Connecticut General Statutes
Chapter 153 - Nominations and Political Parties
Section 9-453u. (Formerly Sec. 9-378m). - Reservation of party designation.

(a) An application to reserve a party designation with the Secretary of the State and to form a party designation committee may be made at any time after November 3, 1981, by filing in the office of the secretary a written statement signed by at least twenty-five electors who desire to be members of such committee.

(b) The statement shall include the offices for which candidates may petition for nomination under the party designation to be reserved but shall not include an office if no elector who has signed the application is entitled to vote at an election for such office.
(c) The statement shall include the party designation to be reserved which (1) shall consist of not more than three words and not more than twenty-five letters; (2) shall not incorporate the name of any major party; (3) shall not incorporate the name of any minor party which is entitled to nominate candidates for any office which will appear on the same ballot with any office included in the statement; (4) shall not be the same as any party designation for which a reservation with the secretary is currently in effect for any office included in the statement; and (5) shall not be the word “none”, or incorporate the words “unaffiliated” or “unenrolled” or any similarly antonymous form of the words “affiliated” or “enrolled”.
(d) The statement shall include the names of two persons who are authorized by the party designation committee to execute and file with the secretary statements of endorsement required by section 9-453o and certificates of nomination as required by section 9-460.
(e) The secretary shall examine the statement, and if it complies with the requirements of this section, the secretary shall reserve the party designation for the offices included in the statement and record such reservation in the office of the secretary. The reservation shall continue in effect from the date it is recorded until the day following any regular election at which no candidate appears on the appropriate ballot for that office under that party designation.
(P.A. 81-447, S. 1; P.A. 83-475, S. 24, 43; P.A. 87-472, S. 1, 14; P.A. 02-89, S. 12.)
History: P.A. 83-475 amended Subsec. (e) to provide for termination of party designation on day following first election at which no candidate appears on the appropriate ballot for a particular office under the party designation; Sec. 9-378m transferred to Sec. 9-453u in 1985; P.A. 87-472, in Subsec. (c) increased maximum number of letters in a reserved party designation, from 20 to 25, and added Subdiv. (5) re prohibition on use of antonymous form of words “affiliated” or “unenrolled”, and added Subsec. (f) re cancellation of reserved party designations prohibited under Subsec. (c)(5) of this section; P.A. 02-89 amended Subsec. (e) to delete an exception re Subsec. (f) and deleted as obsolete Subsec. (f) re the cancellation of party designations reserved prior to June 24, 1987, that are prohibited by Subsec. (c)(5).

Structure Connecticut General Statutes

Connecticut General Statutes

Title 9 - Elections

Chapter 153 - Nominations and Political Parties

Section 9-372. - Definitions.

Section 9-373. - Nominations to public office.

Section 9-373a. - Registration of write-in candidates.

Section 9-373b. - Cross endorsement of a candidate.

Section 9-374. - Party rules to be filed.

Section 9-375. - Amendment of party rules.

Section 9-375a. - Amendment of party rules in 1972.

Section 9-375b. - Amendment of party rules following a census.

Section 9-376. - Postponement of primary day.

Section 9-377. - Write-in spaces on ballots prohibited.

Section 9-378. - Nominations without party designation excepted.

Section 9-379. - Eligibility for placing on ballot.

Section 9-380. - Newly-created offices.

Section 9-381. - Nomination procedure.

Section 9-381a. - Election procedures applicable to primaries unless otherwise provided.

Section 9-382. - Party-endorsed candidates; state or district office.

Section 9-383. - Time and place of convention.

Section 9-384. - Calls for conventions.

Section 9-384a. - Calls for 1974 party conventions.

Section 9-385. - Roll-call vote or polling by delegation at convention.

Section 9-385a. - Voting by delegation at state convention.

Section 9-386. - Tie vote on endorsement.

Section 9-387. - Dispute as to endorsement of a candidate or selection of a delegate.

Section 9-388. - Report to Secretary of the State.

Section 9-389. - Publication of names; information concerning filing of candidacies.

Section 9-390. - Selection of party-endorsed candidates for municipal office and selection of delegates to conventions.

Section 9-390a. - Election of town committee members in 1972.

Section 9-391. - Time for party endorsements for municipal offices and town committee members. Time for selection of delegates to conventions. Certification. Late certification void.

Section 9-392. - Selection of town committees.

Section 9-393. - Selection of town committee members and delegates.

Section 9-394. - District delegates.

Section 9-394a. - Senatorial and assembly district convention delegates.

Section 9-395. - Publication of information concerning municipal primaries.

Section 9-396. - Ballot vote at caucus; eligibility to vote.

Section 9-397. - Tie vote on endorsement.

Section 9-398 and 9-399. - Dispute as to endorsement. Time for filing candidacies.

Section 9-400. - Time for filing of candidacies for state or district office. Certification. Late certification void.

Section 9-401 to 9-404. - Availability of petition forms. Petition form; circulation of petitions for state or district office; prohibited acts. Registrar's receipt and verification of petitions for state or district office; rejection by Secretary of...

Section 9-404a. - Availability and issuance of primary petition forms for candidacies for nomination to state or district office.

Section 9-404b. - Primary petition forms for candidacies for nomination to state or district office. Signatures. Circulation.

Section 9-404c. - Registrar's receipt and verification of petitions for candidacies for nomination to state or district office. Filing with Secretary. Tabulation.

Section 9-405. - Time for filing primary petition candidacies for municipal offices and town committee members.

Section 9-406. - Filing of primary petition candidacies for municipal offices and town committee members.

