Section 168.544c - Nominating petition; type size; form; contents; circulation and signing; unlawful signature; false statement; misdemeanor; sanctions; applicability of section.

MICHIGAN STATUTES AND CODES

Section 168.544c - Nominating petition; type size; form; contents; circulation and signing; unlawful signature; false statement; misdemeanor; sanctions; applicability of section.

MICHIGAN ELECTION LAW (EXCERPT)
Act 116 of 1954

168.544c Nominating petition; type size; form; contents; circulation and signing; unlawful signature; false statement; misdemeanor; sanctions; applicability of section.

Sec. 544c.

(1) A nominating petition shall be 8-1/2 inches by 14 inches in size. On a nominating petition, the words "nominating petition" shall be printed in 24-point boldface type. "We, the undersigned," et cetera shall be printed in 8-point type. "Warning" and language in the warning shall be printed in 12-point boldface type. The balance of the petition shall be printed in 8-point type. The name, address, and party affiliation of the candidate and the office for which petitions are signed shall be printed in type not larger than 24-point. The petition shall be in the following form:

NOMINATING PETITION (PARTISAN) We, the undersigned, registered and qualified voters of the city or township of .................. , in the county (strike 1) of ................... and state of Michigan, nominate, ........................................................... , (Name of Candidate) ........................................................... , (Street Address or Rural Route) (City or Township) as a candidate of the ................... party for the office of .......................... , ........................................................... , (District, if any) to be voted for at the primary election to be held on the ............ day of ............. , 20 ........ . WARNING A person who knowingly signs more petitions for the same office than there are persons to be elected to the office or signs a name other than his or her own is violating the provisions of the Michigan election law. Printed Street Address Name and or Date of Signing Signature Rural Route Zip Code Mo. Day Year 1. ____________________________________________________________ 2. ____________________________________________________________ 3. ____________________________________________________________ 4. ____________________________________________________________ numbered lines as above CERTIFICATE OF CIRCULATOR

The undersigned circulator of the above petition asserts that he or she is qualified to circulate this petition and that each signature on the petition was signed in his or her presence; and that, to his or her best knowledge and belief, each signature is the genuine signature of the person purporting to sign the petition, the person signing the petition was at the time of signing a qualified registered elector of the city or township listed in the heading of the petition, and the elector was qualified to sign the petition.

Circulator—Do not sign or date certificate until after circulating petition.

__________________________________________________ (Printed Name and Signature of Circulator) (Date) __________________________________________________ (City or Township Where Registered) [or, for petitions under section 482, "(City or Township Where Qualified to be Registered)"] __________________________________________________ (Complete Residence Address (Street and Number or Rural Route) __________________________________________________ (Zip Code)

Warning-A circulator knowingly making a false statement in the above certificate, a person not a circulator who signs as a circulator, or a person who signs a name other than his or her own as circulator is guilty of a misdemeanor.

(2) The petition shall be in a form providing a space for the circulator and each elector who signs the petition to print his or her name. The secretary of state shall prescribe the location of the space for the printed name. The failure of the circulator or an elector who signs the petition to print his or her name, to print his or her name in the location prescribed by the secretary of state, or to enter a zip code or his or her correct zip code does not affect the validity of the signature of the circulator or the elector who signs the petition. A printed name located in the space prescribed for printed names does not constitute the signature of the circulator or elector.

(3) At the time of circulation, the circulator of a petition shall be a registered elector of this state. At the time of executing the certificate of circulator, the circulator shall be registered in the city or township indicated in the certificate of circulator on the petition. However, the circulator of a petition under section 482 need only be qualified to be a registered elector of this state at the time of circulation and at the time of executing the certificate of circulator.

(4) The circulator of a petition shall sign and date the certificate of circulator before the petition is filed. A circulator shall not obtain electors' signatures after the circulator has signed and dated the certificate of circulator. A filing official shall not count electors' signatures that were obtained after the date the circulator signed the certificate or that are contained in a petition that the circulator did not sign and date.

(5) Except as provided in section 544d, a petition sheet shall not be circulated in more than 1 city or township and each signer of a petition sheet shall be a registered elector of the city or township indicated in the heading of the petition sheet. The invalidity of 1 or more signatures on a petition does not affect the validity of the remainder of the signatures on the petition.

(6) An individual shall not sign more nominating petitions for the same office than there are persons to be elected to the office. An individual who violates this subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor.

(7) An individual shall not do any of the following:

(a) Sign a petition with a name other than his or her own.

(b) Make a false statement in a certificate on a petition.

(d) Sign a name as circulator other than his or her own.

(8) An individual who violates subsection (7) is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $500.00 or imprisonment for not more than 93 days, or both.

(9) If after a canvass and a hearing on a petition under section 476 or 552 the board of state canvassers determines that an individual has knowingly and intentionally failed to comply with subsection (7), the board of state canvassers may impose 1 or more of the following sanctions:

(a) Disqualify obviously fraudulent signatures on a petition form on which the violation of subsection (7) occurred, without checking the signatures against local registration records.

(b) Disqualify from the ballot a candidate who committed, aided or abetted, or knowingly allowed the violation of subsection (7) on a petition to nominate that candidate.

(10) If an individual violates subsection (7) and the affected petition sheet is filed, each of the following who knew of the violation of subsection (7) before the filing of the affected petition sheet and who failed to report the violation to the secretary of state, the filing official, if different, the attorney general, a law enforcement officer, or the county prosecuting attorney is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of not more than $500.00 or imprisonment for not more than 1 year, or both:

(a) The circulator of the petition, if different than the individual who violated subsection (7).

(b) If the petition is a nominating petition, the candidate whose nomination is sought.

(c) If the petition is a petition for a ballot question or recall, the organization or other person sponsoring the petition drive.

(11) If after a canvass and a hearing on a petition under section 476 or 552 the board of state canvassers determines that an individual has violated subsection (10), the board of state canvassers may impose 1 or more of the following sanctions:

(a) Impose on the organization or other person sponsoring the petition drive an administrative fine of not more than $5,000.00.

(b) Charge the organization or other person sponsoring the petition drive for the costs of canvassing a petition form on which a violation of subsection (7) occurred.

(c) Disqualify an organization or other person described in subdivision (a) from collecting signatures on a petition for a period of not more than 4 years.

(d) Disqualify obviously fraudulent signatures on a petition form on which a violation of subsection (7) occurred without checking the signatures against local registration records.

(e) Disqualify from the ballot a candidate who committed, aided or abetted, or knowingly allowed a violation of subsection (7) on a petition to nominate that candidate.

(12) If an individual refuses to comply with a subpoena of the board of state canvassers in an investigation of an alleged violation of subsection (7) or (10), the board may hold the canvass of the petitions in abeyance until the individual complies.

(13) A person who aids or abets another in an act that is prohibited by this section is guilty of that act.

(14) The provisions of this section except as otherwise expressly provided apply to all petitions circulated under authority of the election law.

History: Add. 1965, Act 312, Eff. Jan. 1, 1966 ;-- Am. 1972, Act 22, Imd. Eff. Feb. 19, 1972 ;-- Am. 1982, Act 408, Eff. Mar. 30, 1983 ;-- Am. 1989, Act 142, Imd. Eff. June 29, 1989 ;-- Am. 1990, Act 329, Imd. Eff. Dec. 21, 1990 ;-- Am. 1993, Act 137, Eff. Jan. 1, 1994 ;-- Am. 1999, Act 219, Eff. Mar. 10, 2000 ;-- Am. 2002, Act 431, Imd. Eff. June 6, 2002
Popular Name: Election Code