General Assembly>Division of Legislative Services>Publications>Session Summaries>2007>Elections


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Elections

Passed

P HB 1625

Forfeiture of office for persons convicted of certain crimes. Provides that any person holding public office who is convicted of any offense that requires registration on the Sex Offender and Crimes Against Minors Registry, as defined in § 9.1-902, and for whom all rights of appeal under Virginia law have expired, shall forfeit the public office.
Patron - Ingram

P HB 1642

Elections; voter registration records. Clarifies the duties of local electoral boards, general registrars, and the State Board of Elections regarding voter registration records and exceptions from public inspection. Requires the State Board to provide general registrars with lists of registered voters and persons denied registration for public inspection. This bill incorporates HB 2202.
Patron - Alexander

P HB 1835

Knowingly communicate false information to registered voter; penalty. Makes it a Class 1 misdemeanor to knowingly communicate false information to a registered voter about the date, time, and place of the election or the voter's precinct, polling place, or voter registration status in order to impede his voting.
Patron - Amundson

P HB 1935

Elections; applications for absentee ballots. Requires that applications for absentee ballots contain the last four digits of the applicant's social security number.
Patron - Rapp

P HB 1977

Campaign finance; inaugural committees; final report and surplus funds. Provides that surplus inaugural committee funds shall be used only to return contributions to contributors or make charitable contributions. Applies to funds and receipts received by inaugural committees after July 1, 2007. Funds and receipts received before that date continue to be governed by prior law.
Patron - Fralin

P HB 2141

Elections; voter registration records; authorize matching with lists of other states; State Board of Elections to develop security policies and make annual report. Authorizes the State Board of Elections to furnish voter lists to other states with protections for privacy of voter social security numbers. Authorizes cancellation of voter registration based on information from registration officials of other states. Makes conforming changes to sections referring to social security numbers to prohibit disclosure of parts of numbers. Requires the State Board of Elections to (i) approve security procedures for transmitting voter lists to other states' Chief Election Officers, and (ii) monitor implementation with annual statistical reporting to the General Assembly starting July 1, 2008.
Patron - Brink

P HB 2287

Absentee voting; alternative procedures to expedite counting preparations. Authorizes the electoral board to give the general registrar the option to expedite preparations for counting optical scan absentee ballots returned by mail. The board can authorize verifying completion of the required affirmation, marking the pollbook, and inserting ballots in optical scan equipment in presence of officers of election representing both parties without initiating any vote counts. Prohibits persons present during the preparations from disclosing any information concerning the ballots. This bill is identical to SB 1334.
Patron - Watts

P HB 2354

Elections; recount procedures. Provides for the securing by the circuit court clerks of ballots and election materials after an election and pending a recount.
Patron - Cosgrove

P HB 2386

Campaign finance disclosure; filings of candidate reports. Requires the State Board of Elections to develop and implement a centralized system to accept reports from local office candidates by July 1, 2007. Local office candidates who file electronically with the State Board will not be required to file locally, and the State Board shall make the filings available promptly to the local electoral board. The bill takes effect only if adequate funding or programming is available to implement the centralized system for accepting the local reports. This bill is identical to SB 1015.
Patron - May

P HB 2650

Campaign finance disclosure; definitions; reporting requirements. Codifies the "express advocacy" standard. The Virginia Supreme Court held in Virginia Society for Human Life, Inc. v. Caldwell, 256 Va. 151, 500 S.E.2d 814 (1998), that Virginia's campaign finance disclosure laws apply only to "express advocacy" and that the phrase "for the purpose of influencing the outcome of an election" will be interpreted to mean "express advocacy." This bill reflects a recommendation of the task force that assisted the State Board of Elections in conducting a review in 2005 of the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act pursuant to House Joint Resolution 667 (2005).
Patron - Jones, S.C.

