Sec. 9-450. Vacancy elections.
Sec. 9-450. Vacancy elections. Nominations by major parties for any state, district
or municipal office to be filled under the provisions of any law relating to elections to
fill vacancies, unless otherwise provided therein, shall be made in accordance with the
provisions of sections 9-382 to 9-450, inclusive.
(1) (A) In the case of nominations for representatives in Congress and judges of
probate in probate districts composed of two or more towns, provided for in sections
9-212 and 9-218, the delegates to the convention for the last state election shall be the
delegates for the purpose of selecting a candidate to fill such vacancy. If a vacancy
occurs in the delegation from any town, political subdivision or district, such vacancy
may be filled by the town committee of the town in which the delegate resided. Endorsements by political party conventions pursuant to this subsection may be made and certified at any time after the resignation or death creating such vacancy and not later than
the fiftieth day before the day of the election. No such endorsement shall be effective
until the presiding officer and secretary of any district convention have certified the
endorsement to the Secretary of the State.
(B) If such a vacancy occurs between the one hundred twenty-fifth day and the
sixty-third day before the day of a regular state or municipal election in November of
any year, no primary shall be held for the nomination of any political party and the
party-endorsed candidate so selected shall be deemed, for the purposes of this chapter,
the person certified by the Secretary of the State pursuant to section 9-444 as the nominee
of such party.
(C) Except as provided in subparagraph (B) of this subdivision, if a candidacy for
nomination is filed by or on behalf of any person other than a party-endorsed candidate
not later than fourteen days after the party endorsement and in conformity with the
provisions of section 9-400, a primary shall be held in each municipality of the district
and each part of a municipality which is a component part of the district, to determine
the nominee of such party for such office, except as provided in section 9-416a. Such
primary shall be held on the day that the writs of election issued by the Governor,
pursuant to section 9-212, ordered the election to be held, and new writs of election
shall be issued by the Governor in accordance with section 9-212.
(D) Unless the provisions of subparagraph (B) of this subdivision apply, petition
forms for candidacies for nomination by a political party pursuant to this subdivision
shall be available from the Secretary of the State beginning on the day following the
issuance of writs of election by the Governor pursuant to section 9-212, except when a
primary has already been held, and the provisions of section 9-404a shall otherwise
apply to such petitions.
(E) The registry lists used pursuant to this subsection shall be the last-completed
lists, as provided in sections 9-172a and 9-172b.
(2) In the case of judges of probate in probate districts composed of a single town,
the day named for the election shall be not earlier than the one hundred fifteenth day
following the day on which the writ of election is issued, and the times specified in
sections 9-391, 9-405 and 9-423 shall be applicable.
(3) In the case of a vacancy in the office of senator in Congress occurring one
hundred fifty or more days prior to a state election, the party-endorsed candidate of each
party for such office shall be designated at the state convention of such party held for
the endorsement of candidates for the state offices to be filled at such election; contesting
candidacies for nomination to such office shall be filed not later than four o'clock p.m.
on the twenty-first day following the close of such convention; and the primary of such
party for nomination to such office shall be held simultaneously with the primaries of
such party for nomination to the state and district offices to be filled at such election.
If, at the time such vacancy in the office of senator in Congress occurs, such state convention has already been closed, it shall be reconvened by call of the chairman of the state
central committee of such party, which call shall be mailed to each delegate selected
for such convention not less than seventy-two hours prior to such reconvening; such
reconvened convention shall be closed not later than the tenth day following the occurrence of such vacancy. The party-endorsed candidate of such party for such office shall
be designated at such reconvened convention. Contesting candidates for nomination to
such office shall be filed not later than four o'clock p.m. on the twenty-first day following
the close of such reconvened convention. If the primaries of such party for nomination
to the state and district offices to be filled at the state election are held not earlier than
the forty-ninth day following the close of such reconvened convention, the primary of
such party for nomination to the office of senator in Congress to fill such vacancy shall
be held simultaneously with the primaries of such party for nomination to such state
and district offices; otherwise, the Secretary of the State shall fix the day for the primary
of such party for such nomination to the office of senator in Congress, which day shall
be not earlier than the forty-ninth day following the close of such reconvened convention
and not later than the twenty-first day preceding the day of the state election.
