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92nd General Assembly

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Public Act 92-0178

HB1914 Enrolled                                LRB9205518JMmb

    AN ACT concerning elections.

    Be it enacted by the People of  the  State  of  Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:

    Section  5.   The  Election  Code  is amended by changing
Sections 16-3 and 16-6.1 as follows:

    (10 ILCS 5/16-3) (from Ch. 46, par. 16-3)
    Sec. 16-3.  The names of all candidates to be  voted  for
in each election district or precinct shall be printed on one
ballot,  except as is provided in Sections 16-6.1 and 21-1.01
of this Act and except as otherwise provided in this Act with
respect to the odd year regular elections and  the  emergency
referenda;  all  nominations  of  any  political  party being
placed under the party appellation or title of such party  as
designated  in  the  certificates of nomination or petitions.
The names of all independent candidates shall be printed upon
the  ballot  in  a  column  or  columns  under  the   heading
"independent"  arranged  under  the  names  or  titles of the
respective offices  for  which  such  independent  candidates
shall have been nominated and so far as practicable, the name
or  names  of any independent candidate or candidates for any
office shall be printed upon the ballot opposite the name  or
names  of  any  candidate  or  candidates for the same office
contained in any party column or columns  upon  said  ballot.
The ballot shall contain no other names, except that in cases
of  electors  for  President and Vice-President of the United
States,  the  names  of  the  candidates  for  President  and
Vice-President may be added  to  the  party  designation  and
words calculated to aid the voter in his choice of candidates
may  be added, such as "Vote for one," "Vote for three." When
an electronic voting system is used which utilizes  a  ballot
label  booklet,  the candidates and questions shall appear on
the pages of such booklet in the order provided by this Code;
and, in any case where candidates for an office appear  on  a
page  which  does  not  contain the name of any candidate for
another office, and where  less  than  50%  of  the  page  is
utilized,  the  name  of no candidate shall be printed on the
lowest 25% of such page.  On  the  back  or  outside  of  the
ballot,  so  as  to  appear when folded, shall be printed the
words "Official Ballot", followed by the designation  of  the
polling  place  for which the ballot is prepared, the date of
the election and a facsimile of the signature of the election
authority who has caused  the  ballots  to  be  printed.  The
ballots  shall  be  of  plain  white paper, through which the
printing or writing cannot be read. However, ballots for  use
at  the nonpartisan and consolidated elections may be printed
on  different  color  paper,  except  blue  paper,   whenever
necessary  or  desirable to facilitate distinguishing between
ballots for different political subdivisions. In the case  of
nonpartisan   elections   for   officers   of   a   political
subdivision,  unless  the  statute  or  an  ordinance adopted
pursuant to Article VII of  the  Constitution  providing  the
form  of  government  therefor requires otherwise, the column
listing such nonpartisan candidates shall be printed with  no
appellation  or  circle at its head. The party appellation or
title, or the word "independent" at the head  of  any  column
provided  for  independent  candidates,  shall  be printed in
capital letters not less than one-fourth of an inch in height
and a circle one-half inch in diameter shall  be  printed  at
the  beginning of the line in which such appellation or title
is printed, provided, however, that no such circle  shall  be
printed  at  the  head  of any column or columns provided for
such independent candidates. The names of candidates shall be
printed in capital letters not less than one-eighth nor  more
than one-fourth of an inch in height, and at the beginning of
each  line in which a name of a candidate is printed a square
shall be printed, the sides of which shall be not  less  than
one-fourth  of  an  inch in length. However, the names of the
candidates for Governor and Lieutenant Governor on  the  same
ticket  shall be printed within a bracket and a single square
shall be printed  in  front  of  the  bracket.  The  list  of
candidates  of  the  several  parties  and  any  such list of
independent candidates shall be placed in separate columns on
the ballot in such order as the election authorities  charged
with the printing of the ballots shall decide; provided, that
the names of the candidates of the several political parties,