P HB 2707

Election procedures; voting equipment requirements; recounts. Prohibits future purchases of direct recording electronic (DRE) devices; and provides for the phase out of DRE devices as the devices now in operation wear out. Prohibits any form of wireless communication to or from voting or counting devices while polls are open on election day. Requires localities to provide accessible equipment for disabled voters. The bill deletes obsolete references to mechanical voting equipment and punchcard devices. The bill as passed is identical to SB 840 and incorporates HBs 2077 and 2734.
Patron - Hugo

P HB 2740

Campaign finance; deadline for reports of independent expenditures; filings by political action and political party committees. Requires filing independent expenditure reports by earlier of 24 hours after (i) making expenditure, or (ii) publishing or publicly broadcasting materials to influence voting for or against an identified candidate. Requires that independent expenditure reports filed by a political action committee or political party committee that has not yet filed a statement of organization provide the information required on a statement of organization. Current law allows a committee 10 days after it is organized to file its statement of organization. This bill requires a political action committee or political party committee that makes an independent expenditure during this 10-day period or any period during which the committee has not filed a statement of organization to file a report with complete information within 24 hours of spending funds or publishing or publicly broadcasting candidate related materials.
Patron - Englin

P HB 2780

House of Delegates districts. Makes a technical adjustment in the boundary line between the Ninety-seventh and Ninety-eighth districts within King William County in order that all of the town of West Point will be within the Ninety-eighth district.
Patron - Morgan

P HB 2818

Elections; polling place activities and restrictions; pollwatchers. Allows officers of election discretion to permit up to three representatives of each party or candidate to remain in the polling place to observe the election in all cases. Present law requires allowing presence of at least one representative per party or candidate or, if the pollbook is divided into sections, one representative per section not to exceed three representatives per party or candidate at the same time.
Patron - Sickles

P HB 2852

Campaign finance; special registration provisions for certain committees. Provides that the State Board of Elections shall not accept the statement of organization from or register a political action committee unless the PAC states that its primary purpose is to influence the outcome of nonfederal elections in Virginia. Makes conforming changes in the definitions pertaining to campaign finance. Defines "primary purpose" as meaning 50% or more of overall contributions made by a committee are made to Virginia registered campaigns and committees, excluding administrative expenses and transfers among affiliates. Applies to expenditures of funds received on or after July 1, 2007.
Patron - Moran

P HB 3025

Elections; voter participation; information provided by State Board of Elections. Requires the State Board of Elections to continue its current practice of providing elections results and statistical information on its website. Requires calculation and report on voter turnout to exclude voters assigned to inactive status. Voters are assigned to inactive status pursuant to §§ 24.2-428 and 24.2-428.1 if they fail to respond within 30 days to a notice issued by general registrar or other specified events.
Patron - Cox

P HB 3168

Elections; persons not listed in pollbook; application for registration and provisional ballot. Requires officers of election to provide persons offering to vote not listed in pollbook an application for registration along with a provisional ballot. Allows counting the provisional ballot if the voter or State Board of Elections proves that a timely registration application was submitted to another state-designated registration agency and the registrar determines the voter is qualified based on the application provided when he offered to vote.
Patron - Dance

P SB 736

State Board of Elections. Prohibits a board member from running for an elected office, serving as a political party committee chairman, or being a paid worker for a candidate campaigning for elected office. This bill is identical to SB 775.
Patron - Martin

P SB 840

Election procedures; voting equipment requirements; recounts. Prohibits future purchases of direct recording electronic (DRE) devices; and provides for the phase out of DRE devices as the devices now in operation wear out. Prohibits any form of wireless communication to or from voting or counting devices while polls are open on election day. Requires localities to provide accessible equipment for disabled voters. The bill deletes obsolete references to mechanical voting equipment and punchcard devices. This bill is identical to HB 2707 as passed and incorporates SB 878.
Patron - Devolites Davis

P SB 1015

Campaign finance disclosure; filings of candidate reports. Requires the State Board of Elections to develop and implement a centralized system to accept reports from local office candidates by July 1, 2007. Local office candidates who file electronically with the State Board will not be required to file locally, and the State Board shall make the filings available promptly to the local electoral board. The bill takes effect only if adequate funding or programming is available to implement the centralized system for accepting the local reports. This bill is identical to HB 2386.
Patron - Norment