(4) The times specified in sections 9-391, 9-405 and 9-423 shall be applicable to
any special town election held to fill a vacancy in any town office under subsection (b)
of section 9-164. Except as provided under subsection (c) of section 9-164, any election
held to fill a vacancy in any municipal office under the provisions of any special act
shall be held not earlier than the one hundred twenty-seventh day following the day
upon which warning of such election is issued, and the times specified in sections 9-391, 9-405 and 9-423 shall be applicable.
(June, 1955, S. 610d; November, 1955, S. N95; 1957, P.A. 119, S. 1; 518, S. 32; 1958 Rev., S. 9-123; 1963, P.A. 17,
S. 74; P.A. 75-206, S. 4, 7; P.A. 79-616, S. 21; P.A. 87-382, S. 48, 55; P.A. 93-202, S. 2; P.A. 00-66, S. 26; P.A. 03-241,
S. 51; P.A. 05-188, S. 3; 05-235, S. 32; P.A. 06-137, S. 10, 13.)
History: 1963 act restated previous provisions; P.A. 75-206 changed in Subsec. (a) the determining day before or after
which election writs are issued from the tenth day of April to the twenty-first day of May and changed date of action by
state central committee when such writs issued on or before that date to no later than the twenty-fourth day of May, in
Subsec. (b) changed day of election to no earlier than the one-hundred-fifth day following issuance of writ instead of the
ninetieth, in Subsec. (c) changed application of subsection to vacancy occurring 70 or more days prior to state election
rather than 60 days, further provided for the twenty-eighth day rather than the twenty-first day following the reconvened
convention to be the determining day and changed the ninetieth to the one-hundred-fifth day as the limitation in Subsec.
(d); P.A. 79-616 changed reference from Sec. 9-399 to Sec. 9-400; P.A. 87-382, in Subsec. (a) added reference to Sec. 9-423 and sentence re deadlines for delegate primaries and changed deadline for filing of contesting candidacies for nomination from fourteenth to fifth day following close of convention, in Subsec. (b) changed earliest day for election from one-hundred-fifth to one-hundred-fifteenth-day following day on which writ of election is issued, in Subsec. (c) changed
deadline for filing of contesting candidacies for nomination from fourteenth to fifth day following close of convention,
and in Subsec. (d) changed earliest day for election from one-hundred-fifth to one-hundred-twenty-seventh day following
day on which warning of election is issued; P.A. 93-202 amended Subsec. (d) by inserting specific reference to "subsection
(b) of" Sec. 9-164 and by adding exception re Subsec. (c) of Sec. 9-164; P.A. 00-66 replaced alphabetic Subdiv. indicators
with numeric indicators; P.A. 03-241 changed provisions re election of delegates to selection of delegates in Subdivs. (1)
and (3), effective January 1, 2004, and applicable to primaries and elections held on or after that date; P.A. 05-188 amended
Subdiv. (1) to substantially revise procedure for vacancy elections for office of representative in Congress and judge of
probate, effective July 1, 2005; P.A. 05-235 restored provisions of Subdiv. (1) that were deleted by P.A. 05-188, effective
July 8, 2005; P.A. 06-137 amended Subdiv. (1) to replace former provisions with Subpara. (A) re vacancies for representatives in Congress and judges of probate, Subpara. (B) re vacancies between the one hundred twenty-fifth day and the sixty-third day before the day of a regular state or municipal election, Subpara. (C) re filing of a candidacy for nomination by
or on behalf of any person other than a party-endorsed candidate, Subpara. (D) re availability of petition forms and Subpara.
(E) re registry lists used pursuant to section, and amended Subdiv. (3) to change reference re occurrence of vacancy from
70 or more days to 150 or more days, change deadline for filing of contesting candidacies from not later than four o'clock
p.m. on the fourteenth day following close of the convention to not later than four o'clock p.m. on the twenty-first day
following close of the convention, change deadline for filing of contesting candidacies after a reconvened state convention
from not later than four o'clock p.m. on the fifth day following close of the reconvened convention to not later than four
o'clock p.m. on the twenty-first day following close of the reconvened convention, and change references re day of primaries
from the twenty-eighth day following close of the reconvened convention to the forty-ninth day following close of the
reconvened convention, effective June 6, 2006.