certified  by  the  State  Board  of Elections to the several
county clerks shall be printed by the  county  clerk  of  the
proper  county  on the official ballot in the order certified
by the State Board of Elections. Any county  clerk  refusing,
neglecting  or  failing  to  print on the official ballot the
names of candidates of the several political parties  in  the
order  certified  by  the  State  Board of Elections, and any
county clerk who prints or causes  to  be  printed  upon  the
official  ballot the name of a candidate, for an office to be
filled by the Electors of the entire State,  whose  name  has
not  been  duly certified to him upon a certificate signed by
the State Board of Elections shall be guilty  of  a  Class  C
misdemeanor.
    When an electronic voting system is used which utilizes a
ballot card,  on the inside flap of each ballot card envelope
there shall be printed a form for write-in voting which shall
be substantially as follows:
                       WRITE-IN VOTES
    (See  card  of  instructions  for  specific  information.
Duplicate form below by hand for additional write-in votes.)
      _____________________________
      Title of Office
(   )  ____________________________
      Name of Candidate
    When  an  electronic  voting  system is used which uses a
ballot sheet, the instructions to voters on the ballot  sheet
shall  refer  the  voter  to  the  card  of  instructions for
specific information on write-in voting.  Below  each  office
appearing on such ballot sheet there shall be a provision for
the casting of a write-in vote.
    When  such  electronic  system  is  used,  there shall be
printed on the back of each ballot  card,  each  ballot  card
envelope,  and  the  first  page  of  the ballot label when a
ballot label is used, the words "Official  Ballot,"  followed
by   the   number   of   the   precinct   or  other  precinct
identification, which may be stamped, in lieu thereof and, as
applicable, the number and name  of  the  township,  ward  or
other  election  district  for  which the ballot card, ballot
card envelope, and ballot label are prepared, the date of the
election and a facsimile of the  signature  of  the  election
authority who has caused the ballots to be printed.  The back
of the ballot card shall also include a method of identifying
the  ballot  configuration such as a listing of the political
subdivisions and districts for which votes  may  be  cast  on
that   ballot,  or  a  number  code  identifying  the  ballot
configuration or color coded ballots, except that where there
is only one ballot configuration in a precinct, the  precinct
identification, and any applicable ward identification, shall
be  sufficient.   Ballot  card  envelopes  used in punch card
systems shall be of paper through which no writing or punches
may be discerned and shall be of sufficient length to enclose
all voting positions.  However, the  election  authority  may
provide  ballot card envelopes on which no precinct number or
township, ward or other  election  district  designation,  or
election  date are preprinted, if space and a preprinted form
are provided below  the  space  provided  for  the  names  of
write-in  candidates where such information may be entered by
the judges  of  election.   Whenever  an  election  authority
utilizes ballot card envelopes on which the election date and
precinct  is  not  preprinted, a judge of election shall mark
such information for the particular precinct and election  on
the envelope in ink before tallying and counting any write-in
vote  written  thereon.  If  some  method  of insuring ballot
secrecy other than an envelope is used, such information must
be provided on the ballot itself.
    In the designation of the name  of  a  candidate  on  the
ballot,  the  candidate's  given  name  or  names, initial or
initials, a nickname  by  which  the  candidate  is  commonly
known,  or  a combination thereof, may be used in addition to
the candidate's surname. No other designation such as a title
or degree or nickname suggesting or implying possession of  a
title,  degree or professional status, or similar information
may be used  in  connection  with  the  candidate's  surname,
except  that  the  title  "Mrs." may be used in the case of a
married woman.
    Where voting machines or electronic  voting  systems  are
used,  the  provisions  of  this  Section  may be modified as
required  or  authorized  by  Article  24  or  Article   24A,
whichever is applicable.
    Nothing   in   this   Section   shall  prohibit  election
authorities from using or reusing ballot card envelopes which
were printed before the effective date of this amendatory Act
of 1985.
(Source: P.A. 84-1308.)

