115.430. Provisional ballots, used when, exceptions, procedure, counted when, how--rulemaking authority--free access system established--provisional ballot only used, when--no jurisdiction in state co
Provisional ballots, used when, exceptions, procedure, counted when,how--rulemaking authority--free access systemestablished--provisional ballot only used, when--no jurisdictionin state courts to extend polling hours.
115.430. 1. This section shall apply to primary and generalelections where candidates for federal or statewide offices are nominatedor elected and any election where statewide issue or issues are submittedto the voters.
2. (1) A voter claiming to be properly registered in thejurisdiction of the election authority and eligible to vote in an election,but whose eligibility at that precinct cannot be immediately establishedupon examination of the precinct register, shall be entitled to vote aprovisional ballot after providing a form of personal identificationrequired pursuant to section 115.427 or upon executing an affidavit undersection 115.427, or may vote at a central polling place as established insection 115.115 where the voter may vote his or her appropriate ballot forhis or her precinct of residence upon verification of eligibility or vote aprovisional ballot if eligibility cannot be determined. The provisionalballot provided to a voter under this section shall be the ballot providedto a resident of the voter's precinct determined by reference to theaffidavit provided for in this section. If the voter declares that thevoter is eligible to vote and the election authority determines that thevoter is eligible to vote at another polling place, the voter shall bedirected to the correct polling place or a central polling place asestablished by the election authority pursuant to subsection 5 of section115.115. If the voter refuses to go to the correct polling place or acentral polling place, the voter shall be permitted to vote a provisionalballot at the incorrect polling place, but such ballot shall not be countedif the voter was not eligible to vote at that polling place.
(2) The following steps shall be taken to establish a voter'seligibility to vote at a polling place:
(a) The election judge shall examine the precinct register asprovided in section 115.425. If the voter is registered and eligible tovote at the polling place, the voter shall receive a regular ballot;
(b) If the voter's eligibility cannot be immediately established byexamining the precinct register, the election judge shall contact theelection authority. If the election authority cannot immediately establishthat the voter is registered and eligible to vote at the polling place uponexamination of the Missouri voter registration system, or if the electionjudge is unable to make contact with the election authority immediately,the voter shall be notified that the voter is entitled to a provisionalballot.
(3) The voter shall have the duty to appear and vote at the correctpolling place. If an election judge determines that the voter is noteligible to vote at the polling place at which a voter presents himself orherself, and if the voter appears to be eligible to vote at another pollingplace, the voter shall be informed that he or she may cast a provisionalballot at the current polling place or may travel to the correct pollingplace or a central polling place, as established by the election authorityunder subsection 5 of section 115.115, where the voter may cast a regularballot or provisional ballot if the voter's eligibility still cannot bedetermined. Provisional ballots cast at a polling place shall be countedonly if the voter was eligible to vote at such polling place as provided insubsection 5 of this section.
(4) For a voter requesting an absentee ballot in person, such votershall be entitled to cast a provisional ballot when the voter's eligibilitycannot be immediately established upon examination of the precinctregisters or the Missouri voter registration system.
(5) Prior to accepting any provisional ballot at the polling place,the election judges shall determine that the information provided on theprovisional ballot envelope by the provisional voter is consistent with theidentification provided by such person under section 115.427.
3. (1) No person shall be entitled to receive a provisional ballotuntil such person has completed a provisional ballot affidavit on theprovisional ballot envelope.
(2) The secretary of state shall produce appropriate sizes ofprovisional ballot envelopes and distribute them to each election authorityaccording to their tabulating system. All provisional ballot envelopesshall be printed on a distinguishable color of paper that is different fromthe color of the regular ballot. The provisional ballot envelope shall bein the form required by subsection 4 of this section. All provisionalballots shall be marked with a conspicuous stamp or other distinguishingmark that makes them readily distinguishable from the regular ballots.
(3) Once voted, the provisional ballot shall be placed and sealed ina provisional ballot envelope.
4. The provisional ballot in its envelope shall be deposited in theballot box. The provisional ballot envelope shall be completed by thevoter for use in determining eligibility. The provisional ballot envelopespecified in this section shall contain a voter's certificate which shallbe in substantially the following form: STATE OF ......................................... COUNTY OF .....................................
