file written petitions with the State Board of Elections supporting his candidacy for a specified office. These petitions must be filed with the State Board of Elections on or before 12:00 noon on the last Friday in June preceding the general election and must be signed by qualified voters of the district equal in number to four percent (4%) of the total number of registered voters in the district as reflected by the latest statistical report issued by the State Board of Elections. Each petition shall be presented to the chairman of the board of elections of the county in which the signatures were obtained. The chairman shall examine the names on the petition and the procedure for certification and deadline for submission to the county board shall be the same as specified in (1) above.
(3)	If the office is a county office or a single county legislative district, file written petitions with the chairman or director of the county board of elections supporting his candidacy for a specified county office. These petitions must be filed with the county board of elections on or before 12:00 noon on the last Friday in June preceding the general election and must be signed by qualified voters of the county equal in number to four percent (4%) of the total number of registered voters in the county as reflected by the most recent statistical report issued by the State Board of Elections, except if the office is for a district consisting of less than the entire county and only the voters in that district vote for that office, the petitions must be signed by qualified voters of the district equal in number to four percent (4%) of the total number of voters in the district according to the most recent figures certified by the State Board of Elections. Each petition shall be presented to the chairman or director of the county board of elections. The chairman shall examine, or cause to be examined, the names on the petition and the procedure for certification shall be the same as specified in (1) above.
(4)	If the office is a partisan municipal office, file written petitions with the chairman or director of the county board of elections in the county wherein the municipality is located supporting his candidacy for a specified municipal office. These petitions must be filed with the county board of elections on or before the time and date specified in G.S. 163‑296 and must be signed by the number of qualified voters specified in G.S. 163‑296. The procedure for certification shall be the same as specified in (1) above.
Upon compliance with the provisions of (1), (2), (3), or (4) of this subsection, the board of elections with which the petitions have been timely filed shall cause the unaffiliated candidate's name to be printed on the general election ballots in accordance with G.S. 163‑140.
An individual whose name appeared on the ballot in a primary election preliminary to the general election shall not be eligible to have his name placed on the general election ballot as an unaffiliated candidate for the same office in that year."
SECTION 5.  This act becomes effective January 1, 2004, and applies to all primaries and elections held on or after that date.