We, the people of this State which state shall henceforth be known as the state of Rhode Island, grateful to Almighty God for the civil and religious liberty which He hath so long permitted us to enjoy, and looking to Him for a blessing upon our endeavors to secure and to transmit the same, unimpaired, to succeeding generations, do ordain and establish this Constitution of government.
OF ELECTIONS AND CAMPAIGN FINANCE
The
governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general
and general treasurer shall be elected
on the Tuesday after
the first Monday in November, quadrennially commencing A.D. 1994, and every
four (4) years thereafter, and shall severally hold their offices,
subject to recall as provided for herein, for four (4) years from the first
Tuesday of January next succeeding their election
and until their successors are elected
and qualified. No person shall serve consecutively in the same general office for more than two (2) full terms,
excluding any partial term of less than two (2) years
previously served.
The senators
and representatives in the general
assembly shall be elected on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November, biennially in even numbered years, and shall severally hold their offices for two (2) years from the first Tuesday of January next succeeding their election and until their successors are
elected and qualified.
Recall is authorized in the case of a general officer who has been indicted or informed against
for a felony, convicted of a misdemeanor, or against whom a finding of probable cause of violation
of the code of ethics has
been made by the ethics commission. Recall shall not, however be instituted at any time during the first six (6)
months or the last year of an
individuals term of office.
Such a recall may be instituted by filing with the state board of elections an application for issuance of a recall
petition against said general officer which is signed by duly qualified electors equal to three percent (3%) of the total number of votes cast at the last preceding
general election for that office. If,
upon verification, the application is
determined to contain signatures of the required
number of electors, the state board of elections
shall issue a recall petition for circulation
amongst the electors of the state. Within ninety (90) days of issuance, recall petitions containing the
signatures of duly qualified electors
constituting fifteen percent (15%) of the total number of votes cast in the last preceding general election for
said office must be filed with the state board of elections.
The
signatures to the application and to the recall petition need not all be on one (1) sheet of paper, but each such application and petition must contain an identical
statement naming the person to be recalled,
the general office held by said
person, and the grounds for such recall
set forth in a statement
of one hundred (100) words or less approved by the board of elections. Each signatory
must set forth his or her signature as it appears
on the voting list, the date of signing, and his or her
place of residence. The person witnessing the signatures of each
elector on said petition must sign a statement under
oath on said sheet
attesting that the signatures thereon are genuine and were signed in his or her presence.
If the requisite number
of signatures are not obtained
within said ninety (90) days
period, the recall effort shall terminate. Upon verification of the requisite number of signatures, a special
election shall be scheduled at which the issue of removing said office holder and the
grounds therefor shall be placed before the electors of the state. If a majority of those voting support removal
of said office holder, the office
shall be immediately declared vacant and shall be filled in accordance with the constitution and laws of the state. The person so removed
shall not be eligible
to fill the unexpired portion
of the term of office. The general assembly shall provide
by statute for implementation of the
recall process.
In all elections held by the people for state, city, town,
ward or district officers, the person or
candidate receiving the largest number of votes
cast shall be declared elected.
When the
governor-elect shall die, remove from the state, refuse to serve; become insane,
or be otherwise incapacitated, the lieutenant
governor-elect shall be qualified as governor at the beginning of the term for
which the governor was elected. When both the governor and lieutenant
governor-elect, or either the lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney-general, or general
treasurer-elect, are so incapacitated,
or when there has been a failure to elect any one or more of the officers mentioned in this section,
the general assembly shall upon its organization meet in grand committee and elect some person or persons
to fill the office or offices, as the
case may be, for which such incapacity
exists or as to which such failure to elect occurred. When the general assembly shall elect any of said officers because
of the failure of any person to receive a plurality of the
votes cast, the election in each case
shall be made from the persons who received the same and largest
number of votes.
In case of a vacancy in the office of the secretary
of state, attorney- general, or general treasurer
from any cause, the general assembly in
grand committee shall elect some person to fill the same; provided,
that if such vacancy occurs when the general assembly is not in session the governor shall appoint some person to
fill such vacancy until a successor
elected by the general assembly is qualified to act.
When a senator or representative-elect shall
die, remove from the
state, refuse to serve, become insane, or be otherwise incapacitated, or when at an election for any senator or
representative no person shall receive a plurality
of the votes cast, a new election
shall be held. A
vacancy in the senate or house of representatives shall be filled at a new
election. The general assembly shall
provide by general
law for the holding of such elections at such
times as to insure that each town and
city shall be fully represented in the general
assembly during the whole
of every session thereof so far as is practicable. Every person elected in accordance with this section shall
hold office for the remainder of the term or for the full term, as the case may be, of the office which that person is elected to fill, and until a
successor is elected and qualified.
In
elections by the general assembly in grand committee the person receiving a majority of the votes shall be elected.
Every person elected by the general assembly
to fill a vacancy,
or pursuant to Section 3 of this article, shall hold office for the remainder of the term or for the full term, as the case may be, and until a successor
is elected and qualified.
A quorum
of the grand committee shall consist of a majority
of all the members of the senate and a majority of all the members of
the house of representatives duly assembled pursuant to an invitation from one of said
bodies which has been accepted
by the other, and the acceptance of which has been communicated by message to the body in which such
invitation originated, and each house shall be attended by its secretaries and clerks. No act or business of any kind shall be done in grand
committee other than that which
is distinctly specified in the invitation by virtue of which such grand
committee is assembled, except to take a
recess or to dissolve; provided,
that the grand committee may appoint a subcommittee of its own members to count
any ballots delivered to it and
report the result of such count.
It shall
not be necessary for the town or ward clerks
to keep and transmit to the general assembly a
list or register of all persons voting
for general officers; but the general assembly shall have power to pass such laws on the subject as it may
deem expedient.
The
general assembly shall require each candidate for general office in any primary, general or special election to report to the secretary of state all contributions and
expenditures made by any person to or on behalf of such candidate, provided however, that the general assembly may limit such disclosure to
contributions or expenditures in excess of
such an amount as the general assembly shall specify.
The
general assembly shall adopt limitations on all contributions to candidates for election to state and
local office in any primary,
general or special election and shall provide for the adoption of a plan of voluntary public financing and
limitations on total campaign expenditures
of campaigns for governor and such other general officers as the general assembly shall specify.