P SB 1034

Elections; challenges to voters at the polls. Provides that a person challenging a person's right to vote at the polls shall complete a form and indicate the reason for his challenge. Expands grounds for challenge to include that the person (i) is not who he represents himself to be, or (ii) has already voted. Corrects affirmation required of challenged voter to include town residency for town elections.
Patron - O'Brien

P SB 1226

Electronic voting equipment; security. Requires local electoral boards to develop plans and procedures to ensure the security of electronic voting systems. Requires the general registrar and State Board of Elections to provide assistance in the development of these plans, upon request. The bill also requires vendors of electronic voting systems to provide written best practices about the secure use of the systems when applying for certification in the Commonwealth and to annually update these practices once certified.
Patron - Howell

P SB 1232

Page County School Board; referendum. Provides for a referendum in the County at the November 2007 election on the question of whether the chairman of the school board should be elected by the County at large.
Patron - Obenshain

P SB 1307

Senatorial districts. Makes a technical adjustment between the Fifteenth and Twenty-third districts in Amherst County so as to eliminate a split precinct.
Patron - Newman

P SB 1334

Absentee voting; alternative procedures to expedite counting preparations. Authorizes electoral board to give general registrar the option to expedite preparations for counting optical scan absentee ballots returned by mail. The board can authorize verifying completion of the required affirmation, marking the pollbook, and inserting ballots in optical scan equipment in presence of officers of election representing both parties without initiating any vote counts. Prohibits persons present during the preparations from disclosing any information concerning the ballots. This bill is identical to HB 2287.
Patron - Reynolds

Failed

F HB 1629

Redistricting process. Provides a new method for the preparation of state legislative and congressional redistricting plans; spells out standards for developing plans; precludes consideration of incumbency and political data in developing plans; assigns responsibility to the Division of Legislative Services to prepare plans for submission to the General Assembly; and establishes a temporary redistricting advisory commission to advise the Division, disseminate information on plans, and hold hearings for public reaction to plans. This bill is patterned after the Iowa redistricting process.
Patron - Shuler

F HB 1769

Elections; polling places; prohibited activities. Provides that the prohibitions on exhibiting campaign materials in or near polling places shall not be construed to apply to voters wearing a shirt, hat, or other apparel or a sticker or button attached to his apparel on which a candidate's name or a political slogan appears.
Patron - Brink

F HB 2069

Elections; absentee voting and absentee ballot applications. Provides that any person who will be commuting to perform volunteer service on election day may vote absentee if his commute and service time equals 11 or more hours of the 13 hours that the polls are open.
Patron - Brink

F HB 2070

Redistricting process. Creates a new Citizen Advisory Redistricting Board within the State Board of Elections to have responsibility to prepare and recommend state legislative and congressional redistricting plans for consideration and enactment by the General Assembly. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court designates a special master who is chair. The Governor appoints four members from recommendations (three each) of the majority and minority leaders in each house. The remaining Board members are appointed by the Governor after considering recommendations of the state party committee chairs of parties with candidates receiving at least 25% of the vote in the last gubernatorial election; thus, the Governor initially would appoint six members. Adopts apportionment standards of federal and state law (currently, population equality, compactness, and contiguity). Allows local governing bodies to make recommendations when a proposed plan would divide a county, city, or town. This bill is patterned after the Vermont redistricting process adapted for Virginia's election schedule and district structure. The bill provides for continuation of the Joint Reapportionment Committee to facilitate development of proposed plans by the Citizen Advisory Redistricting Board and the General Assembly's enactment of plans under Article II, §6 of the Constitution.
Patron - Brink

F HB 2072

Absentee voting; persons eligible to vote absentee. Adds women who are pregnant at the time of applying to vote absentee to the list of persons eligible to vote absentee.
Patron - Brink