I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that my name is......................................; that my date of birth is......................; that the last four digits of my Social SecurityNumber are ................................; that I am registered to votein ............................ County or City (if a City not within aCounty), Missouri; that I am a qualified voter of said County (or City notwithin a County); that I am eligible to vote at this polling place; andthat I have not voted in this election.
I understand that if the above-provided information is not correct andthe election authority determines that I am not registered and eligible tovote, my vote will not be counted. I further understand that knowinglyproviding false information is a violation of law and subjects me topossible criminal prosecution. ......................................... (Signature of Voter) ......................................... (Current Address) Subscribed and affirmed before me this ............... day of..................., 20.......... ......................................... (Signature of Election Official)
The voter may provide additional information to further assist the electionauthority in determining eligibility, including the place and date thevoter registered to vote, if known.
5. (1) Prior to counting any provisional ballot, the electionauthority shall determine if the voter is registered and eligible to voteand if the vote was properly cast. The eligibility of provisional votesshall be determined according to the requirements for a voter to cast aballot in the election as set forth in sections 115.133 and 115.135. Aprovisional voter ballot shall not be eligible to be counted until theelection authority has determined that:
(a) The voter cast such provisional ballot at a polling placeestablished for the voter or the central polling place established by theelection authority under subsection 5 of section 115.115;
(b) The individual who cast the provisional ballot is an individualregistered to vote in the respective election at the polling place wherethe ballot was cast;
(c) The voter did not otherwise vote in the same election by regularballot, absentee ballot, or otherwise; and
(d) The information on the provisional ballot envelope is found to becorrect, complete, and accurate.
(2) When the ballot boxes are delivered to the election authorityfrom the polling places, the receiving teams shall separate the provisionalballots from the rest of the ballots and place the sealed provisionalballot envelopes in a separate container. Teams of election authorityemployees or teams of election judges with each team consisting of onemember of each major political party shall photocopy each provisionalballot envelope, such photocopy to be used by the election authority todetermine provisional voter eligibility. The sealed provisional ballotenvelopes shall be placed by the team in a sealed container and shallremain therein until tabulation.
(3) To determine whether a provisional ballot is valid and entitledto be counted, the election authority shall examine its records and verifythat the provisional voter is properly registered and eligible to vote inthe election. If the provisional voter has provided information regardingthe registration agency where the provisional voter registered to vote, theelection authority shall make an inquiry of the registration agency todetermine whether the provisional voter is properly registered and eligibleto vote in the election.
(4) If the election authority determines that the provisional voteris registered and eligible to vote in the election, the election authorityshall provide documentation verifying the voter's eligibility. Suchdocumentation shall be noted on the copy of the provisional ballot envelopeand shall contain substantially the following information:
(a) The name of the provisional voter;
(b) The name of the reviewer;
(c) The date and time; and
(d) A description of evidence found that supports the voter'seligibility.
(5) The local election authority shall record on a provisional ballotacceptance/rejection list the provisional ballot identification number anda notation marking it as accepted.
(6) If the election authority determines that the provisional voteris not registered or eligible to vote in the election, the electionauthority shall provide documentation verifying the voter's ineligibility.Such documentation shall be noted on the copy of the provisional ballotenvelope and shall contain substantially the following information:
(a) The name of the provisional voter;
(b) The name of the reviewer;
(c) The date and time;
(d) A description of why the voter is ineligible.
(7) The local election authority shall record on a provisional ballotacceptance/rejection list the provisional ballot identification number andnotation marking it as rejected.
(8) If rejected, a photocopy of the envelope shall be made and usedby the election authority as a mail-in voter registration. The actualprovisional ballot envelope shall be kept as ballot material, and the copyof the envelope shall be used by the election authority for registrationrecord keeping.
6. All provisional ballots cast by voters whose eligibility has beenverified as provided in this section shall be counted in accordance withthe rules governing ballot tabulation. Provisional ballots shall not becounted until all provisional ballots are determined either eligible orineligible and all provisional ballots must be processed before theelection is certified. The provisional ballot shall be counted only if theelection authority determines that the voter is registered and eligible tovote. Provisional ballots voted in the wrong polling place shall not becounted. If the voter is not registered but is qualified to register forfuture elections, the affidavit shall be considered a mail-in applicationto register to vote pursuant to this chapter.
