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14  AN ACT concerning county clerks and election commissioners state and
15    local election officers; relating to qualifications for office; amending
16    K.S.A. 19-301 and 19-3419 and repealing the existing sections.
17
18  Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
19    Section 1.  K.S.A. 19-301 is hereby amended to read as follows: 19-
20  301. Beginning with the general election in 1976, (a)  A county clerk shall
21  be elected in each county, for a term of four (4) years. Such county clerk
22  shall, before entering upon the duties of the office, shall execute and file
23  with the county treasurer a good and sufficient corporate surety bond,
24  conditioned on the faithful performance of the duties of the office. Such
25  bond shall be issued by a company authorized to do business in Kansas,
26  in an amount to be fixed by the county treasurer of not less than ten
27  thousand dollars ($10,000) $10,000.
28    (b) No person holding the office of county clerk shall (1) hold any office
29  or official position in [of] a political party or (2) serve as a chairperson
30  or treasurer of a candidate's campaign for any city, county, state or na-
31  tional office, nor shall such person be eligible for nomination to the office
32  of county clerk.
33    [The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to a county
34  clerk who holds an office of a political party on the effective date
35  of this act, until the expiration of the current term of office of such
36  party for which such clerk was elected.]
37    The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to county clerks
38  in counties in which an election commissioner has been appointed
39  pursuant to K.S.A. 19-3419, and amendments thereto. The provi-
40  sions of this subsection shall not be construed as prohibiting a
41  county clerk from serving as the chairperson or treasurer of such
42  person's own campaign for any city, county or state office.
43    Sec. 2.  K.S.A. 19-3419 is hereby amended to read as follows: 19-
SB 323--Am. by H
                                     

 1  3419. (a) In counties of this state having a population exceeding 130,000,
 2  there shall be an office of commissioner of elections, which shall be ad-
 3  ministered by an election commissioner. The election commissioner shall
 4  be appointed by the secretary of state and shall hold office for a term of
 5  four years and until a successor is appointed and qualified.
 6    (b) No person holding the office of election commissioner shall (1) hold
 7  any office or official position in [of] a political party or (2) serve as a
 8  chairperson or treasurer of a candidate's campaign for any city, county,
 9  state or national office, nor shall such person be eligible for nomination
10  to the office of election commissioner. The secretary of state may remove
11  the
12    [The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to a county
13  election commissioner who holds an office of a political party on
14  the effective date of this act, until the expiration of the current term
15  of office of such party for which such officer was elected. The pro-
16  visions of this subsection shall not be construed as prohibiting a
17  county election officer from serving as the chairperson or trea-
18  [chsurer of such person's own campaign for any city, county or state
19  office.
20    (c)  The secretary of state may remove the] election commissioner
21  for official misconduct. Upon occurrence of a vacancy in the office of
22  county election commissioner, the secretary of state shall appoint a suc-
23  cessor. If the vacancy occurs before the expiration of a term of office, the
24  appointment shall be for the unexpired term. Such election commissioner
25  shall have been a qualified elector and a resident of the county at least
26  two years prior to appointment. Within 10 days after receiving official
27  notice of the appointment and before entering upon the duties of the
28  office, the election commissioner shall take, subscribe and cause to be
29  filed in the office of the secretary of state an oath of office for the faithful
30  discharge of official duties.
31    New Sec. 3.  No person holding the office of secretary of state
32  shall (a) hold any office or official position in [of] a political party
33  or (b)  serve as a chairperson or treasurer of a candidate's campaign
34  for any city, county, state or national office.
35    [The provisions of this subsection section shall not apply to the
36  secretary of state if the secretary holds an office of a political party
37  on the effective date of this act, until the expiration of the current
38  term of office of such party for which the secretary was elected.]
39  The provisions of this section shall not be construed as prohibiting
40  the secretary of state from serving as the chairperson or treasurer
41  of such person's own campaign for any city, county or state office.
42    Sec. 3 4.  K.S.A. 19-301 and 19-3419 are hereby repealed.
SB 323--Am. by H
                                     

 1    Sec. 4 5.  This act shall take effect and be in force from and after
 2  January 1, 1998, and its publication in the statute book.