Chapter 6 - Ballots
CHAPTER 6 - BALLOTS
22-6-101. Certification of candidates nominated; printing of names.
Notless than sixty (60) days before each general election the secretary of stateshall transmit to each county clerk under party headings a certified list ofthe name and address of each person nominated by primary election as indicatedby the state canvass, the name of each person nominated by provisional or minorparty convention, the name of each independent candidate qualifying fornomination by petition, and the office sought. The names of these candidatesshall be printed on the official ballot of the general election.
22-6-102. County clerk to print ballots and labels; exception.
(a) The county clerk shall print officialballots, and ballot labels where necessary, for his county, for all primary andgeneral elections. For use on voting machines the county clerk shall printballot labels in black ink on white material containing the names of candidatesor other words required by law.
(b) All other ballots shall be provided bythe official responsible for conducting the election.
22-6-103. Official ballots.
(a) The official ballot shall contain the name of everycandidate and every ballot proposition lawfully entitled to appear on theballot. Only official ballots shall be cast at any election.
(b) The official absentee ballot shall be in the formprescribed by law for the official ballot or a reasonable printed reproductionof the prescribed form for electronic ballots.
22-6-104. Sample ballots and voting machine facsimiles; printing,distribution, posting.
Theofficer providing the official ballot shall also print sample ballots or votingmachine labels which shall be identical to the official ballot or votingmachine facsimile except that it shall contain the words "SAMPLEBALLOT" in large clear letters and may be printed on paper of a differentcolor than the official ballot or label. The officer shall distribute copies ofthe sample ballot or voting machine facsimile to each precinct prior to openingof the polls. The judges of election shall post at least three (3) copies ofthe sample in and around the polling place during the election. The countyclerk shall have the samples available in his office for the public.
22-6-105. Sample ballots and voting machine facsimiles; publication.
Theofficer providing the official ballots shall publish sample paper ballots andvoting machine facsimiles at least once in a newspaper of general circulationin the district in which each primary and general election is held within two(2) weeks prior to the election. This notice shall also state that the names ofcandidates will be rotated on the official ballots and will not always appearin the order indicated in the sample ballots.
22-6-106. Replacement of lost ballots or labels.
Officialballots or ballot labels not delivered to a precinct or lost, stolen ordestroyed shall be replaced immediately by the official providing the ballot.Judges of election receiving replacement ballots shall sign a receipt thereforin which they shall state under oath, before each other, that the originalballots were not delivered to the precinct or have been lost, stolen ordestroyed.
22-6-107. Time for possession of ballots and labels.
Officialballots and labels for primary and general elections shall be in the countyclerk's possession forty (40) days before the election. If a clerk is unableto obtain ballots on time, the secretary of state shall provide by rule andregulation for the clerk to obtain and use substitute ballots.
22-6-108. Errors or omissions; posting.
(a) The official responsible for preparingthe ballot shall correct errors or omissions as soon as possible.
(b) The official shall post a copy of eachballot in his office not later than the day when the official must have theballot in his possession.
22-6-109. Elector's petition alleging error or omission.
(a) Not later than three (3) days after the ballot is posted anelector may file a notarized affidavit with the county clerk alleging that anerror or omission exists in any official ballot to be voted within the county.The county clerk shall, if the affidavit has merit, correct the error oromission as soon as possible.
(b) Not earlier than three (3) days and not more than six (6)days after filing the notarized affidavit with the county clerk, if the clerkfails to correct the alleged error or omission, the elector may file a petitionin district court alleging that an error or omission exists in any officialballot to be voted within the county. The court shall, as soon as practical,order the ballot corrected or dismiss the petition.
22-6-110. Ballot propositions.
Aballot proposition shall be printed as nearly as possible in the manner andform prescribed by law for a constitutional amendment.
22-6-111. Only name of candidate on ballot; exception.
Acandidate may use the name on the ballot by which he is generally known.Professional titles and degrees shall not appear on the ballot. If in theopinion of the officer with whom the application for nomination or election isfiled the names of two (2) or more candidates for any office to be voted on atthe same election are the same or so similar as to confuse the electors as tothe candidates' identity, the occupation and residence address of each of thesecandidates shall be printed under the candidate's name on the ballot.
