115.469. Write-in votes, when counted--procedure to follow.
Write-in votes, when counted--procedure to follow.
115.469. 1. If authorized by the election authority, theelection judges at any polling place using an electronic votingsystem may read and record write-in votes before the close of thepolls and may send other voted ballots to the counting place. Ifso authorized, the election judges shall use one ballot box forthe deposit of ballots during the first five hours of voting.Between eleven o'clock in the morning and twelve noon, thereceiving judges shall deliver the ballot box to the counting andrecording judges, who shall give the receiving judges a secondempty ballot box. The second ballot box shall be shown to beempty and locked in the manner provided in section 115.423. Thesecond ballot box shall not be opened or removed from public viewfrom the time it is shown to be empty until the time the pollsclose. The ballot box containing the voted ballots shall betaken to a private area within the polling place, and thewrite-in votes shall be read and recorded in the manner providedin section 115.467.
2. If early counting of write-in votes is begun pursuant tothis section, the election judges shall, after counting andrecording all proper write-in votes, separate all ballot cards,except defective ballot cards, from the write-in forms if any.The ballots which do not have write-in votes shall then be sentto the counting place in the same manner as ballots are sent uponthe close of the polls. The election judges shall enclose theballot cards, the envelope marked "DEFECTIVE BALLOTS", and allwrite-in forms containing proper votes, in a container designatedby the election authority. The container shall be securelysealed in such a manner that if the container is opened, the sealwill be broken beyond repair. On the outside of the container,the location of the polling place and the date of the electionshall be printed. After sealing, the container shall be closelywatched by the election judges until it is delivered to thecounting location.
3. If early counting of write-in votes is begun pursuant tothis section, the election authority shall appoint a team ofemployees or election judges who shall, between the hours ofeleven o'clock in the morning and three o'clock in the afternoon,receive the ballot container from the election judges at thepolling place and immediately deliver it to the countinglocation. Each team appointed pursuant to this subsection shallconsist of two members, one from each major political party. Ifany ballot container is not sealed when it is delivered to thecounting location, the election official receiving the containershall make a statement of the fact which includes the location ofthe polling place and the date of the election printed on thecontainer and the reason the container is not sealed, if known.
4. After delivery to the counting location, any ballot whichis damaged and cannot be properly counted by the automatictabulating equipment may be handcounted or duplicated in themanner provided in subsection 3 of section 115.477.
5. After delivery to the counting location, the proper voteson each ballot card may be transferred to magnetic tapes. Underno circumstances shall any such tape be read or interpreted untilafter the time fixed by law for the close of the polls and thenonly in the manner provided in section 115.477.
6. Write-in ballots may also be counted as provided insection 115.45l.
(L. 1977 H.B. 101 § 12.053, A.L. 1979 S.B. 275, A.L. 1982 S.B. 526)Effective 5-20-82