F HB 2077

Election procedures; voting equipment requirements; recount procedures. Beginning January 1, 2009, requires vendors seeking State Board of Elections certification of direct recording electronic (DRE) devices to equip them to produce a paper record of each vote that can be verified by the voter and provides for use of paper records in recounts. Allows use of currently certified DRE machines without voter-verified paper record capacity. Requires localities to provide voting equipment accessible to disabled voters and when required by the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the capacity for alternative languages. Repeals outdated authorization for mechanical voting devices and outdated references to punchcards and mechanical voting devices. This bill was incorporated into HB 2707.
Patron - Armstrong

F HB 2083

Elections; voter registration lists and applications; victims of domestic violence. Provides that victims of domestic violence may provide a post office box address, in lieu of a residence address, to be shown on any public list of registered voters. The bill takes effect January 1, 2008.
Patron - Eisenberg

F HB 2202

Elections; voter registration records. Clarifies the duties of local electoral boards, general registrars, and the State Board of Elections regarding voter registration records and exceptions from public inspection. This bill was incorporated into HB 1642.
Patron - Wardrup

F HB 2574

Elections; absentee voting. Provides that qualified voters may vote absentee for any reason. The bill eliminates the present statutory list of specific reasons entitling a voter to cast an absentee ballot. Several special provisions concerning military and overseas absentee voters and disabled voters are consolidated in one new provision. This bill is identical to HB 3001.
Patron - Shannon

F HB 2599

Virginia Advisory Redistricting Commission. Creates an advisory commission to draw plans to redistrict General Assembly and congressional districts in the year 2011 and every tenth year thereafter. The General Assembly has power to adopt or amend commission plans. The bill spells out the standards to be followed by the commission in drawing plans and provides for the expiration of the commission following implementation of the decennial redistricting plans.
Patron - Plum

F HB 2696

Election procedures; voting equipment requirements. Requires vendors seeking State Board of Elections certification of direct recording electronic (DRE) devices to (i) have current federal certification and (ii) equip them to produce a paper record of each vote that can be verified by the voter. Provides that the voter-verified paper record takes precedence in a recount. Requires that all DREs produce a voter-verifiable paper record. The bill takes effect January 1, 2009.
Patron - Hugo

F HB 2697

Election procedures; recounts. Requires recount officials as part of the recount proceedings to randomly audit three percent of voting machines using State Board of Elections standards for hand recounts. A discrepancy exceeding one tenth of one percent (0.1%) requires extending the audit to all precincts. The bill is effective January 1, 2009, and it deletes obsolete references to mechanical voting equipment and punchcards.
Patron - Hugo

F HB 2734

Election procedures; voting equipment requirements; recount procedures. Requires localities to provide voting equipment accessible to disabled voters and, when required by the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the capacity for alternative languages. Repeals outdated authorization for mechanical voting devices and outdated references to punchcards and mechanical voting devices. This bill was incorporated into HB 2707.
Patron - Englin

F HB 2737

Election procedures; postelection audits of vote-counting machines. Requires State Board of Elections to develop procedures to enable local electoral boards to conduct postelection audits of at least two percent of machines in jurisdictions with at least 50,000 voters and at least five percent of machines in jurisdictions with under 50,000 voters. Requires the random selection for auditing of a representative sample of vote-counting machines within 48 hours of public announcement of initial vote counts and prohibits certifying results until audits are completed. Provides that paper records control in the event of a significant discrepancy, defined as over 0.1% difference between the hand counted total and the initial machine tally. Requires local electoral board to publicly announce comparative results. The bill is effective January 1, 2009.
Patron - Hugo

F HB 2742

Presidential elections; National Popular Vote Compact. Enters Virginia into an interstate compact known as the Agreement Among the States to Elect the President by National Popular Vote. Article II of the United States Constitution gives the states exclusive and plenary authority to decide the manner of awarding their electoral votes. Under the compact, the state agrees to award its electoral votes to the presidential ticket that receives the most popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The compact goes into effect when states cumulatively possessing a majority of the electoral votes have joined the compact. A state may withdraw from the compact; however, a withdrawal occurring six months or less before the end of a President's term shall not become effective until a President or a Vice President has qualified to serve the next term. This bill is identical to SB 864.
Patron - Englin

