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Colorado > Colorado Electoral Code > Recall and Vacancies In Office

1-12-114. Mail ballots – plan required – voter service and polling centers – number required – definition

Overview of Statute

The election official administering a recall election must mail a ballot election plan to the secretary of state, which should explain the procedure being employed to meet the mail ballot transmission deadline. The Secretary of State must approve or disapprove the plan according to the criteria in C.R.S. § 1-7.5-105 within twenty-four hours of receipt, or the plan will be deemed automatically approved.

The election official’s other responsibilities include designating a voter service and polling center to provide services for the twenty-two days prior to an election, usually the county clerk and recorder’s office, and mail ballots to electors in compliance with the mail ballot plan. When designating centers, the official must also designate one center for every thirty thousand active registered electors in the recalled incumbent’s district, or at least one center for every district and in every county within a district. Each of these centers must also provide services for at least the eight days immediately preceding the election. If the recall election will be combined with a general election, these guidelines will instead conform with the general election requirements except one designated center must still be open for the twenty-two days prior to the election.

Statute

(1) (a) Notwithstanding section 1-7.5-107 (1), as soon as practicable after the date that the designated election official certifies the recall question to the ballot under section 1-12-108 (8)(c)(II), the county clerk and recorder or designated election official administering a recall election shall submit to the secretary of state, for approval within twenty-four hours after receipt, a proposed election plan, including the manner in and date by which the mail ballot transmission deadline set forth in subsection (2) of this section will be met. If the secretary of state does not provide written notice of approval or disapproval of the plan within twenty-four hours, the plan is deemed approved.

(b) The secretary of state may disapprove an election plan submitted under subsection (1)(a) of this section using only the same standards used to evaluate and approve of election plans transmitted under section 1-7.5-105.

(2) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the contrary:

(a) The designated election official conducting the recall election shall designate the office of the county clerk and recorder or other suitable location to function as a voter service and polling center from the twenty-second day prior to the final day of voting in such election through that final day of voting; and

(b) Not later than the fifteenth day before the last day on which voted mail ballots may be returned by electors other than covered voters under article 8.3 of this title 1, the designated election official shall mail ballots to eligible electors in accordance with the election plan developed pursuant to subsection (1) of this section.

(3) (a) There must be one voter service and polling center for each thirty thousand active registered electors in the district of the incumbent sought to be recalled; except that any such district must have at least one voter service and polling center, and each district that spans more than one county must operate one voter service and polling center within the boundaries of each county. Except for the voter service and polling center required under and open in accordance with paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of this section, which voter service and polling center counts as the first voter service and polling center required to be open under subsection (2) of this section, each additional voter service and polling center must be open from the eighth day prior to the final day of voting in the recall election through that final day.

(b) When a recall election is combined with a general election pursuant to article XXI of the state constitution and section 1-12-111, the number and days of operation of voter service and polling centers and the manner of voting for the recall as part of said general election are the same as those prescribed undersection 1-5-102.9, except that one voter service and polling center must be open in accordance with the time established in paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of this section.

(4) As used in this section, and for purposes of article XXI of the state constitution, “part of said general election” means the inclusion of the questions of both the recall of an incumbent and the election of the incumbent’s successor on mail ballots that are sent by mail, available at voter service and polling centers, or otherwise delivered to an elector as permitted by law, from the date for holding the election through the last day of voting in a general election pursuant to section 1-4-201. Notwithstanding this definition, to maximize participation of voters covered by the federal “Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act”, 52 U.S.C. sec. 20301 et seq., all candidate races, ballot issues, and ballot questions that a covered voter is eligible to vote on must be included on the ballots required to be sent pursuant to that act, and recall-related ballot questions must be sent separately on ballots that adhere to the deadlines set forth in this section.

 

 

Source: L. 92: Entire article R&RE, p. 796, § 15, effective January 1, 1993.L. 95: Entire section amended, p. 849, § 74, effective July 1.L. 2007: Entire section amended, p. 1796, § 64, effective June 1.L. 2012: Entire section amended, (HB 12-1293), ch. 236, p. 1046, § 14, effective May 29.L. 2013: Entire section repealed, (HB 13-1303), ch. 185, p. 752, § 138, effective May 10.L. 2014: Entire section RCRE, (SB 14-158), ch. 170, p. 619, § 7, effective May 9.L. 2016: (4) amended, (SB 16-142), ch. 173, p. 587, § 65, effective May 18.L. 2019: (1) and (2)(b) amended, (HB 19-1278), ch. 326, p. 3035, § 48, effective August 2.

