New Hampshire Revised Statutes
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 656:5 (2026)
Party Columns
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656:5 Party Columns. –
I. The names of all candidates nominated in accordance with the election laws shall be arranged upon the state general election ballot in successive party columns. Each separate column shall contain the names of the candidates of one party; except that, if only a part of a full list of candidates is nominated by a political party, 2 or more such lists may be arranged whenever practicable in the same column. The party columns that list the names of candidates for offices that elect more than one person shall stagger the names of the candidates so that they do not line up evenly in a horizontal direction. The left-most column shall begin one line below the column to its right. The secretary of state shall determine the vertical location of any additional columns that may appear on the ballot.
II. The position of party columns shall be rotated on the ballots used so that each party column shall appear thereon, to the extent practicable, an approximately equal number of times in the first, last, and each intermediate column position across the state, without requiring more than one unique column order or ballot format for each town, ward, or unincorporated place. Before the close of the period during which a person may accept the nomination of a party committee pursuant to RSA 655:32, the secretary of state shall develop as many generic column rotation plans for use in general elections as he or she might reasonably expect to be needed for different possible numbers of party columns on the general election ballot. If the number of party columns expected on the general election ballot changes such that one or more additional generic column rotation plans are needed, the secretary of state shall, from time to time, prepare such additional plans as are needed for any general election.
III. Party column rotation on the general election ballot shall be determined by randomly selecting state senate districts for each column required to be on the ballot. Senate district numbers 1 through 24 reflecting each of the 24 senate districts shall be randomly drawn for each party column. If there are not enough senate districts left to be evenly divided by the number of columns, the secretary of state shall assign the towns and city wards of the remaining senate districts to the party columns so as to achieve as equal a population representation for each party column as is reasonably possible.
IV. Immediately following the close of the period during which a person may accept the nomination of a party committee pursuant to RSA 655:32, the secretary of state or designee shall publicly select by lot the actual party columns to be positioned according to the generic column rotation plan established pursuant to paragraphs II and III.
I. The names of all candidates nominated in accordance with the election laws shall be arranged upon the state general election ballot in successive party columns. Each separate column shall contain the names of the candidates of one party; except that, if only a part of a full list of candidates is nominated by a political party, 2 or more such lists may be arranged whenever practicable in the same column. The party columns that list the names of candidates for offices that elect more than one person shall stagger the names of the candidates so that they do not line up evenly in a horizontal direction. The left-most column shall begin one line below the column to its right. The secretary of state shall determine the vertical location of any additional columns that may appear on the ballot.
II. The position of party columns shall be rotated on the ballots used so that each party column shall appear thereon, to the extent practicable, an approximately equal number of times in the first, last, and each intermediate column position across the state, without requiring more than one unique column order or ballot format for each town, ward, or unincorporated place. Before the close of the period during which a person may accept the nomination of a party committee pursuant to RSA 655:32, the secretary of state shall develop as many generic column rotation plans for use in general elections as he or she might reasonably expect to be needed for different possible numbers of party columns on the general election ballot. If the number of party columns expected on the general election ballot changes such that one or more additional generic column rotation plans are needed, the secretary of state shall, from time to time, prepare such additional plans as are needed for any general election.
III. Party column rotation on the general election ballot shall be determined by randomly selecting state senate districts for each column required to be on the ballot. Senate district numbers 1 through 24 reflecting each of the 24 senate districts shall be randomly drawn for each party column. If there are not enough senate districts left to be evenly divided by the number of columns, the secretary of state shall assign the towns and city wards of the remaining senate districts to the party columns so as to achieve as equal a population representation for each party column as is reasonably possible.
IV. Immediately following the close of the period during which a person may accept the nomination of a party committee pursuant to RSA 655:32, the secretary of state or designee shall publicly select by lot the actual party columns to be positioned according to the generic column rotation plan established pursuant to paragraphs II and III.
Source. 1979, 436:1. 1994, 309:1; 381:7. 1998, 356:3. 1999, 202:1. 2000, 226:1. 2001, 231:9. 2004, 201:1. 2007, 141:1. 2010, 330:10, eff. Jan. 1, 2011. 2022, 252:1, eff. Aug. 23, 2022.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 8
cases, 1997–2019 · leading case: Akins v. Sec'y of State, 904 A.2d 702 (N.H. 2006).
Akins v. Sec'y of State, 904 A.2d 702 (N.H. 2006). “The petitioners alleged that they were disadvantaged in the 2004 New Hampshire general election by the provisions of RSA 656:5 and requested that the trial court mandate a *68 method of randomly selecting both party order and candidate order on the ballot.”
Libertarian Party of New Hampshire v. Gardner, 638 F.3d 6 (1st Cir. 2011). “Although a political organization's entitlement to a column is not clearly stated in the law, Scanlan's affidavit is consistent with the statutory provision referring to "[t]he names of the candidates to be listed on the state general election ballot under the political…”
Rep. Burling v. Chandler, 804 A.2d 471 (N.H. 2002). “Although we are not called upon, today, to determine the effect of RSA 656:5 (Supp. 2001), requiring majority party candidates for the house to be listed first on all ballots, the number and size of multi-member districts in this plan may justify the concern about the statute…”
Libertarian Party of New Hampshire v. Gardner, 759 F. Supp. 2d 215 (D.N.H. 2010). “See RSA 652:11 & 655:40-a (providing access to the ballot for political organizations) and RSA 656:5 (allowing recognized parties their own column on the ballot to list their candidates).”
Green Party v. Hargett, 953 F. Supp. 2d 816 (M.D. Tenn. 2013). “2d 702, 706 (2006) (“By establishing a system that grants the primacy effect to the party that received the most votes in the prior election, RSA 656:5 denies candidates of minority parties an equal opportunity to enjoy the advantages of the primacy effect, and, thus, an equal…”
Jacobson v. Lee (N.D. Fla. 2019). “267 ; N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 656:5 (II); N.J. Stat.”
Gilmore v. NH Sec'y of State (D.N.H. 1997). “the New Hampshire ballot is formatted according to a traditional and familiar organizing principle — party affiliation; the ballot is structured logically and clearly by office and candidates’ names; and the ballot includes recognized symbols of party affiliation to aid voter…”
Libertarian Party NH v. Gardner (D.N.H. 2010). “3 Though plaintiffs challenge the provisions that give a “party” different treatment on the ballot than the Libertarian Party received, they concede that the statutory definition of 3 See RSA 652:11 & 655:40-a (providing access to the ballot for political organizations) and RSA…”
N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 656:5(1): 1 case
Libertarian Party of New Hampshire v. Gardner, 638 F.3d 6 (1st Cir. 2011). “Although a political organization's entitlement to a column is not clearly stated in the law, Scanlan's affidavit is consistent with the statutory provision referring to "[t]he names of the candidates to be listed on the state general election ballot under the political…”
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