Title
Supervisor Baumann requesting authorization to sign a letter of opposition to Senate Bill 113 (Calderon) which would require the presidential primary election be held on the first Tuesday in February in any year evenly divisible by the number four; if enacted, this bill would result in three separate statewide elections during presidential election years.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Approve.
Body
Letter of Opposition to Senate Bill 113 (Calderon) - Proposal to Change the Date of California's Presidential Primary Election
While the February 9, 2007, amended version of the bill includes a statement of legislative intent to reimburse counties for the costs associated with the new elections, the bill currently does not include language that provides a defined mechanism for any reimbursement.
Per Bill Schultz, El Dorado County, Registrar of Voters, if the current version of SB 113 is enacted without a funding guarantee, the anticipated cost to move the presidential primary election to February will cost El Dorado County approximately $450,000. Additionally, El Dorado County will conduct a full-scale election in November 2007, resulting in four major elections within a twelve-month period. This scenario will require administrators to handle multiple elections at the same time and will set the stage for cost overrun, voter confusion and fatigue, poll-worker shortages and human error. For example, the candidate filing period for the June 2008 election will commence the day after the proposed February 2008 primary when counties are still engaged in counting absentee and provisional ballots. Counties that conduct special and school district (UDEL) elections on November 6, 2007, will also need to start preparing for the proposed February 2008 primary election; the 2008 presidential general election will overlap with the June 2008 election. These overlaps could result in possible problems and errors that could compound over each succeeding election, with the pot...
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