| Chapter 323 |
| 2024 -- S 2418 SUBSTITUTE A Enacted 06/25/2024 |
| A N A C T |
| RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- REGISTRATION OF VOTERS |
Introduced By: Senators Raptakis, Tikoian, Burke, McKenney, F. Lombardi, Sosnowski, DiPalma, Britto, Ciccone, and LaMountain |
| Date Introduced: February 12, 2024 |
| It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
| SECTION 1. Section 17-9.1-23 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-9.1 entitled |
| "Registration of Voters" is hereby amended to read as follows: |
| 17-9.1-23. Party designation. |
| (a) Whenever any person registers to vote, that person may designate his or her their party |
| affiliation, or that person may designate that he or she is they are not affiliated with any political |
| party. The information shall be recorded on a form prescribed by the state board of elections. |
| (b) Any person who is already registered to vote and wishes to designate his or her their |
| party affiliation may do so by submitting to that person’s local board of canvassers a form provided |
| by the state board designating his or her their party affiliation and certifying to the fact on the form |
| furnished for that purpose. |
| (c) Whenever any person participates in a party primary, that act shall serve as identifying |
| the person as being affiliated with the party in whose primary that person has participated and the |
| local board shall record the affiliation on the appropriate form. For the purposes of this section, |
| “participating in a party primary” does not include the circulation or signing of nomination papers. |
| Whenever an unaffiliated voter participates in a party primary, their party affiliation shall |
| remain unaffiliated. For purposes of this section, "participating in a party primary" includes casting |
| a ballot by mail, early in-person, or on election day, or by signing a precinct, mail, or provisional |
| ballot application. |
| (d) A form prescribed by the state board of elections for the purpose of disaffiliating from |
| a political party shall be provided at polling locations and early voting locations. |
| (e) No person shall be affiliated with any political party solely because of that person's |
| circulation or signing of nomination papers of a candidate to be voted for in any primary. |
| (f) Election officials shall be authorized to inform voters and post notices at polling |
| locations, early voting locations, and to voters casting a ballot by mail that whenever an unaffiliated |
| voter participates in a party primary, their party affiliation shall remain unaffiliated, and that no |
| action or form is necessary to preserve a voter's existing unaffiliated status. |
| SECTION 2. Sections 17-15-21 and 17-15-24 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-15 |
| entitled "Primary Elections" are hereby amended to read as follows: |
| 17-15-21. Identification of party voters. |
| Before permitting any person to vote in a primary election, the warden or clerk and |
| bipartisan pair of supervisors assigned by the warden shall ascertain from the voting record |
| appearing on the certified voting list that the voter is not disqualified to vote by the provisions of § |
| 17-15-24. The bipartisan pair of supervisors shall provide the voter with the corresponding |
| computer ballot for the primary election in which the voter is eligible and desiring to vote. The |
| warden shall take any steps that may be necessary to assure that each voter is given the computer |
| ballot upon which the voter is eligible to vote. Any person who is not affiliated with any political |
| party, and is otherwise qualified to vote, may participate in a primary election of either party. |
| 17-15-24. Disqualification by activity in other party. |
| No person shall be entitled to vote in the primary election of any political party who has |
| voted in a primary election as a member of any other political party and has not changed his or her |
| party designation as provided in chapter 9.1 of this title or has designated his or her affiliation with |
| any other political party, as set forth in chapter 9.1 of this title. No person shall be debarred from |
| voting in a party primary solely because of that person’s signing of nomination papers of a |
| candidate to be voted for at any primary. A person having designated his or her their party |
| affiliation as set forth in chapter 9.1 of this title shall be deemed to have taken part in the primary |
| as a member of that political party, and shall be debarred from voting in the primary as a member |
| of the opposite political party until that person has changed his or her party affiliation as provided |
| in chapter 9.1 of this title. Any person who is not affiliated with any political party shall not be |
| debarred from voting in a party primary due to their participation in a previous party primary while |
| not affiliated with a party. |
| SECTION 3. This act shall take effect on June 1, 2024. |
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| LC003345/SUB A |
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