00CS FOR SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 36(JUD)                                                                              
01 Proposing amendments to the Constitution of the State of Alaska requiring a                                             
02 runoff election when the candidates for governor and lieutenant governor obtaining                                      
03 the greatest number of votes at the general election do not receive more than                                           
04 40 percent of the votes cast, and changing the term of office of the governor                                           
05 and the lieutenant governor.                                                                                            
06 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
07    * Section 1.  Article III, sec. 3, Constitution of the State of Alaska, is amended to read:                          
08  SECTION 3.  ELECTION.  The governor shall be chosen by the qualified                                                  
09 voters of the State at a general election.  The candidate receiving the greatest number                                 
10 of votes shall be governor but only if the candidate receives more than forty                                          
11 percent of the total number of votes cast for governor at the general election.  If                                     
12 a candidate does not receive more than forty percent of the votes cast for                                              
13 governor, a runoff election between the two candidates receiving the greatest                                           
14 number of votes cast shall be held thirty-five days after the general election.  At                                     

01 the runoff election, write-in ballots shall not be counted.  In calculating the                                         
02 percentage of the votes cast at the general election and at a runoff election, only                                     
03 votes that have been properly marked for a candidate for governor shall be                                              
04 counted.                                                                                                               
05    * Sec. 2.  Article III, sec. 4, Constitution of the State of Alaska, is amended to read:   SECTION 4.  TERM OF      
06 OFFICE.  If a runoff election is required to elect                                                                     
07 a governor, then the [THE] term of office of the governor begins [IS FOUR YEARS,                                     
08 BEGINNING] at noon on the first day of January immediately after the election.                                         
09 Otherwise, the term of office of the governor begins at noon on the first Monday                                       
10 in December following the governor's [HIS] election.  The term of the governor                                     
11 ends when the governor's elected successor commences in office on a date                                                
12 determined under this section.  Election for governor occurs every four years                                          
13 [AND ENDING AT NOON ON THE FIRST MONDAY IN DECEMBER FOUR                                                                
14 YEARS LATER].                                                                                                           
15    * Sec. 3.  Article III, sec. 8, Constitution of the State of Alaska, is amended to read:                             
16  SECTION 8.  SAME ELECTION.  The lieutenant governor shall be nominated                                                
17 in the manner provided by law for nominating candidates for other elective offices.                                     
18 In the general election and in any runoff election the votes cast for a candidate for                                 
19 governor shall be considered as cast also for the candidate for lieutenant governor                                     
20 running jointly with him.  The candidate whose name appears on the ballot jointly with                                  
21 that of the successful candidate for governor shall be elected lieutenant governor.                                     
22   * Sec. 4.  Article XV, Constitution of the State of Alaska, is amended by adding a new                                
23 section to read:                                                                                                        
24  SECTION 29.  TRANSITIONAL PROVISION APPLICABLE TO                                                                     
25 AMENDMENT OF ARTICLE III, SECTION 4.  The term of office of the governor                                                
26 elected at the general election in 1994 ends at noon on the first Monday in December                                    
27 four years later unless, under Section 3 of Article III, a runoff election is required, in                              
28 which case the term of office of the governor ends at noon on the first day of January                                  
29 1999.                                                                                                                   
30    * Sec. 5.  The amendments proposed by this resolution shall be placed before the voters of                           
31 the state at the next general election in conformity with art. XIII, sec. 1, Constitution of the                        

01 State of Alaska, and the election laws of the state.