19:60-8 Positions on ballot determined by drawing.

8. The county clerk shall conduct the ballot draw for candidates for school board member in those school districts that hold November elections, in accordance with the procedures set forth in R.S.19:14-12. In those school districts that elect school board members at the annual April school election, the ballot draw shall be conducted as follows:

a. The drawing shall be done by the secretary of the board of education seven working days following the last day for filing a petition for the nomination of such a candidate. The person making the drawing shall make public announcement at the drawing of each name, the order in which the name is drawn and the term of office for which the drawing is made.

b. A separate drawing shall be made for each full term and for each unexpired term, respectively. The names of the several candidates for whom petitions have been filed for each of the terms shall be written upon paper slips which shall be placed in capsules of the same size, shape, color and substance and then placed in a covered box with an aperture in the top large enough to admit a person's hand and to allow the capsules to be drawn therefrom. The box shall be turned and shaken thoroughly to mix the capsules and the capsules shall be withdrawn one at a time.

c. Where there is more than one person to be elected for a given term of office, the position of the names on the ballots for each term of office shall be determined as above described. The name of the candidate for each term of office first drawn from the box shall be printed directly below the proper term for which the person was nominated and the name of the candidate next drawn shall be printed next in order, and so on, until the last name shall be drawn from the box.

d. Two or more candidates for any given term of office may notify the secretary of the board in writing or the county clerk if the annual school election is to be held in November, at least seven days before the drawing date that they wish to have their names with their chosen designation, if any, bracketed together, so that their names and designation, if any, are selected as a group at the drawing and their names and designation are printed together on the ballot. The candidates shall determine among themselves the order in which their names are to appear within the bracket prior to so notifying the secretary.

The secretary of the board of education shall, within two days following the drawing, certify to the county clerk the results of the drawing.

L.1995, c.278, s.8; amended 2012, c.78, s.7; 2018, c.20, s.3.