Chap. 352.—An ACT to provide for the election in cities having a population in
excess of forty-five thousand and less than one hundred and twenty-five
thousand of members of the executive committee of political parties, and of

delegates to party conventions, and to provide for primaries for the nomina-
tion of party candidates in such cities and party senatorial candidates in
senatorial districts of which such cities are a part. [H B 361]

Approved March 29, 1934

1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia, That in every
city in this State having a population in excess of forty-five thousand
and less than one hundred and twenty-five thousand as shown by the
last United States census, the members of the city executive com-
mittees or other committees having the management in any such city
of the affairs of every political party as defined in section two hun-
dred and twenty-one of the Code of Virginia, and the delegates to
State or district party conventions of every such party upon the peti-
tion of one hundred or more qualified voters who are members of said
party that such committee members or delegates be so elected, shall
be elected by the qualified voters of said city who are members of
said party in an election duly and regularly held and conducted by
the electoral board of said city. Any such petition for the calling or
holding of such an election shall be presented to the judge of the
hustings court for said city, in term time or vacation, and if said
petition be found regular and in proper form and signed by the re-
quired number of qualified voters who affirm that they are members
of said party, the said judge shall enter an order directing the electoral
board to hold such election. Such order shall be entered not less than
sixty days nor more than six months prior to the time for holding
said election and a copy of same shall be published, within three days
after its entry, in a newspaper of general circulation in said city.
Said election shall be held at the same time as a regular election or a
primary election for nominating said party’s candidates, for a State
or city office. Any person desiring to become a candidate for member
of any such committee or for a delegate to any such convention shall
at least forty days before the day of such election file with the clerk
of said court a written statement, signed by said candidate and wit-
nessed by two witnesses, declaring his intention to become such can-
didate, and stating the ward in which he is a candidate and the date
the election is to be held. Thirty days before the day of said election,
said clerk shall certify to the electoral board the names of the persons
whose declarations of candidacy have been filed with him. The elec-
toral board shall forthwith cause a separate ballot to be printed con-
taining thereon only the names of candidates for said committee mem-
bers or delegates, in the respective wards in which they are candidates,
provided, however, that if said election is to be held at the same time
as a primary election for said party, a separate ballot may be used or
not in the discretion of the electoral board. If such an election is called
to be held at the same time as a general election, only members of the

party whose committee members or delegates are being elected shall
be permitted to vote, and it shall be the duty of the judges of election
to inquire of any person offering to vote for said candidates whether
such prospective voter is a member of said party (unless already known
to be such by said judges), and to refuse a ballot to any person not
affirming his membership in said party.

2. The candidates receiving the largest number of votes at any such
election shall be the legally elected committee members or delegates,
as the case may be.

3. It shall be the duty of every such party committee in every
such city, at least five months before the time of any regular election
for city officers or members of city council, or members of the Gen-
eral Assembly, and in every senatorial district in which any such city
is located in case of nomination of members of the State Senate, to
decide and publicly announce whether said party committee will recom-
mend that said party nominate candidates for any such office, and if
so, whether such party nominees shall be selected by a party convention
or by a primary election. If no such announcement is made within
said time a primary election shall be held. If such committee shall
announce that such nominees shall be selected by a convention, if one
hundred or more members of said party qualified to vote in the suc-
ceeding general election shall sign a petition requesting that a primary
election be held for the selection of said party nominees, and present
the same to the judge of the hustings court of said city, in term time
or vacation, he shall enter an order calling a primary election for said
purpose, and candidates shall file their declarations of candidacy
therein, and same shall be held and conducted in the same manner as
is provided in section one hereof with respect to party committees and
delegates to party conventions; provided, however, that in case of a
primary election for the nomination of a candidate for the State Senate
in any such district the petitions herein provided for shall be signed
by five hundred such party voters and the said primary election shall
be conducted in conformity with the present provisions of law, except
in so far as same may be inconsistent with this section, and the can-
didates shall file their petitions and declarations of candidacy with
their party committees as now provided by law. The candidates re-
ceiving the greatest number of votes at said primary election shall be
the party nominees, regardless of any action of any convention.

4, All acts or parts of acts in conflict with this act are hereby re-

pealed.