Section 9-406a. - Penalty for fraudulent certification.

Section 9-407 and 9-408. - Filing of candidacies; delegates. Filing of primary petition candidacies for district delegates.

Section 9-409. - Availability and issuance of primary petition forms for candidacies for nomination to municipal office or election as town committee members.

Section 9-410. - Primary petition forms for candidacies for nomination to municipal office or election as town committee members. Signatures. Circulation.

Section 9-411. - Number of candidates required on petition for town committee members.

Section 9-412. - Registrar's receipt and verification of petitions for candidacies for nomination to municipal office or election as town committee members. Filing with clerk.

Section 9-413. - Deposition of deposit filed with registrar.

Section 9-413a. - Registrar to certify accuracy of enrollment list provided to candidate circulating primary petition.

Section 9-414. - Nominations not to exceed places to be filled; municipal primaries.

Section 9-415. - When primary required.

Section 9-416. - No-contest nominations; state or district office.

Section 9-416a. - Failure of party to endorse; state or district office.

Section 9-417. - No-contest nominations; municipal office and town committee members.

Section 9-418. - Failure of party to endorse; municipal office.

Section 9-419. - Failure of party to endorse; town committee members.

Section 9-420. - Persons selected as convention delegates by party deemed lawfully selected.

Section 9-421. - When primary not to be held for town committee members.

Section 9-422. - Primaries for justices of the peace.

Section 9-423. - Time for primaries; state, district or municipal office.

Section 9-424. - Time for primaries; delegates.

Section 9-425. - Time for primaries; town committees.

Section 9-426. - Cancellation of primary for office or town committee due to vacancies in non-party-endorsed candidacies. Slate vacancies.

Section 9-427. - Cancellation of delegate primary due to vacancies in party-endorsed candidacies; filling of vacancies when incomplete party-endorsed slate wins delegate primary.

Section 9-428. - Vacancy in party-endorsed candidacy.

Section 9-429. - Cancellation of primary for office or town committee when vacancies in candidacies result in no contest.

Section 9-430. - Withdrawal procedure.

Section 9-431. - Eligibility to vote at primary.

Section 9-431a. - Eligibility to vote at caucus, primary or town convention.

Section 9-431b. - Eligibility to vote on removal from one town in state or district to another.

Section 9-432. - Verification of names on filing with secretary.

Section 9-433. - Notice of primary; state and district office. Exception for certain primaries held in 2021.

Section 9-434. - Verification of names on filing with municipal clerk. Exception.

Section 9-435. - Notice of primary for municipal office or election for town committee. Exception for certain primaries and elections held in 2021.

Section 9-436. - Use, number and adjustment of voting tabulators; voting booths; conditions and rules for use of paper ballots; qualification, appointment and training of primary officials.

Section 9-436a. - Candidate checkers.

Section 9-437. - Form of ballot. Position of candidates' names on ballot. Sample ballots. Voting instructions and information.

Section 9-438. - Hours and places of voting.

Section 9-439. - Duties of officials.

Section 9-439a. - Remedy for denial of right to vote.

Section 9-439b. - Penalty for false statement.

Section 9-440. - Moderators to make returns.

Section 9-441. - Compensation of registrars and municipal clerks.

Section 9-442. - When party has no registrar.

Section 9-443. - Votes for justices of the peace.

Section 9-444. - Determination of nominee, town committee members or justices of the peace.

Section 9-445. - Recanvass on close vote.

Section 9-446. - Tie vote.

Section 9-447. - Unlocking of voting tabulators.

Section 9-448. - Recount of paper ballots.

Section 9-450. - Vacancy elections.

Section 9-450a. - Special elections in 1974.

Section 9-451. - Minor parties.

Section 9-452. - Time for making nominations. Certification. Late certification void.

Section 9-452a. - Notice of party meetings.

Section 9-453. - Petition requirements.

Section 9-453a. - Petition form.

Section 9-453b. - Issuance of nominating petition forms; restrictions. Application requirements. Candidacy filing requirements.

Section 9-453c. - When single petition may be used.

Section 9-453d. - Number of signatures.

Section 9-453e. - Circulator.

Section 9-453f. - Signature pages.

Section 9-453g. - False signing.

Section 9-453h. - Withdrawal of signatures.

Section 9-453i. - Submission to town clerk or Secretary of the State.

Section 9-453j. - Statement by circulator.

Section 9-453k. - Signing and certification of circulator's statement; receipt for pages; certification of signatures.

Section 9-453l. - Delegation of signature check to registrars.

Section 9-453m. - Signatures, effect of variations.

Section 9-453n. - Date for filing with secretary.

Section 9-453o. - Rejection of defective pages. Cure for omission by town clerk. Approval of petitions.

Section 9-453p. - Withdrawal of candidacy.

Section 9-453q. - Use of party levers for petitioning candidates.

Section 9-453r. - Position of candidates' names on ballot.

Section 9-453s. - Vacancies in candidacies. Ballot.

Section 9-453t. - Candidate nominated by major or minor party prohibited from appearing on ballot by nominating petition. Exception for cross endorsement.

Section 9-453u. (Formerly Sec. 9-378m). - Reservation of party designation.

Section 9-454 to 9-458. - Petition: Form; signatures; circulation and filing; town clerk's duties; platform statement required, when; false signing.

Section 9-459. - Vacancy elections.

Section 9-460. - Vacancy in nomination; withdrawal procedure. Certification of replacement nomination; time limitations. Ballots.

Section 9-461. - Filing of list of candidates with Secretary.

Section 9-462. - Lists of candidates for state and district offices.