Colorado Secretary of State’s Office Judd Choate, State Election Director Presidential Primary Election July 8, 2016

Colorado History of Presidential Selection I.Colorado History A.Caucus prior to 1992 B.Primary from C.Primary repealed in 2003 D.Caucus

SB I.SB A.Timing 1)Date designated by Governor in consultation with the Secretary of State 2)Picked by September 1 the previous year 3)No earlier than the national party rules permit without penalty 4)No later than the 3 rd Tuesday in March 5)Not less than 14 days after the precinct caucus B.Ballot 1)Ballots will be specific to the voter’s political party 2)Voters can only vote for candidates within their party ID 3)Unaffiliated voters can declare a party and vote 4)There can be only the presidential primary on the ballot – no other races C.Non-Participation 1)Majority vote by party central committee to decide not to hold a primary 3

SB (cont.) I.SB D. Ballot Access 1)Party process 2)Candidates must get 1,500 affiliated signatures in each congressional district 3)Candidate petitions circulated between November 1 and January 2. 4)SOS certifies names to the ballot 60 days prior to the primary E.Mail Ballot Election for Active Affiliated Voters F.Funding 1)Money comes from the general fund 2)The counties are reimbursed for costs 3)The SOS determines calculation for reimbursement 4

I.HB A.Timing 1)Date designated by Governor in consultation with the Secretary of State 2)Picked by September 1 the previous year 3)No earlier than the national party rules permit without penalty 4)No later than the 3 rd Tuesday in March 5)Not less than 14 days after the precinct caucus B.Ballot 1)Ballots will be specific to the voter’s political party 2)Voters can only vote for candidates within their party ID 3)State party chairperson can add “no preference” to the ballot C.“Temporary Affiliated Elector” 1)Persons who wish to become affiliated with a party but only on a temporary basis 2)Begins )Can declare new temporary party up to 45 days before the primary 4)Affiliation automatically terminates 30 days after the primary 5)Voter cannot change twice in the 29 days prior to the election 6)OLVR and Forms changed to correspond 5 HB

HB (cont.) I.HB D. Ballot Access 1)Party process 2)Candidates must get 1,500 affiliated signatures in each congressional district 3)Candidate petitions circulated between November 1 and January 2. 4)SOS certifies names to the ballot 60 days prior to the primary E.Mail Ballot Election for Active Affiliated Voters F.Funding 1)Money comes from the general fund 2)The counties are reimbursed for costs 3)The SOS determines calculation for reimbursement 6

#140 Ballot Initiative I.#140 – Creates combined ballot for Presidential Primary election A.Timing 1)Date designated by Governor (no consultation with the Secretary of State 2)Picked by September 1 the previous year 3)No earlier than the national party rules permit without penalty 4)No later than the 3 rd Tuesday in March 5)The SOS may cancel the election 60 days prior when no opposition B.Party ID 1)Affiliated voters may not switch parties inside of 29 days prior to the election C.Ballot Access 1)Party process 2)Candidates pay $500 or obtain signatures from 5,000 affiliated voters 3)Candidate petitions circulated between November 1 and January 2. 4)SOS certifies names to the ballot 60 days prior to the primary 7

#140 Ballot Initiative (cont.) I.#140 D. Ballot 1)Only for presidential primary 2)Affiliated voters vote a party ballot 3)Unaffiliated voters declare a party at a VSPC and receive that party’s ballot or … 4)Receive a combined mail ballot with all candidates for all offices 5)Ballots clearly distinguish between the parties 6)Voters can only vote for candidates of one party 7)Ballots with votes across two of more parties are void 8)State party chairperson can add “no preference” to the ballot 9)75% of the party’s central committee can decide to forego to the primary 10)A minor party may choose a closed primary E. Funding 1)Money comes from the SOS cash funds (unless exhausted) 2)Counties reimbursed by C.R.S., but only active voters who vote F. Party Caucus 1) Party caucus moved from February to the Saturday following the primary 8

#98 Ballot Initiative I.#98 – Creates a combined ballot for state primary elections A.Party ID 1)No limitation on switching parties prior to the primary B.Ballot 1)Affiliated voters vote a party ballot 2)Unaffiliated voters declare a party at a VSPC and receive that party’s ballot or … 3)Receive a combined mail ballot with all candidates for all offices 4)Ballots clearly distinguish between the parties 5)Voters can only vote for candidates of one party 6)Ballots with votes across two of more parties are void 7)75% of the party’s central committee can decide to forego to the primary 8)A minor party may choose a closed primary 9

Presidential Selection in Other States 10

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12 Questions?