AB899,217476Section 217. 7.70 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB899,,4774777.70 (1) Recording and preserving returns. (a) Upon receipt of the certified statements from the county clerks, the commission secretary of state shall record the election results by counties and file and carefully preserve the statements.
AB899,,478478(b) If any county clerk fails or neglects to forward any statements, the commission secretary of state may require the clerk to do so immediately and if not received by the 8th day after a primary, or by the 11th day after any other election, the commission secretary of state may dispatch a special messenger to obtain them. Whenever it appears upon the face of any statement that an error has been made in reporting or computing, the commission secretary of state may return it to the county clerk for correction.
AB899,218479Section 218. 7.70 (3) (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (g), (h) and (i) of the statutes are amended to read:
AB899,,4804807.70 (3) (a) The chairperson of the commission secretary of state or a designee of the chairperson secretary of state appointed by the chairperson secretary to canvass a specific election shall publicly canvass the returns and make his or her certifications and determinations on or before the 2nd Tuesday following a spring primary, the 15th day of May following a spring election, the 3rd Wednesday following a partisan primary, the first day of December following a general election, the 2nd Thursday following a special primary, or within 18 days after any special election.
AB899,,481481(b) The commission chairperson secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee shall examine the certified statements of the county boards of canvassers. If it appears that any material mistake has been made in the computation of votes, or any county board of canvassers failed to canvass the votes or omitted votes from any ward or election district in the county, the commission chairperson secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee may dispatch a messenger to the county clerk with written instructions to certify the facts concerning the mistake or the reason why the votes were not canvassed. A clerk to whom such instructions are delivered shall immediately make a true and full answer, sign it, affix the county seal and deliver it to the messenger. The messenger shall deliver it with all possible dispatch to the commission secretary of state.
AB899,,482482(c) The chairperson of the commission secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee shall conclude the state canvass within 10 days after its commencement.
AB899,,483483(d) When the certified statements and returns are received, the chairperson of the commission secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee shall proceed to examine and make a statement of the total number of votes cast at any election for the offices involved in the election for president and vice president; a statement for each of the offices of governor, lieutenant governor, if a primary, and a joint statement for the offices of governor and lieutenant governor, if a general election; a statement for each of the offices of secretary of state, state treasurer, attorney general, and state superintendent; for U.S. senator; representative in congress for each congressional district; the state legislature; justice; court of appeals judge; circuit judge; district attorney; metropolitan sewerage commission, if the commissioners are elected under s. 200.09 (11) (am); and for any referenda questions submitted by the legislature.
AB899,,484484(e) The chairperson of the commission secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee shall make a special statement to the commission as soon as possible after the canvass of the general election certifying the name of each political party which receives at least one 1 percent of the vote cast in such election for any statewide office.
AB899,,485485(g) Following each primary election, the chairperson of the commission secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee shall prepare a statement certifying the results of the primary, which shall indicate the names of the persons who have won nomination to any state or national office. Following each other election, the chairperson of the commission secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee shall prepare a statement certifying the results of the election and shall attach to the statement a certificate of determination which shall indicate the names of persons who have been elected to any state or national office. The chairperson of the commission secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee shall likewise prepare a statement and certificate for any statewide referendum. The chairperson of the commission or the chairperson’s designee shall deliver each statement and determination to the commission.
AB899,,486486(h) Whenever a referendum question submitted to a vote of the people is approved, the commission secretary of state shall record it and the secretary of state legislative reference bureau shall have the record bound in the volume containing the original enrolled laws passed at the next succeeding session of the legislature and have the record published with the laws thereof. Whenever a constitutional amendment or other statewide validating or ratifying referendum question which is approved by the people does not expressly state the date of effectiveness, it shall become effective at the time the chairperson of the commission secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee certifies that the amendment or referendum question is approved.
AB899,,487487(i) The commission chairperson secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee shall canvass only regular returns made by the county board of canvassers and shall not count or canvass any additional or supplemental returns or statements made by the county board or any other board or person. The commission chairperson secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee shall not count or canvass any statement or return which has been made by the county board of canvassers at any other time than that provided in s. 7.60. This provision does not apply to any return made subsequent to a recount under s. 9.01, when the return is accepted in lieu of any prior return from the same county for the same office; or to a statement given to the commission chairperson secretary of state or chairperson’s the secretary’s designee or a messenger sent by the chairperson secretary or designee to obtain a correction.
