SEARCH SITE

VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL

SEARCHABLE DATABASES

ACROSS SESSIONS

Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.

2017 SESSION

  • print version
Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections

Chairman: Jill Holtzman Vogel

Clerk: Hobie Lehman, E. Greenwood
Staff: Meg Lamb
Date of Meeting: January 17, 2017
Time and Place: 4 pm/ Senate Room A
Updated:remove SJR216-280 & SB846,878,1133&1206 & add all bellow

S.B. 837 Electors for President and Vice President; allocation of electoral votes by congressional district.

Patron: Chase

Electors for President and Vice President; allocation of electoral votes by congressional district. Revises the process by which the Commonwealth's electoral votes are allocated among the slates of presidential electors. The bill provides that a voter will vote for two electors for the Commonwealth at large and one elector for the congressional district in which he is qualified to vote. The candidates for President and Vice President receiving the highest number of votes cast statewide are allocated the two electoral votes for the Commonwealth at large, and the candidates for President and Vice President receiving the highest number of votes cast in each congressional district are allocated the one electoral vote for that congressional district. Currently, the candidates for President and Vice President receiving the highest number of votes cast statewide are allocated the total number of the Commonwealth's electoral votes.

A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 24.2-202, 24.2-203, 24.2-542, 24.2-542.1, and 24.2-673 of the Code of Virginia, relating to electors for President and Vice President; allocation of electoral votes by congressional district.

17101217D

S.B. 864 Electoral board appointments; chief judge of the judicial circuit or his designee make appointment.

Patron: Stuart

Electoral board appointments; chief judge of the judicial circuit or his designee to make appointment. Provides that appointments to the electoral board of each county and city are to be made by the chief judge of the judicial circuit for the county or city or that judge's designee. Currently, such appointments are made by a majority of the circuit judges and if a majority of the judges cannot agree, the senior judge makes the appointment. The bill also contains technical amendments.

A BILL to amend and reenact § 24.2-106 of the Code of Virginia, relating to electoral board appointments; chief judge of the judicial circuit or his designee to make appointment.

17100069D

S.B. 892 Absentee voting; deadline for requesting absentee ballot by means other than in person.

Patron: Wexton

Absentee voting; deadline for requesting absentee ballot by means other than in person. Requires an application for an absentee ballot that is submitted by means other than in person in the office of the general registrar to be done so by 5:00 p.m. on the eleventh day prior to the election. Current law requires such application be made no later than 5:00 p.m. on the seventh day prior to the election. The bill amends other related deadlines accordingly.

A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 24.2-701, 24.2-703, 24.2-705, 24.2-706, and 24.2-707 of the Code of Virginia, relating to absentee voting; deadline for requesting absentee ballot by means other than in person.

17102384D

S.B. 960 Absentee ballots; expediting counting of absentee ballots returned by mail prior to election day.

Patron: Spruill

Absentee ballots; expediting the counting of absentee ballots returned by mail prior to election day. Provides that if a general registrar has opted to expedite the counting of absentee ballots returned by mail by opening the sealed ballot envelopes in accordance with law, the requirement that the absentee ballot return envelope and unopened ballot envelope be deposited into an appropriate container does not apply. Current law contains a contradiction that absentee ballot return envelopes and unopened ballot envelopes are to be deposited into an appropriate container while also allowing the sealed ballot envelopes to be opened so that they may be inserted into a ballot scanner machine or other secure ballot container.

A BILL to amend and reenact § 24.2-710 of the Code of Virginia, relating to absentee ballots; expediting the counting of absentee ballots returned by mail prior to election day.

17103086D

S.B. 961 Absentee voting; processing of rejected absentee ballots.

Patron: Spruill

Absentee voting; processing of rejected absentee ballots. Provides that when an absentee ballot is rejected, at least two officers of election, one representing each political party, are required to write and sign a statement for the cause of the ballot's rejection. Currently, the law requires that a majority of the officers write and sign such statement.

A BILL to amend and reenact § 24.2-711 of the Code of Virginia, relating to absentee voting; processing of rejected absentee ballots.

17103090D

S.B. 1104 Form of ballot; order of independent candidates.

