GOVERNOR'S VETO

Pursuant to Article V, Section 6, of the Constitution of Virginia, I veto House Bill 1473, which would permit local electoral boards to appoint a general registrar who is a qualified voter of a county or city adjoining the county or city for which he is appointed. Further, House Bill 1473 eliminates the current provisions allowing a city electoral board to appoint a qualified voter of a county to serve as a city general registrar, in the case of a city that is wholly contained within that county.

The current provision of § 24.2-110 of the Code, in requiring that the general registrar "be a qualified voter of the county or city for which he is appointed," contemplates that the appointee have ties to and familiarity with the locality whose election processes he would oversee. House Bill 1473 would vitiate this requirement by permitting appointment of a general registrar from outside that jurisdiction.

There has been no demonstration of widespread difficulty in recruiting well-qualified individuals to serve as general registrars.  If such difficulties exist, the appropriate action is for the electoral board to intensify their recruitment process.

Accordingly, I veto this bill.