TITLE 43

IRRIGATION DISTRICTS

CHAPTER 2

ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

43-201.  Election, term of office, nominations and qualifications. (1) Following the organization of any district, an election shall be held in accordance with section 34-106, Idaho Code, at which shall be elected one (1) director for each division of said district by the electors of the district at large.

(2)  The term of office of the directors shall, immediately after the first election following such organization, be selected by lot so that as nearly as may be one-third (1/3) of the number shall hold office for the term of one (1) year, one-third (1/3) for the term of two (2) years, and the balance for the term of three (3) years. An election shall be held in the district each year thereafter in accordance with section 34-106, Idaho Code, to elect directors to succeed those whose terms expire. Each director’s term of office shall commence on the regularly scheduled board meeting closest to the date specified for taking office in section 34-106, Idaho Code, and shall continue for a term of three (3) years and until their successors are elected and qualified. If no director is elected and qualified at the end of an incumbent director’s three (3) year term, an election shall be held at the next regular election of the irrigation district for the incumbent director’s successor to hold office for the remainder of the unexpired term. This election requirement shall apply retroactively where an incumbent director remains in office on the date of the effective date of this act because the incumbent’s successor was not elected and qualified in the 2012 election.

(3)  Every director must be a qualified elector and a resident of the division of the director whom he is to succeed in office; provided that the bylaws may, by resolution of two-thirds (2/3) of the board and adoption by two-thirds (2/3) of the electors voting in a district election conducted in accordance with the general election laws of the state applicable to irrigation districts, set forth a provision allowing a district landowner to serve as the director from the division in which the landowner owns land, if the landowner possesses all the qualifications required of electors under the general laws of the state and has resided within fifteen (15) miles of the district for a period of at least thirty (30) days prior to the election; provided further that any landowner who owns land in more than one (1) division may serve as the director only from the division nearest which he resides.

(4)  Candidates for election to the office of director of an irrigation district shall be nominated by nominating petitions on forms provided by the district. Each nominating petition shall:

(a)  Identify the name of the nominee;

(b)  Identify the office for which the nomination is made;

(c)  Identify the term for which nomination is made;

(d)  Be signed by at least six (6) electors in districts having less than one hundred (100) resident electors and by at least twelve (12) electors in districts having more than one hundred (100) resident electors; and

(e)  Be filed with the secretary of the district not less than forty (40) days or more than sixty (60) days before the date of election; and the names of the persons so nominated shall be placed upon the official ballot to be furnished by the district.

(5)  Each nominee shall subscribe to a nominee’s oath on a form provided by the irrigation district and shall submit the oath to the secretary of the district with the written nomination. The oath shall:

(a)  Identify the land the nominee owns within the district;

(b)  Provide the address of the nominee’s residence;

(c)  Certify that the nominee meets the residency and qualification requirements of subsection (3) of this section and section 43-111, Idaho Code; and

(d)  Certify that the nominee will meet such requirements on the date of election.

The secretary of the district shall verify the qualifications of each nominee and shall, no more than seven (7) days after the close of filing, certify the qualified nominees for inclusion on the election ballot. If at any time prior to the election, circumstances change so that a nominee no longer meets the qualification requirements of section 43-111, Idaho Code, the nominee shall be disqualified, shall not take office if elected, and shall immediately file with the secretary of the district a written withdrawal of his nomination for the office of director. The secretary shall not place on the election ballot the name of any candidate that does not meet the qualification requirements of section 43-111, Idaho Code.

History:

[(43-201) 1903, p. 150, part of sec. 4; R.C., sec. 2378; am. 1915, ch. 48, sec. 1, part of subd. 2378, p. 135; am. 1917, ch. 90, sec. 1, p. 313; reen. C.L., sec. 2378; C.S., sec. 4330; am. 1929, ch. 110, sec. 1, p. 178; I.C.A., sec. 42-201; am. 1957, ch. 147, sec. 1, p. 247; am. 1981, ch. 166, sec. 1, p. 292; am. 1995, ch. 125, sec. 1, p. 541; am. 1999, ch. 207, sec. 2, p. 555; am. 2006, ch. 124, sec. 1, p. 357; am. 2008, ch. 212, sec. 1, p. 668; am. 2013, ch. 133, sec. 1, p. 304; am. 2022, ch. 106, sec. 1, p. 359.]