 

Editor’s note: Section 17 of chapter 170 (SB 14-158), Session Laws of Colorado 2014, provides that changes to this section by the act apply to any recall petition approved for circulation by a designated election official or to any recall election held on or after May 9, 2014.

Cross references: (1) In 2013, this section was repealed by the “Voter Access and Modernized Elections Act”. For the short title and the legislative declaration, see sections 1 and 2 of chapter 185, Session Laws of Colorado 2013.

(2) For the legislative declaration in SB 14-158, see section 1 of chapter 170, Session Laws of Colorado 2014.

Definition [Ballot issue]

A nonrecall,  citizen-initiated  petition  or legislatively-referred
measure which is authorized by the state constitution, including a question as defined in  sections 1-41-102 (3) and 1-41-103 (3), enacted in Senate Bill 93-98.

Definition [Designated election official]

The secretary of state, a county clerk and recorder, or other election official as provided by article XXI of the state constitution. C.R.S. § 1-12-100.5.

Definition [Date for holding the election]

The first day on which recall ballots:

(a) Are to be made available to eligible electors at voter service and polling centers pursuant to the election plan approved under section 1-12-114(1)(a); and

(b) May be accepted for processing by a designated election official.

C.R.S. § 1-12-100.5.

Definition [State]

A state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. C.R.S. § 1-8.3-102.

Definition [Title]

A brief statement that fairly and accurately represents the true intent and meaning of the proposed text of the initiative.

Definition [Ballot]

(a) A federal write-in absentee ballot;

(b) A ballot specifically prepared or distributed for use by a covered voter in accordance with this article; or

(c) A ballot cast by a covered voter in accordance with this article.

(2) “Covered voter” means:

(a) A uniformed-service voter defined in paragraph (a) of subsection (9) of this section who is a resident of this state but who is absent from this state by reason of active duty and who otherwise satisfies this state’s voter eligibility requirements;

(b) An overseas voter who, before leaving the United States, was last eligible to vote in this state and, except for a state residency requirement, otherwise satisfies this state’s voter eligibility requirements;

(c) An overseas voter who, before leaving the United States, would have been last eligible to vote in this state had the voter then been of voting age and, except for a state residency requirement, otherwise satisfies this state’s voter eligibility requirements; or

(d) An overseas voter who was born outside the United States, is not described in paragraph (b) or (c) of this subsection (2), and, except for a state residency requirement, otherwise satisfies this state’s voter eligibility requirements if the last place where a parent, legal guardian, spouse, or civil union partner of the voter was, or under this article would have been, eligible to vote before leaving the United States is within this state.

C.R.S. § 1-8.3-102.

Definition [Section]

A bound compilation of initiative forms approved by the secretary of state, which shall include pages that contain the warning required by section 1-40-110 (1), the ballot title, the abstract required by section 1-40-110 (3), and a copy of the proposed measure; succeeding pages that contain the warning, the ballot title, and ruled lines numbered consecutively for registered electors’ signatures; and a final page that contains the affidavit required by section 1-40-111 (2). Each section shall be consecutively prenumbered by the petitioner prior to circulation.

Definition [Election]

Any election under the “Uniform Election Code of 1992” or the “Colorado Municipal Election Code of 1965”, article 10 of title 31, C.R.S. C.R.S. § 1-7.5-103.

Definition [Secretary]

The Colorado secretary of state. C.R.S. § 1-1.5-102.

Definition [Candidate]

Any person who seeks nomination or election to any state or local public office that is to be voted on in this state at any primary election, general election, school district election, special district election, or municipal election. “Candidate” also includes a judge or justice of any court of record who seeks to be retained in office pursuant to the provisions of section 25 of article VI. A person is a candidate for election if the person has publicly announced an intention to seek election to public office or retention of a judicial office and thereafter has received a contribution or made an expenditure in support of the candidacy. A person remains a candidate for purposes of this article so long as the candidate maintains a registered candidate committee. A person who maintains a candidate committee after an election cycle, but who has not publicly announced an intention to seek election to public office in the next or any subsequent election cycle, is a candidate for purposes of this article. Section 2(2) of article XXVIII of the state constitution.

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