22-6-112. Name to appear only once; exception.
Nocandidate's name shall appear on the partisan ballot more than once, exceptthat of a candidate for the office of precinct committeeman or committeewoman,who may also seek another office on the same partisan primary ballot.
22-6-113. More than 1 ballot on machine.
Morethan one (1) ballot may appear on a voting machine but if several ballots areplaced on a machine they shall be clearly separated to prevent confusion.
22-6-114. Repealed by Laws 1991, ch. 243, 5.
22-6-115. Specifications for paper ballots; arrangements on votingmachines.
Officialpaper ballots shall be uniform in size, printed in black ink on good qualitypaper through which printing cannot be read. Ballots shall be white except asotherwise provided. On a voting machine each column or row containing thetitles of offices and candidates for office shall be arranged to indicateclearly the office for which a candidate is running.
22-6-116. Printing type size of party and candidate names.
Onofficial ballots and ballot labels the political party name or title shall beprinted in capital letters not less than one-eighth (1/8) inch nor more thanone-fourth (1/4) of an inch in height. The names of all candidates shall beprinted in the same size letters not less than one-eighth (1/8) inch nor morethan one-fourth (1/4) of an inch in height. The name of each political partyshall be printed in the same type size as that of every other political party.
22-6-117. Order of listing offices in partisan elections.
(a) The major party primary and generalpartisan election ballots shall contain the offices to be voted on in thefollowing order:
(i) President and vice-president of theUnited States, or electors therefor, or as otherwise required by an act ofcongress;
(ii) United States senator;
(iii) Representative in congress;
(iv) Candidates for governor, secretary ofstate, state auditor, state treasurer, and superintendent of publicinstruction;
(v) Repealed by Laws 1992, ch. 1, 7.
(vi) Candidates for state senate;
(vii) Candidates for state house ofrepresentatives;
(viii) Candidates for district attorney;
(ix) Candidates for county commissioner,coroner, attorney, sheriff, clerk, treasurer, assessor, and clerk of thedistrict court;
(x) Repealed By Laws 2008, Ch. 115, 2.
(xi) Candidates for precinct offices.
22-6-118. Primary ballot colors.
(a) The primary ballot of political parties shall be printed onthe following colored paper or on paper with the following color demarcation asprovided by rule and regulation of the secretary of state:
(i) Republican party - White;
(ii) Democratic party - Blue;
(iii) Repealed by Laws 1991, ch. 243, 5.
(iv) Additional major parties - A different color for each majorparty.
22-6-119. Format of partisan primary ballot.
(a) The primary ballot of each major political party shall beprinted in substantial compliance with this format:
(i) Across the top shall be printed"Official Partisan Primary Election Ballot" followed by the name ofthe major political party;
(ii) On the first line shall be printed thecounty in which the ballot is used, the date of the election and blank linesfor entry of the election district and precinct;
(iii) On the second line shall be printed the followinginstructions: "To vote for a person whose name is printed on the ballot,mark the square immediately adjacent to the name of the person for whom youdesire to vote. To vote for a person whose name is not printed on the ballot,write his name in the blank space provided for that purpose and mark the squareimmediately adjacent to the name of the person.";
(iv) Candidates for the different offices shall be arranged inseparate groups. At the top of each group shall appear the title of the office.Adjacent to the title of the office shall be printed "Vote for one"or if more than one (1) are to be voted for, "Vote for not more than",then the appropriate words and figures designating the proper number to beelected;
(v) Below the list of candidates in eachgroup shall be printed blank lines for write-in candidates equal in number tothe number of candidates to be voted for;
(vi) Adjacent to the name of each candidate and blank line shallbe printed a square for marking the vote. No square shall appear at the top ofa column;
(vii) Repealed By Laws 1998, ch. 100, 5.
(viii) Repealed By Laws 1998, ch. 100, 5.
22-6-120. Format of partisan general election ballot.
