If a candidate is requesting to use “Community Volunteer” as their proposed ballot designation, they must demonstrate that the activity/service constitutes substantial involvement of time and effort such that the activity/service is the sole, primary, main, or leading professional, vocational, or occupational endeavor of the candidate.
Acceptable Ballot Designations
California Code of Regulations §20714(c) states that the candidate’s ballot designation must be factually accurate, descriptive of the candidate's principal profession, vocation or occupation, must be neither confusing nor misleading, and must be in full and complete compliance with Elections Code and California Code of Regulations. California Code of Regulations §20714(f) states that ballot designations shall be grammatically correct, generic, and all words must be spelled correctly. Punctuation shall be limited to the use of a comma and a slash; however, a hyphen may be used if, and only if, the use of a hyphen is called for in the spelling of a word as it appears in a standard reference dictionary of the English language, which was published in the United States at any time within the 10 calendar years immediately preceding the election for which the words are counted.
Example A: High School Teacher Example B: Councilmember / Businessperson / Parent
Unacceptable Ballot Designations
California Elections Code §13107(e) states that the elections official shall not accept any ballot designation that: • would mislead the voter, • suggests an evaluation of a candidate, • abbreviates the word “retired,” • places the word “retired” following any word, • uses a word or prefix, other than “retired,” that refers to prior status, • uses the name of any political party, whether or not it has qualified for the ballot, • refers to a racial, religious, or ethnic group, or • refers to any activity prohibited by law. California Code of Regulations §20716(c) states that the elections official shall reject any proposed ballot designation which would mislead voters. In making this determination, the elections official shall determine whether there is a substantial likelihood that a reasonably prudent voter would be misled. The determination shall take into account the plain meaning of the words and the factual accuracy based upon supporting documents submitted by the candidate. California Elections Code §13107(f) states that, if elections official finds the designation to be in violation of any of the rules, the elections official shall notify the candidate, and the candidate has three days from receiving notification provide the elections official with a ballot designation that complies with the rules. If a candidate fails to provide a designation that complies with the rules within the specified timeframe, no ballot designation shall appear after the candidate's name.
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