F HB 2891

Early voting. Provides that any registered voter qualified to vote in an election may vote in person from 30 to three days before the election at specified times and at the sites provided in the locality. The provisions for absentee voting remain in effect except that the provisions for in-person absentee voting are superseded by the early voting process during the early voting period. The bill takes effect January 1, 2008.
Patron - Phillips

F HB 2892

House of Delegates districts. Makes technical adjustments in the boundary line between the Second and Third House of Delegates districts within Russell County in order to reduce split precincts and more closely follow current voter precinct lines.
Patron - Phillips

F HB 2901

Early voting. Provides that any registered voter qualified to vote in the election may vote in person from 17 to three days before the election at specified times and at the sites provided in the locality. The provisions for absentee voting remain in effect except that the provisions for in-person absentee voting are superseded by the early voting process during the early voting period. The bill takes effect January 1, 2008.
Patron - Spruill

F HB 2911

Elections; absentee voting and absentee ballot applications. Provides that any person who will be age 65 or older on the election day may vote absentee.
Patron - Spruill

F HB 2995

Campaign finance; civil penalty. Adds a requirement for campaign committees, political committees, and out-of-state political committees to report the name and address of any controlling individual with an ownership interest exceeding 50% in any contributor that is a corporation, partnership, business, or other like entity. Prohibits making or receiving contributions without required disclosure and imposes a civil penalty equal to the greater of $500 or the amount of the contribution.
Patron - Scott, J.M.

F HB 2996

Campaign Finance Disclosure Act of 2006. Provides a procedure for review of campaign finance reports for candidates for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General and for candidates in a random sample of General Assembly districts. Focuses on reconciling the balance in the campaign depository with campaign finance reports, mathematical accuracy, and completeness. Retains existing record retention requirements in § 24.2-947.3.
Patron - Scott, J.M.

F HB 2999

Electoral College. Provides that the Commonwealth's votes in the Electoral College shall be allocated by the popular vote statewide and in each congressional district. The candidates for President and Vice President who win the popular statewide vote will receive the votes of the two at-large statewide electors and the candidate who wins the popular vote in each congressional district will receive the vote of that district's elector. Maine and Nebraska allocate electoral college votes in this manner.
Patron - Scott, J.M.

F HB 3001

Elections; absentee voting. Provides that qualified voters may vote absentee for any reason. The bill eliminates the present statutory list of specific reasons entitling a voter to cast an absentee ballot. Several special provisions concerning military and overseas absentee voters and disabled voters are consolidated in one new provision. This bill is identical to HB 2574.
Patron - Scott, J.M.

F HB 3012

Campaign finance; certain prohibited contributions to local governing body members. Prohibits any governing body member from soliciting or accepting a campaign contribution from a person with a personal interest in a transaction pending before the governing body while the matter is pending before the governing body or for 90 days after action on the matter. Prohibits any person with a personal interest in a transaction pending before the governing body from making or promising to make a campaign contribution to a member of the governing body while the matter is pending before the governing body or for 90 days after action on the matter. Includes special disclosure requirements, definitions, and civil penalties for violations.
Patron - Frederick

F HB 3052

Elections; officers of election; high school interns as officers. Provides for the appointment of high school students age 16 or older and in good academic standing to serve as officer of election interns. Interns shall perform the duties of officers of election and receive the same compensation and training as officers of election.
Patron - Alexander

F HB 3100

Voter registration list. Clarifies persons who may obtain lists of persons voting at primaries and elections
Patron - O'Bannon

F HB 3101

Campaign finance disclosure; reports of independent expenditures. Narrows disclosure requirements by providing that the requirement to file reports of independent expenditures shall apply to any "political action committee" rather than to any "political committee." The definition of "political committee" covers "any political action committee, political party committee, referendum committee, or inaugural committee."
Patron - O'Bannon

