A primary is a first stage in the public process by which voters elect candidates to public office.
Whenever candidates for a partisan office are to be elected, the general election must be preceded by a primary conducted under this chapter. Based upon votes cast at the primary, the top two candidates**, or the top five candidates in a primary for a general election conducted using ranked choice voting as provided in section 1 of this act,** will be certified as qualified to appear on the general election ballot.
No primary may be held for any single county partisan office to fill an unexpired term if, after the last day allowed for candidates to withdraw**:**
Only one candidate has filed for the position**; or**
In a primary for a general election conducted using ranked choice voting as provided in section 1 of this act, five or fewer candidates have filed for the position.
For partisan office, if a candidate has expressed a party preference on the declaration of candidacy, then that preference will be shown after the name of the candidate on the primary and general election ballots as set forth in rules of the secretary of state. A candidate may choose to express no party preference. Any party preferences are shown for the information of voters only and may in no way limit the options available to voters.
So far as applicable, the provisions of this title relating to conducting general elections govern the conduct of primaries.
[ 2004 c 271 § 143; ]
Nothing in this chapter may be construed to mean that a voter may cast more than one vote for candidates for a given office.
[ 2004 c 271 § 144; ]
The office of precinct committee officer must be voted upon at the primary election in each even-numbered year. If no one files for the office, the office shall be filled in accordance with *RCW 29A.28.071. If, after the last day to withdraw, only one candidate has filed for the office in a precinct, that candidate is deemed elected and the auditor shall issue a certificate of election. Only contested races may appear on the ballot.
The ballot format may be either a consolidated ballot or a physically separate ballot. If a consolidated ballot is used, the races for precinct committee officer must be clearly delineated from other races on the ballot. If a physically separate ballot is used, it must be distinguishable from the top two primary ballot. If the ballot is returned in the return envelope provided, but outside of the security envelope, it shall not be grounds to invalidate the ballot.
The following instructions must appear on the ballot: "In order to vote for precinct committee officer, a partisan office, you must affirm that you are a Democrat or a Republican and may vote only for one candidate from the party you select. Your vote for a candidate affirms your affiliation with the same party as the candidate. This preference is private and will not be matched to your name or shared."
Party affiliation is affirmed by including the following statement after the name of each candidate: "I affirm I am a Democrat." if the candidate is a Democrat, or "I affirm I am a Republican." if the candidate is a Republican.
If a voter votes for candidates from both parties, the votes cast in the election for precinct committee officer on that ballot will not be tabulated and reported.
[ 2012 c 89 § 3; ]
All city and town primaries shall be nonpartisan. Primaries for special purpose districts, except those districts that require ownership of property within the district as a prerequisite to voting, shall be nonpartisan. City, town, and district primaries shall be held as provided in RCW 29A.04.311.
The purpose of this section is to establish the holding of a primary, subject to the exemptions in RCW 29A.52.220, as a uniform procedural requirement to the holding of city, town, and district elections. These provisions supersede any and all other statutes, whether general or special in nature, having different election requirements.
[ 2013 c 11 § 51; 2003 c 111 § 1305; 1990 c 59 § 89; 1977 c 53 § 3; 1975-'76 2nd ex.s. c 120 § 1; 1965 c 123 § 7; 1965 c 9 § 29.21.010; prior: 1951 c 257 § 7; 1949 c 161 § 3; Rem. Supp. 1949 § 5179-1; ]
No primary may be held for any single position in any nonpartisan office if, after the last day allowed for candidates to withdraw, there are no more than two candidates filed for the position**, or in a primary for a general election conducted using ranked choice voting as provided in section 1 of this act, there are no more than five candidates filed for the position**. The county auditor shall as soon as possible notify all the candidates so affected that the office for which they filed will not appear on the primary ballot.
No primary may be held for the office of commissioner of a park and recreation district or for the office of cemetery district commissioner.
Names of candidates for offices that do not appear on the primary ballot shall be printed upon the general election ballot in the manner specified by RCW 29A.36.131.
The offices of superintendent of public instruction, justice of the supreme court, judge of the court of appeals, judge of the superior court, and judge of the district court shall be nonpartisan and the candidates therefor shall be nominated and elected as such.
All city, town, and special purpose district elective offices shall be nonpartisan and the candidates therefor shall be nominated and elected as such.
[ 2004 c 271 § 174; ]
Whenever it is necessary to hold a special election to fill an unexpired term of an elective office of any city, town, or district, the special election must be held in concert with the next general election that is to be held by the respective city, town, or district concerned for the purpose of electing officers to full terms. This section does not apply to any city of the first class whose charter provision relating to elections to fill unexpired terms are inconsistent with this section.
[ 2003 c 111 § 1308; 1972 ex.s. c 61 § 7; ]
No later than the day following the certification of the returns of any primary, the secretary of state shall certify to the appropriate county auditors the names of all candidates qualified to appear on the general election ballot.
[ 2013 c 11 § 52; 2004 c 271 § 146; ]
Subject to the availability of funds appropriated specifically for that purpose, the secretary of state shall publish notice of the proposed constitutional amendments and other state measures that are to be submitted to the people at a state general election up to four times during the four weeks immediately preceding that election in every legal newspaper in the state. The secretary of state shall supplement this publication with an equivalent amount of radio and television advertisements.
[ 2003 c 111 § 1311; 1997 c 405 § 1; 1967 c 96 § 1; 1965 c 9 § 29.27.072; prior: 1961 c 176 § 1; ]
The newspaper and broadcast notice required by Article XXIII, section 1, of the state Constitution and RCW 29A.52.330 may set forth all or some of the following information:
A legal identification of the state measure to be voted upon.
The official ballot title of such state measure.
A brief statement explaining the constitutional provision or state law as it presently exists.
A brief statement explaining the effect of the state measure should it be approved.
The total number of votes cast for and against the measure in both the state senate and house of representatives.
No individual candidate or incumbent public official may be referred to or identified in these notices or advertisements.
[ 2003 c 111 § 1312; 1997 c 405 § 2; 1967 c 96 § 2; 1965 c 9 § 29.27.074; prior: 1961 c 176 § 2; ]
Notice for any state, county, district, or municipal primary or election, whether special or general, must be given by the county auditor between five and fifteen days prior to the deadline for mail-in registrations. The notice must be published in one or more newspapers of general circulation and must contain, at a minimum, the last date to register online or through the mail, the last date to transfer or update an existing registration, the last date to register in person for first-time voters, information on where a person can register, the type of election, the date of the election, how a voter can obtain a ballot, a list of all jurisdictions involved in the election, including positions and short titles for ballot measures appearing on the ballot, and the times and dates of any public meetings associated with the election. The notice shall also include where additional information regarding the election may be obtained. The notice of a primary held in an even-numbered year must indicate that the office of precinct committee officer is on the ballot. This is the only notice required for a state, county, district, or municipal primary or special or general election.
If the county or city chooses to mail a local voters' pamphlet as described in RCW 29A.32.210 to each residence, the notice required in this section need only include the last date to register online or through the mail, the last date to transfer or update an existing registration, the last date to register in person for first-time voters, information on where a person can register, and the times and dates of any public meetings associated with the election.
[ 2013 c 11 § 53; 2011 c 10 § 45; ]
Immediately after the ascertainment of the result of an election for an office to be filled by the voters of a single county, or of a precinct, or of a constituency within a county for which the county auditor serves as supervisor of elections, the county auditor shall notify the person elected, and issue to the person a ceremonial certificate of election.
[ 2007 c 374 § 2; 2003 c 111 § 1314; 1965 c 9 § 29.27.100; 1961 c 130 § 8; prior: Code 1881 § 3096, part; 1866 p 6 § 2, part; 1865 p 39 § 7, part; RRS § 5343, part; ]
Except as provided in the state Constitution, the governor shall issue certificates of election to those elected as senator or representative in the Congress of the United States and to state offices. The secretary of state shall issue certificates of election to those elected to the office of judge of the superior court in judicial districts comprising more than one county and to those elected to either branch of the state legislature in legislative districts comprising more than one county.
[ 2003 c 111 § 1315; 1965 c 9 § 29.27.110; 1933 c 92 § 1; RRS § 5343-1. Code 1881 § 3100, part; No RRS; ]
**
Except as provided in subsections (2) and (3) of this section, a county, city, town, school district, fire district, or port district may conduct its elections using ranked choice voting. A county, city, town, school district, fire district, or port district that adopts ranked choice voting may, but need not, use ranked choice voting for all offices in an election.
A city, town, school district, fire district, or port district that has voters in more than one county may conduct an election using ranked choice voting only if:
Another city, town, or district that lies entirely within at least two of the counties in which the city, town, or district has voters uses ranked choice voting; or
A court orders the use of ranked choice voting as provided in this section as a remedy under RCW 29A.92.110.
Ranked choice voting may not be used in an election for an office for which two or fewer candidates are competing.
An election using ranked choice voting must meet the following requirements:
The county auditor shall design the ballot to allow a voter to rank the candidates for a particular office in order of preference, including one write-in candidate;
The county auditor must allow a voter to rank at least five candidates per office. The secretary of state must adopt rules that determine the maximum number of candidates per office that a voter is allowed to rank on a ballot;
A voter does not need to rank the maximum number of candidates. The county auditor shall count a ballot regardless of how many candidates the voter has ranked. The county auditor shall not assign votes for rankings made by a voter that are greater than the maximum number of rankings allowed for each office;
If a voter skips one or more numbers in ranking candidates, or ranks an invalid write-in candidate, the county auditor shall assign any votes after the skipped number to the voter's next-highest ranked candidates as if the voter had not skipped the number;
If a voter provides the same number ranking to more than one candidate, the county auditor may not assign that vote ranking to any candidate and may not assign a vote for any subsequent number ranking for that office;
There are two types of ranked choice voting elections. If the election is a single-winner contest, including an election in which multiple positions with the same name, district number, or title are dealt with as separate offices, the winner of each contest must be determined using the instant runoff voting method, as defined in this section and further provided in secretary of state rules. If the election is a multiple-winner contest in which the positions are not dealt with as separate offices, including a primary, the winners must be determined using the single transferable vote method, as defined in this section and further provided in secretary of state rules;
If the requisite number of officers have not been elected, or selected to continue to further rounds of vote tabulation, by reason of two or more persons having an equal and highest number of votes for the same office, the official empowered by state law to issue the original certificate of election shall resolve the tie as provided in RCW 29A.60.221.
A county, city, town, or district that conducts a general election for a single-winner contest using ranked choice voting must hold a primary using the single transferable vote method to winnow candidates for the election to a final list of five candidates. A county, city, town, or district that conducts a general election for a multiple-winner contest using ranked choice voting may not hold a primary.
A county, city, town, or district that adopts ranked choice voting before 2023 shall implement ranked choice voting for elections beginning in 2025. A county, city, town, or district that adopts ranked choice voting during or after 2023 must implement ranked choice voting within two years following its adoption.
The county auditor whose county encompasses a county, city, town, or district that adopts ranked choice voting is responsible for the implementation of the system. If a city, town, or district has voters in two or more counties, each county auditor in which the city, town, or district has voters is responsible for its implementation.
The secretary of state, before July 1, 2024, and in consultation with the ranked choice voting work group created in section 14 of this act, shall adopt rules to administer this section. The secretary's rules must address, at minimum:
Procedures for administering an election that includes voters in more than one county as provided in subsection (2) of this section;
Procedures for tabulating votes under the instant runoff voting method and single transferable vote method as provided in subsection (4) of this section; and
The maximum number of candidates a voter is allowed to rank for each office as provided in subsection (4) of this section.
The secretary of state shall develop educational materials for the public and provide training for county auditors to implement ranked choice voting.
As used in this section:
"Ranked choice voting" means a system of counting votes in which votes are tabulated based on a voter's ranking of candidates in order of preference as provided in this section.
"Instant runoff voting method" means a system of counting votes in which the ballots are counted in rounds simulating a series of runoffs until two candidates remain or until one candidate has a majority of all votes counting in that round. The candidate having the greatest number of votes is declared the winner.
"Single transferable vote method" means a system of counting votes in which a winning threshold is calculated based on the number of seats to be filled and the number of votes cast so that no more than the correct number of candidates can win. The ballots must be counted in rounds, with surplus votes transferred from winning candidates and candidates with the fewest votes eliminated according to the methodology established by the secretary of state in rules adopted under subsection (8) of this section, until the number of candidates remaining equals the number of seats to be filled.
[ 2021 c XXX § 1; ]**