7. (1) After the election authority completes its review of theprovisional voter's eligibility under subsection 5 of this section, theelection authority shall deliver the provisional ballots and copies of theprovisional ballot envelopes that include eligibility information tobipartisan counting teams, which may be the board of verification, forreview and tabulation. The election authority shall maintain a record ofsuch delivery. The record shall include the number of ballots delivered toeach team and shall include a signed receipt from two judges, one from eachmajor political party. The election authority shall provide each team witha ballot box and material necessary for tabulation.
(2) If the person named on the provisional ballot affidavit is foundto have been properly qualified and registered to cast a ballot in theelection and the provisional ballot otherwise qualifies to be counted underthe provisions of this section, the envelope shall be opened, and theballot shall be placed in a ballot box to be counted.
(3) If the person named on the provisional ballot affidavit is foundnot to have been properly qualified and registered to cast a ballot in theelection or if the election authority is unable to determine such person'sright to vote, the envelope containing the provisional ballot shall not beopened, and the person's vote shall not be counted. The members of theteam shall follow the procedures set forth in subsection 5 of this sectionfor rejected provisional ballots.
(4) The votes shall be tallied and the returns made as provided insections 115.447 to 115.525 for paper ballots. After the vote on allballots assigned to a team have been counted, the ballots, ballotenvelopes, and copies of ballot envelopes with the eligibility informationprovided by the election authority shall be enclosed in sealed containersmarked "Voted provisional ballots and ballot envelopes from the electionheld ......., 20...". All rejected provisional ballots, ballot envelopes,and copies of ballot envelopes with the eligibility information provided bythe election authority shall be enclosed in sealed containers marked"Rejected provisional ballots and ballot envelopes from the election held..........................., 20...". On the outside of each voted ballotand rejected ballot container, each member of the team shall write theirname and all such containers shall be returned to the election authority.Upon receipt of the returns and ballots, the election authority shalltabulate the provisional votes.
8. Challengers and watchers, as provided by sections 115.105 and115.107, may be present during all times that the bipartisan counting teamsare reviewing or counting the provisional ballots, the provisional ballotenvelopes, or copies of the provisional ballot envelopes that includeeligibility information provided by the election authority. Challengersand watchers shall be permitted to observe the determination of theeligibility of all provisional ballots. The election authority shallnotify the county chair of each major political party of the time andlocation when bipartisan counting teams will be reviewing or counting theprovisional ballots, the provisional ballot envelopes, or the copies of theprovisional ballot envelopes that include the eligibility informationprovided by the election authority.
9. The certificate of ballot cards shall:
(1) Reflect the number of provisional envelopes delivered; and
(2) Reflect the number of sealed provisional envelopes with votedballots deposited in the ballot box.
10. In counties where the voting system does not utilize a paperballot, the election authority shall provide the appropriate provisionalballots to each polling place.
11. The secretary of state may promulgate rules for purposes ofensuring the uniform application of this section. No rule or portion of arule promulgated pursuant to the authority of this section shall becomeeffective unless it has been promulgated pursuant to chapter 536, RSMo.
12. The secretary of state shall design and provide to the electionauthorities the envelopes and forms necessary to carry out the provisionsof this section.
13. Pursuant to the Help America Vote Act of 2002, the secretary ofstate shall ensure a free access system is established, such as a toll-freenumber or an Internet web site, that any individual who casts a provisionalballot may access to discover whether the vote of that individual wascounted, and, if the vote was not counted, the reason that the vote was notcounted. At the time an individual casts a provisional ballot, theelection authority shall give the voter written information that statesthat any individual who casts a provisional ballot will be able toascertain under such free access system whether the vote was counted, andif the vote was not counted, the reason that the vote was not counted.
14. In accordance with the Help America Vote Act of 2002, anyindividual who votes in an election as a result of a court order or anyother order extending the time established for closing the polls in section115.407 may vote only by using a provisional ballot, and such provisionalballot shall be separated and held apart from other provisional ballotscast by those not affected by the order. Such ballots shall not be counteduntil such time as the ballots are determined to be valid. No state courtshall have jurisdiction to extend the polling hours established by law,including section 115.407.
(L. 2002 S.B. 675 § 1, A.L. 2003 H.B. 511, A.L. 2006 S.B. 1014 & 730)