By Danburg                                            H.B. No. 1949
       74R6521 GGS-D
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to the appointment of election judges for county election
    1-3  precincts.
    1-4        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-5        SECTION 1.  Sections 32.002(c) and (d), Election Code, are
    1-6  amended to read as follows:
    1-7        (c)  The presiding judge and alternate presiding judge must
    1-8  be aligned with different political parties, subject to this
    1-9  subsection.  Before July of each year, the county chairman of a
   1-10  political party whose candidate for governor received the highest
   1-11  or second highest number of votes in the county in the most recent
   1-12  gubernatorial general election shall submit in writing to the
   1-13  commissioners court the name of a person for each precinct who is
   1-14  eligible for appointment as an election judge.  If a name is
   1-15  submitted in compliance with this subsection, the commissioners
   1-16  court shall appoint that person as the presiding or alternate
   1-17  presiding judge.  If a name is not submitted in compliance with
   1-18  this subsection, the commissioners court shall appoint another
   1-19  eligible person.
   1-20        (d)  The commissioners court shall fill a vacancy in the
   1-21  position of election judge for the remainder of the unexpired term.
   1-22  An appointment to fill a vacancy may be made at any regular or
   1-23  special term of court.  Not later than the 10th day after the date
   1-24  the vacancy occurs, the county chairman of the same political party
    2-1  with which the original judge was aligned shall submit to the
    2-2  commissioners court in writing the name of a person who is eligible
    2-3  for the appointment.  If a name is submitted in compliance with
    2-4  this subsection, the commissioners court shall appoint that person
    2-5  to the unexpired term.  If a name is not submitted in compliance
    2-6  with this subsection, the commissioners court shall appoint another
    2-7  eligible person.  <(d)  The county clerk shall recommend a
    2-8  presiding judge and an alternate judge for each precinct and shall
    2-9  submit a list of the recommendations to the commissioners court.
   2-10  The clerk shall also recommend an appointee for each unexpired
   2-11  term.  The court shall consider the clerk's recommendation before
   2-12  making an appointment.>
   2-13        SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
   2-14        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
   2-15  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   2-16  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   2-17  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   2-18  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.