AB899,219488Section 219. 7.70 (5) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB899,,4894897.70 (5) Certificates of election. (a) The commission secretary of state shall record in its the secretary’s office each certified statement and determination made by the commission chairperson secretary or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee. Immediately after the expiration of the time allowed to file a petition for recount, the commission secretary of state shall make and transmit to each person declared elected a certificate of election under the seal of the commission secretary of state, except that the commission secretary need not wait until expiration of the time allowed to file a petition for recount if there is no aggrieved party, as defined in s. 9.01 (1) (a) 5. It The secretary of state shall also prepare similar certificates, attested by the commission administrator secretary, addressed to the U.S. house of representatives, stating the names of those persons elected as representatives to the congress from this state. In the case of U.S. senators, the commission secretary of state shall prepare and sign a certificate of election for the governor’s signature, and the governor shall sign and affix the great seal of the state and transmit the certificate to the president of the U.S. senate. The certificate shall be countersigned by the secretary of state. If a person elected was elected to fill a vacancy, the certificate shall so indicate. When a valid petition for recount is filed, the commission chairperson secretary of state or the chairperson’s secretary’s designee may not certify a nomination, and the governor or commission secretary of state may not issue a certificate of election until the recount has been completed and the time allowed for filing an appeal has passed, or if appealed until the appeal is decided.
AB899,,490490(b) For presidential electors, the commission secretary of state shall prepare a certificate showing the determination of the results of the canvass and the names of the persons elected, and the governor shall sign, affix the great seal of the state, and transmit the certificate by registered mail to the U.S. administrator of general services. The governor shall also prepare 6 duplicate originals of such certificate and deliver them to one of the presidential electors on or before the first Monday after the 2nd Wednesday in December.
AB899,220491Section 220. 8.07 of the statutes is amended to read:
AB899,,4924928.07 Validity of nomination papers. The commission secretary of state shall promulgate rules under this chapter for use by election officials in determining the validity of nomination papers and signatures thereon.
AB899,221493Section 221. 8.10 (6) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB899,,4944948.10 (6) (a) For state offices or seats on a metropolitan sewerage commission, if the commissioners are elected under s. 200.09 (11) (am), in the office of the elections commission secretary of state.
AB899,222495Section 222. 8.12 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB899,,4964968.12 (1) Selection of names for ballot. (a) No later than 5 p.m. on the 2nd Tuesday in December of the year before each year in which electors for president and vice president are to be elected, the state chairperson of each recognized political party listed on the official ballot at the last gubernatorial election whose candidate for governor received at least 10 percent of the total votes cast for that office may certify to the commission secretary of state that the party will participate in the presidential preference primary. For each party filing such a certification, the voters of this state shall at the spring election be given an opportunity to express their preference for the person to be the presidential candidate of that party.
AB899,,497497(b) On the first Tuesday in January of each year, or the next day if Tuesday is a holiday, in which electors for president and vice president are to be elected, there shall be convened in the capitol a committee consisting of, for each party filing a certification under this subsection, the state chairperson of that state party organization or the chairperson’s designee, one national committeeman and one national committeewoman designated by the state chairperson; the speaker and the minority leader of the assembly or their designees, and the president and the minority leader of the senate or their designees. All designations shall be made in writing to the commission secretary of state. This committee shall organize by selecting an additional member who shall be the chairperson and shall determine, and certify to the commission secretary of state, no later than on the Friday following the date on which the committee convenes under this paragraph, the names of all candidates of the political parties represented on the committee for the office of president of the United States. The committee shall place the names of all candidates whose candidacy is generally advocated or recognized in the national news media throughout the United States on the ballot, and may, in addition, place the names of other candidates on the ballot. The committee shall have sole discretion to determine that a candidacy is generally advocated or recognized in the national news media throughout the United States.
AB899,,498498(c) No later than 5 p.m. on the last Tuesday in January of each presidential election year, any person seeking the nomination by the national convention of a political party filing a certification under this subsection for the office of president of the United States, or any committee organized in this state on behalf of and with the consent of such person, may submit to the commission secretary of state a petition to have the person’s name appear on the presidential preference ballot. The petition may be circulated no sooner than the first Tuesday in January of such year, or the next day if Tuesday is a holiday, and shall be signed by a number of qualified electors equal in each congressional district to not less than 1,000 signatures nor more than 1,500 signatures. The form of the petition shall conform to the requirements of s. 8.40. All signers on each separate petition paper shall reside in the same congressional district.
AB899,,499499(d) The commission secretary of state shall forthwith contact each person whose name has been placed in nomination under par. (b) and notify him or her that his or her name will appear on the Wisconsin presidential preference ballot unless he or she files, no later than 5 p.m. on the last Tuesday in January of such year, with the commission secretary of state, a disclaimer stating without qualification that he or she is not and does not intend to become a candidate for the office of president of the United States at the forthcoming presidential election. The disclaimer may be filed with the commission secretary by certified mail, telegram, or in person.
AB899,223500Section 223. 8.12 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB899,,5015018.12 (2) Ballots. The form of the official ballots shall be prescribed by the commission secretary of state. The ballot shall provide to an elector the opportunity to vote for an uninstructed delegation to represent this state at the presidential nominating convention of his or her party, or to write in the name of a candidate for the presidential nomination of his or her party.
AB899,224502Section 224. 8.12 (3) of the statutes is amended to read:
AB899,,5035038.12 (3) Reporting of results. No later than May 15 following the presidential preference primary, the commission secretary of state shall notify each state party organization chairperson under sub. (1) (b) of the results of the presidential preference primary within the state and within each congressional district.
AB899,225504Section 225. 8.15 (8) (a) of the statutes is amended to read: