Bill > HB356

This bill enables school districts in New Hampshire to choose whether to conduct their elections using a partisan ballot system, rather than the current non-partisan system. Under the proposed legislation, school districts can vote to adopt a partisan election process through a ballot measure at a school district meeting. If approved, candidates for school district positions would be nominated and elected based on their political party affiliation. The bill outlines specific procedures for adopting and potentially rescinding the partisan ballot system, including requirements for how political parties will nominate candidates, especially in cooperative school districts with multiple towns. For cooperative school districts that choose the partisan system, the bill mandates that party clerks share candidate declarations across towns and combine caucus votes to determine nominees. The bill also specifies that ballots must be a different color and that a plurality of votes will be sufficient to elect candidates in partisan elections. Additionally, the legislation makes related technical amendments to various state statutes to accommodate the new partisan election option for school districts. The changes would take effect 60 days after the bill's passage, giving school districts the flexibility to decide their preferred election method.

Government Affairs

https://gc.nh.gov/bill_status/legacy/bs2016/bill_docket.aspx?lsr=0413&sy=2025&sortoption=&txtsessionyear=2025&txtbillnumber=HB356