Section 5151 Of Chapter 2.5. Parties Qualified To Participate In The Presidential General Election From California Elections Code >> Division 5. >> Chapter 2.5.
5151
. A party is qualified to participate in a presidential general
election under any of the following conditions:
(a) The party qualified to participate and participated in the
presidential primary election preceding the presidential general
election pursuant to Section 5100.
(b) (1) At the last preceding gubernatorial primary election, the
sum of the votes cast for all of the candidates for an office voted
on throughout the state who disclosed a preference for that party on
the ballot was at least 2 percent of the entire vote of the state for
that office.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a party may inform the
Secretary of State that it declines to have the votes cast for any
candidate who has disclosed that party as his or her party preference
on the ballot counted toward the 2-percent qualification threshold.
If the party wishes to have votes for any candidate not counted in
support of its qualification under paragraph (1), the party shall
notify the secretary in writing of that candidate's name by the
seventh day prior to the gubernatorial primary election.
(c) If on or before the 102nd day before a presidential general
election, it appears to the Secretary of State, as a result of
examining and totaling the statement of voters and their declared
political preference transmitted to him or her by the county
elections officials, that voters equal in number to at least 0.33
percent of the total number of voters registered on the 123rd day
before the presidential general election have declared their
preference for that party.
(d) On or before the 135th day before a presidential general
election, there is filed with the Secretary of State a petition
signed by voters, equal in number to at least 10 percent of the
entire vote of the state at the last preceding gubernatorial
election, declaring that they represent a proposed party, the name of
which shall be stated in the petition, which proposed party those
voters desire to have participate in that presidential general
election. This petition shall be circulated, signed, and verified,
and the signatures of the voters on it shall be certified to and
transmitted to the Secretary of State by the county elections
officials substantially as provided for initiative petitions. Each
page of the petition shall bear a caption in 18-point boldface type,
which caption shall be the name of the proposed party followed by the
words "Petition to participate in the presidential general election."