(a) The general election partisan ballot shall be printed insubstantial compliance with this format:
(i) Across the top shall be printed"Official Partisan General Election Ballot";
(ii) On the first line shall be printed thename of the county in which the ballot is used, the date of the election, andblank lines for entry of the election district and precinct number;
(iii) On the second line shall be printed thesame instructions as prescribed for primary elections in W.S. 22-6-119;
(iv) The designation of offices and the applicable term ofoffice shall be printed preceding the names of candidates for the office;
(v) Repealed By Laws 1998, ch. 100, 5.
(vi) Repealed By Laws 1998, ch. 100, 5.
(vii) The names of partisan party candidates, if candidates havefiled, and independent candidates, if candidates have filed, shall be printedin a separate column or columns, row or rows, and the name of the partyrepresented or the word "Independent" shall be printed directly abovethe candidate's name or at the end of the row. If there are a number ofcandidates representing a party, or independents, the county clerk at hisdiscretion may designate a separate vertical column or columns, or row or rowsto said candidates and print the name of said party or the word"Independent" at the top of the column or beginning of the row;
(viii) Repealed By Laws 1998, ch. 100, 5.
(ix) For offices to which more than one (1)person is to be elected, the names of candidates in each column running for theoffice shall be offset or staggered to prevent two (2) names from appearingdirectly opposite each other;
(x) Below the names of candidates for eachoffice shall be printed blank lines for write-in candidates equal in number tothe number of persons to be elected;
(xi) Adjacent to the name of each candidate, except thoserunning for the office of president and vice-president of the United States andtheir electors, and adjacent to each blank line for write-in candidates, shallbe printed a square for marking the vote. A single square shall be printed toindicate the vote for candidates for the office of president and vice-presidentof the United States. No square shall appear at the top of a column;
(xii) Adjacent to the description of any office to be filled bymore than one (1) candidate shall be printed "Vote For Not MoreThan", then the appropriate words and figures designating the propernumber to be elected;
(xiii) Vertical columns containing the names ofcandidates shall be separated by a blank line one-twelfth inch wide;
(xiv) The official statement of the ballotproposition shall commence on the next line;
(xv) Adjacent to the final line of such statement shall beprinted two (2) squares on the same line. Above the first square shall beprinted the word "For" and above the second square shall be printedthe word "Against";
(xvi) Repealed By Laws 1998, ch. 100, 5.
22-6-121. Political party ballot position on general election ballot;order of candidates' names.
(a) Political party position shall be determined on the generalelection ballot according to the number of votes received by each party withinthe county for the office of representative in congress at the last precedinggeneral election. The party receiving the highest number of votes shall appearfirst following the names of the offices to be voted for and other partiesshall follow in the order of their respective numbers of such votes. The orderof any provisional parties will be drawn by the secretary of state. Anyindependent candidates shall appear following the last party and shall belisted in alphabetical order, subject to rotation. When more than one (1)candidate is to be elected to a particular office, the names of candidatesshall be printed in alphabetical order, subject to rotation, on all ballots forelectronic and machine voting systems as defined by W.S. 22-1-102.
(i) Repealed By Laws 1998, ch. 100, 5.
(ii) Repealed By Laws 1998, ch. 100, 5.
(iii) Repealed By Laws 1998, ch. 100, 5.
22-6-122. Rotation of candidates' names; equal lines on votingmachines.
Thenames of candidates for each office shall be rotated on all ballots by precinctfor all elections. In each county the name of each candidate shall appearsubstantially an equal number of times at the top, at the bottom, and in eachintermediate place. In a voting machine precinct, if candidates for the sameoffice occupy more than one (1) line on the voting machine, the number of namesappearing on each line shall be as nearly equal as possible.
22-6-123. Nonpartisan election ballots and ballot propositions.
Primaryand general election ballots for nonpartisan offices and ballot propositionsshall be printed on yellow paper or paper with yellow demarcation as providedby rule and regulation of the secretary of state, separate from partisanballots. They shall contain no political party designations, but otherwiseshall conform to the same general requirements for official partisan ballotsexcept as otherwise specifically provided.
22-6-124. Ballot propositions format.