    (10 ILCS 5/16-6.1) (from Ch. 46, par. 16-6.1)
    Sec.  16-6.1.   In  elections  held   pursuant   to   the
provisions  of  Section  12 of Article VI of the Constitution
relating to retention of judges in office, the  form  of  the
proposition  to  be  submitted for each candidate shall be as
provided in paragraph (1) or (2), as the  election  authority
may choose.
         (1)  The  names  of all persons seeking retention in
    the same office shall be listed, in the order provided in
    this   Section,   with   one   proposition   that   reads
    substantially as follows:  "Shall  each  of  the  persons
    listed  be  retained  in office as (insert name of office
    and court)?". To the right of each candidate's name  must
    be  places  for  the voter to mark "Yes" or "No".  If the
    list of candidates  for  retention  in  the  same  office
    exceeds  one  page  of  the  ballot, the proposition must
    appear on each page upon which  the  list  of  candidates
    continues.
         (2)  The  form of the proposition for each candidate
    shall be substantially as follows:
         ___________________________________________________
             Shall ....... (insert name           YES
           of candidate) be retained in
           office as ..... (insert name
           of office and Court)?                   NO
         ___________________________________________________
    The names of all candidates thus submitting  their  names
for  retention  in office in any particular judicial district
or circuit shall appear on the same  ballot  which  shall  be
separate  from  all  other  ballots  voted  on at the general
election.
    Propositions on Supreme Court judges, if any are  seeking
retention, shall appear on the ballot in the first group, for
judges of the Appellate Court in the second group immediately
under  the  first,  and for circuit judges in the last group.
The grouping of candidates  for  the  same  office  shall  be
preceded  by  a  heading describing the office and the court.
If there are two or more  candidates  for  each  office,  the
names of such candidates in each group shall be listed in the
order  determined as follows: The name of the person with the
greatest length of time served in the specified office of the
specified court shall be listed first  in  each  group.   The
rest  of  the  names shall be listed in the appropriate order
based on  the  same  seniority  standard.   If  two  or  more
candidates  for  each office have served identical periods of
time in the specified office, such candidates shall be listed
alphabetically at the appropriate place in the order of names
based on seniority  in  the  office  as  described.   Circuit
judges  shall  be  credited  for the purposes of this section
with service as associate judges prior to July  1,  1971  and
with  service  on  any  court  the  judges of which were made
associate judges on January 1, 1964 by virtue of Paragraph 4,
subparagraphs (c) and (d) of the Schedule to  Article  VI  of
the former Illinois Constitution.
    At  the  top  of  the  ballot  on  the  same  side as the
propositions on the candidates are listed shall be printed an
explanation to read substantially as follows:  "Vote  on  the
proposition  with  respect to all or any of the judges listed
on this ballot.  No judge listed is running against any other
judge.  The sole question is  whether  each  judge  shall  be
retained in his present office".
    Such  separate  ballot  shall  be  printed  on  paper  of
sufficient  size  so  that when folded once it shall be large
enough to contain the following words, which shall be printed
on  the  back,  "Ballot  for  judicial   candidates   seeking
retention  in  office".   Such  ballot shall be handed to the
elector at the same time as the ballot containing  the  names
of  other  candidates  for  the general election and shall be
returned therewith by the elector to the  proper  officer  in
the  manner  designated  by this Act.  All provisions of this
Act relating to ballots shall apply to such separate  ballot,
except  as  otherwise  specifically provided in this section.
Such separate ballot shall be printed upon paper of  a  green
color.   No  other ballot at the same election shall be green
in color.
    In precincts in  which  voting  machines  are  used,  the
special  ballot  containing the propositions on the retention
of judges may be placed on the voting machines if such voting
machines permit the casting of votes on such propositions.
    An electronic voting system authorized by Article 24A may
be used in  voting  and  tabulating  the  judicial  retention
ballots.   When  an  electronic  voting  system is used which
utilizes a ballot label booklet and ballot card, there  shall
be  used in the label booklet a separate ballot label page or
pages as required for such proposition, which page  or  pages
for  such  proposition shall be of a green color separate and
distinct from the ballot label page or  pages  used  for  any
other proposition or candidates.
(Source: P.A. 79-201.)
    Passed in the General Assembly May 03, 2001.
    Approved July 27, 2001.

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