California 2013-2014 Regular Session Status: In Committee

SB 638 — Election crimes: misrepresentation by candidates.

Last action — Returned to Secretary of Senate pursuant to Joint Rule 56.

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed Assembly
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 2013-2014 Regular Session. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a person who, with intent to mislead the voters in connection with his or her campaign for nomination or election to a public office or in connection with the campaign of another person for nomination or election to a public office, assumes, pretends, or implies, by his or her statements or conduct, that he or she is the incumbent of a public office, or that he or she has been acting in the capacity of a public officer, when that is not the case. This bill, in addition, would make it a misdemeanor for an individual to become, or induce another individual to become, a candidate for a local or state elective office under a name that is identical to, or very similar to, another candidate for that same office, with the sole intent of deliberately misleading voters who desire to vote for that other candidate, and otherwise would vote for that other candidate, but for confusion caused by the similarity in names. The bill also would authorize a candidate for a local or state office election in which this conduct occurs to seek a writ of mandate or an injunction requiring the removal of the offending candidate from the ballot. The bill would make the authority to issue a peremptory writ of mandate or injunction contingent upon clear and convincing proof that the specified conduct has occurred. By creating a new crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Bill Text

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Action History

  1. Returned to Secretary of Senate pursuant to Joint Rule 56.

  2. Referred to Coms. on E. & C.A. and RLS.

  3. Read first time.

  4. From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 26.

  5. Introduced. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.

Sponsors

  • Lara · Primary

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 121 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

  • Lara

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (121)

121 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 121 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

elections
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does SB 638 do?
Existing law makes it a misdemeanor for a person who, with intent to mislead the voters in connection with his or her campaign for nomination or election to a public office or in connection with the campaign of another person for nomination or election to a public office, assumes, pretends, or implies, by his or her statements or conduct, that he or she is the incumbent of a public office, or that he or she has been acting in the capacity of a public officer, when that is not the case. This bill, in addition, would make it a misdemeanor for an individual to become, or induce another individual to become, a candidate for a local or state elective office under a name that is identical to, or very similar to, another candidate for that same office, with the sole intent of deliberately misleading voters who desire to vote for that other candidate, and otherwise would vote for that other candidate, but for confusion caused by the similarity in names. The bill also would authorize a candidate for a local or state office election in which this conduct occurs to seek a writ of mandate or an injunction requiring the removal of the offending candidate from the ballot. The bill would make the authority to issue a peremptory writ of mandate or injunction contingent upon clear and convincing proof that the specified conduct has occurred. By creating a new crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Who sponsors SB 638?
SB 638 is sponsored by Lara.
What is the current status of SB 638?
This bill died with 2013-2014 Regular Session. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track SB 638?
Track SB 638 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

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