Followingall offices on nonpartisan ballots, ballot propositions shall be printed in theorder prescribed by law. The name and official number, if any, of each ballotproposition shall be printed adjacent to the proposition in large letters. Nonpartisan ballots shall contain the same instructions as prescribed forpartisan primary election ballots in W.S. 22-6-119. If the ballot contains aproposed constitutional amendment or other ballot proposition, the instructionsshall also include the following: "To vote for or against a proposedconstitutional amendment, initiative or referendum, or other ballotproposition, mark the square printed adjacent to the proposition marked 'For'or 'Against'."
22-6-125. Order of offices and ballot propositions on nonpartisanballots.
(a) The nonpartisan ballot shall contain theoffices and ballot propositions to be voted on in the following order:
(i) Retention of justices of the supremecourt;
(ii) Retention of district court judges;
(iii) Retention of circuit court judges;
(iv) Retention of magistrates;
(v) Repealed By Laws 2004, Chapter 42, 2and Chapter 94, 4.
(vi) Candidates for municipal offices;
(vii) Candidates for community college trustees;
(viii) Candidates for school board trustees;
(ix) Candidates for special district directors;
(x) Candidates for other offices of county subdivisions;
(xi) Constitutional amendments;
(xii) Initiative propositions;
(xiii) Referendum propositions;
(xiv) Other ballot propositions.
22-6-126. Form of nonpartisan ballots.
(a) The official nonpartisan ballot for a general electionshall be printed in substantially the following form:
OFFICIALNONPARTISAN ELECTION BALLOT
GENERALELECTION
County of ....,Election District ...., Precinct ....
Date ....
(hereprint instructions)
CANDIDATESFOR PUBLIC OFFICE
For Justice(s) of the Supreme Court
(Here designate the particular term,
such as "regular eight (8) yearterm",
or the "unexpired term of ....years").
Shall Justice John Roe be retained inoffice? Yes No
Shall Justice Richard Roe be retained inoffice? Yes No
For Judge(s) of the District Court of the.... Judicial District
(Here designate the particular term,
such as "regular six (6) yearterm",
or the "unexpired term of ....years").
Shall Judge Jane Roe be retained in office? Yes No
Shall Judge Richard Roe be retained inoffice? Yes No
For Circuit Court Judge
(Here designate the particular
term, such as "regular four-
year term", or the "unexpiredterm of .... years").
Shall Judge John Doe be retained in office? Yes No
Shall Judge Richard Roe be retained inoffice? Yes No
For Magistrate
(Here designate the particular term,
such as "regular four (4) yearterm",
or the "unexpired term of ....years").
Shall Magistrate John Doe be retained inoffice? Yes No
Shall Magistrate Richard Roe be retained inoffice? Yes No
Align all designations of office tocorrespond on the ballot with the listing of names of candidates for the properoffice and term.
BALLOTPROPOSITIONS
Proposed Constitutional Amendment Letter A: ForAgainst
(Ballot Statement)
Proposed Initiative Proposition Number One: ForAgainst
(Ballot Statement)
Proposed Referendum Proposition Number One: ForAgainst
(Ballot Statement)
Other Ballot Propositions: ForAgainst
(Ballot StatementFor Each Proposition)
(b) The official nonpartisan ballot for a primary electionshall be so identified in the title and shall omit all references to justicesof the supreme court, judges of the district court and circuit court judges butotherwise shall be in the same form as the general election nonpartisan ballot.
22-6-127. Rotation of names on nonpartisan ballots.
(a) The names of candidates for eachnonpartisan office shall be rotated on the ballot in the same manner asrequired by law for candidates for partisan office.
(b) Rotation is not necessary if the numberof candidates is equal to or less than the number of seats up for election.
22-6-128. Ballots for other elections.
Atthe county clerk's discretion, separate ballots for bond, school and communitycollege districts, and special district elections may be required and shall beprovided by the authority responsible for holding the election. Ballots shallconform as nearly as possible to general requirements specified by law for thegeneral election ballot, except as otherwise specifically provided.
22-6-129. Repealed By Laws 2008, Ch. 115, 2.