F HB 3150

Campaign finance; prohibited activities during regular sessions of the General Assembly. Prohibits General Assembly members and the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General from attending political party committee fundraisers during regular sessions of the General Assembly.
Patron - Saxman

F HB 3157

Elections; candidate filing requirements. Requires independent and primary candidates to pay a filing fee for expenses equal to the greater of $50 or two percent of one year's minimum annual salary for the office unless a candidate provides an affidavit that he is indigent. Provides a formula for calculating signatures required on candidate petitions for the General Assembly and local elections of 0.25% of registered voters or 50 registered voters, whichever is greater. Retains exceptions for certain small towns and soil and water conservation districts.
Patron - Wardrup

F HB 3200

Elections; duties of registrars; voter registration residence requirements; certain presumptions. Creates a presumption that the address given by a full-time student at a Virginia institution of higher education is his proper address for registering to vote whether it is the address where he lives while attending school or the address in Virginia where he lives when not attending school.
Patron - Rapp

F SB 775

State Board of Elections. Prohibits a board member from running for an elected office, serving as a political party committee chairman, or being a paid worker for a candidate campaigning for elected office. This bill is identical to SB 736.
Patron - Cuccinelli

F SB 864

Presidential elections; National Popular Vote Compact. Enters Virginia into an interstate compact known as the Agreement Among the States to Elect the President by National Popular Vote. Article II of the United States Constitution gives the states exclusive and plenary authority to decide the manner of awarding their electoral votes. Under the compact, the state agrees to award its electoral votes to the presidential ticket that receives the most popular votes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The compact goes into effect when states cumulatively possessing a majority of the electoral votes have joined the compact. A state may withdraw from the compact; however, a withdrawal occurring six months or less before the end of a President's term shall not become effective until a President or a Vice President has qualified to serve the next term. This bill is identical to HB 2742.
Patron - Miller

F SB 878

Elections; recount procedures. Requires hard copy optical scan ballots to be rerun through appropriately programmed tabulators in recount proceedings. Present law provides that the tabulator printout will be sufficient unless it is unclear or the court orders the ballots to be rerun. This bill was incorporated into SB 840 as passed the Senate.
Patron - Deeds

F SB 916

Voter registration procedures; applications and receipts. Requires the state form for the application to register to vote to contain a receipt that will be given to the applicant by any person accepting the application. The receipt states the name of the office or person accepting the application, the date accepted, and a phone number that the applicant may call to verify that he is registered. The requirements pertaining to the receipt are inapplicable when the applicant mails his application directly to a general registrar, State Board of Elections, or other government agent authorized by law to accept the application.
Patron - Howell

F SB 920

Elections; absentee voting. Provides that qualified voters may vote absentee in person without providing an excuse or reason for not being able to vote in person on election day. The bill retains the present statutory list of specific reasons entitling a voter to cast an absentee ballot for those persons who vote absentee by mail.
Patron - Howell

F SB 940

Elections; voter registration lists and applications; victims of domestic violence. Provides that victims of domestic violence reported to law-enforcement officers may provide a post office box address, in lieu of a residence address, to be shown on any public list of registered voters. The bill takes effect January 1, 2008.
Patron - Ticer

F SB 986

Elections; absentee voting. Extends to persons with any disability or illness, rather than only a "physical" disability or illness, the ability to obtain an absentee ballot; and provides a definition for "person with a disability."
Patron - Deeds

F SB 1095

Elections; authorized voting equipment. Adds to the requirements for certification of voting equipment that the equipment be designed to assure, to the extent practicable, that the voter reviews each candidate and question on the ballot for the election.
Patron - Puckett

F SB 1274

Elections; absentee voting by individuals with disabilities or other medical conditions and caregivers. Establishes a right to vote absentee for duly registered voters with medical conditions making them unable to go to polls on election day and their caregivers. Provides a definition of "disability."
Patron - Whipple

F SB 1382

Elections; voting procedures at polling places. Eliminates the requirement that the name and address of the voter be repeated by an officer of election so that it may be heard by persons present in the polling place.
Patron - Ticer

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