Patron: Surovell

Form of ballot; order of independent candidates. Provides that when there is more than one independent candidate for an office, their names shall appear on the ballot in an order determined by the priority of time of filing for the office. In the event that two or more candidates file simultaneously, the order of filing is determined by lot by the electoral board. Currently, this order applies only to the names of candidates for school board, and the names of all other independent candidates appear alphabetically.

A BILL to amend and reenact § 24.2-613 of the Code of Virginia, relating to form of ballot; order of independent candidates.

17100594D

S.B. 1105 Reports of registered voters and persons voting at elections.

Patron: Obenshain

Reports of registered voters and persons voting at elections. Requires the local electoral boards to direct the general registrars to investigate the list of registered voters whenever the number of registered voters in a county or city exceeds the population of persons age 18 years or older, based on the most recent population estimate of the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service of the University of Virginia, in order to determine the cause of the inflated number of registered voters, including identifying persons who may be improperly registered. The bill also requires the local electoral boards to direct the general registrars to investigate the list of persons voting at an election whenever the number of persons voting at any election in a county or city exceeds the number of persons registered to vote in that county or city, in order to determine the cause of the inflated turnout, including identifying persons who may not be eligible to vote. The local electoral boards are required to make reports of the findings to the State Board. These reports are public documents.

A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding sections numbered 24.2-405.1 and 24.2-406.1, relating to reports of registered voters and persons voting at elections.

17102905D

S.B. 1236 Candidate petitions; number of signatures required for statewide candidates.

Patron: Ebbin

Candidate petitions; number of signatures required for statewide candidates. Reduces the number of signatures that an independent candidate or a candidate for nomination by primary is required to gather on the candidate petition when seeking to qualify as a candidate for the United States Senate, Governor, Lieutenant Governor, or Attorney General from 10,000 signatures, including at least 400 from each congressional district, to 5,000 signatures, including at least 200 from each congressional district.

A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 24.2-506 and 24.2-521 of the Code of Virginia, relating to candidate petitions; number of signatures required for statewide candidates.

17100999D

S.B. 1254 Department of Elections; annual audit of ballot scanner machines.

Patron: Obenshain

Department of Elections; annual audit of ballot scanner machines. Requires the Department of Elections to conduct an annual audit of the ballot scanner machines in use in the Commonwealth. The localities selected for the audit are to be chosen at random with every locality participating in the Department's annual audit at least once during a five-year period. The bill requires the Department to submit a report on the results of each audit to the State Board of Elections.

A BILL to amend and reenact § 24.2-671.1 of the Code of Virginia, relating to annual audit of ballot scanner machines.

17103101D

S.B. 1302 Write-in votes; duties of local electoral boards.

Patron: Vogel


Write-in votes; duties of local electoral boards. Provides that when no person is elected to an office by write-in votes and the total number of write-in votes for that office is less than the total number of votes cast for the candidate receiving the least number of votes for that office, the electoral board is required only to ascertain and the abstract of votes is required only to contain the total number of write-in votes cast for that office.

A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 24.2-671 and 24.2-675 of the Code of Virginia, relating to write-in votes; duties of local electoral boards.

17103065D

S.B. 1303 Voter registration; deadline for registration by electronic means.

Patron: Vogel


Voter registration; deadline for registration by electronic means. Requires that voter registration applications made by electronic means be made by 5:00 p.m. on the final day for registration before an election and that the principal office of each general registrar close for voter registration purposes at 5:00 p.m. on the final day of registration; the same deadline applies to the receipt of certain mail voter registration applications.

A BILL to amend and reenact § 24.2-414 of the Code of Virginia and to repeal § 24.2-414.1 of the Code of Virginia, relating to voter registration; deadline for registration by electronic means.

17103072D

S.B. 1304 Local option for timing of municipal elections; effective date.

Patron: Vogel


Local option for timing of municipal elections; effective date. Provides that the statutory authority allowing a city or town to move its local elections to the November general election date by ordinance notwithstanding a charter provision to the contrary shall be retroactively effective beginning on July 1, 2000, in keeping with the intent of the General Assembly when first granting such authority.

A BILL to amend Chapter 402 of the Acts of Assembly of 2016 by adding a second enactment, relating to local option for timing of municipal elections; effective date.

17103078D