Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives, in General Assembly convened, Sec. 1. that the Town of Haddam be divided into districts for the purpose of accommodating the electors of said town in voting at the Electors' meetings therein, to wit: The said Town is divided into three districts, as follows: That portion of said Town comprising the territory on the westerly side of the Connecticut River between the Town of Chester and Killingworth, and a direct line commencing at the angle of the line between Haddam and Killingworth, and running to the Connecticut River crossing the Middletown Turnpike and road at a point six rods easterly of the old house of James C. Walkley, shall be and remain the First District. So much of said Town lying westerly of said First District, and bounded southerly and westerly by the Towns of Killingworth, Durham and Middletown, shall be and remain the Second District. So much of said Town as lies on the Northeasterly side of the Connecticut River, and between said river and the towns of Chatham and East Haddam, called Haddam Neck, shall be and remain the Third District.
The First Registrars of said Town of Haddam shall be elected on the First Monday of October next. There shall also be chosen at said meeting, and annually thereafter, three electors of said Town, whose duty it shall be to preside whenever required by this act, at the several places of voting in said district, and who shall have all the powers and perform all the duties within their respective districts, of presiding officers at Electors' meetings, except as herein otherwise provided; said Electors so chosen as aforesaid, to be residents of the Districts wherein they are respectively to preside.
The Constables of said Town, in warning the said Elector's meeting herein provided for, shall, in addition to the warning now required by law give notice therein that ballot boxes will be opened in the several districts aforesaid, for the reception of the votes of the electors of said Town residing in said district, according to the provisions of this act.
At the annual Electors' meetings for State officers, and other officers required by law to be voted for at such meetings, and at the Electors' meetings for the election of electors of President and Vice President of the United States, the Electors of said town shall give in their ballots for such officers as are required by law to be balloted for at such meetings, in the several districts where the Electors respectively reside.
The Selectmen of said town shall provide suitable and convenient places for voting at such Electors' meetings in each of such districts; and in the Second District the place for voting shall be either in the second school district or in the thirteenth school district of said town, and shall give notice thereof at least one week before the day of such meetings; and they shall provide, for the use of said electors at said meetings, the necessary ballot boxes for the purpose of receiving the votes of the Electors in said several districts, in the same manner as is now provided by law.
Immediately after the ballot boxes are closed, the presiding officer in the Second and Third Districts of said town shall, with the aid of the Registrars, and such other persons as they may select, proceed in their respective districts, to sort and count the ballots which have been given in said districts; and said presiding officers shall each make a true certificate of all the ballots given for the respective officers in said districts and shall forthwith transmit such certificate, together with the ballots received, and the ballot boxes containing the same, and the list of voters as checked, to the presiding officer in the First District, after having ascertained the result of the ballots in the whole town, as given in the several districts thereof, shall declare the same in open meeting; and said presiding officer in the First District of said town shall make out the list of votes given in said town, and make return thereof in the manner now prescribed by law for presiding officers of Elector's meetings.
That at each annual Town Meeting held for the choice of town officers in said Town of Haddam, the legal voters of said town shall choose, by general ticket, two electors residing in each voting district of said town, to be registrars of voters for the year ensuing for their respective districts, but no person shall voter for more than one of said registrars for each of said voting districts, and the two persons having the highest number of votes for registrars of each district shall be declared elected; and said registrars shall, at least fourteen days before the day of holding any election for the choice of State officers, or for the choice of electors for President and Vice President of the United States, prepare a list as nearly perfect as practicable, of the names of all the electors who are entitled to vote at the ensuing election in the districts for which said registrars are respectively elected; which names shall be alphabetically arranged, and opposite the name of each person in said list the name of the district in which he resides shall be written; and said lists shall be published by said Registrars in a convenient form, and circulated by them in their respective election districts; and said registrars shall, in said printed or written lists, give notice of the time when, and the places where, they will hold at least two meetings within the twelve days next following the publication of said lists of voters, for the purpose of making any proper corrections by additions, erasures, or alterations, in said lists, and at least four days before the day of holding either of said elections, said registrars shall publish corrected lists of all those who are already entitled to vote at either of said elections, and those who claim to said registrars that they shall be legally entitled to become voters at the ensuing election, and who claim that their legal qualifications will mature subsequently to the completion of said corrected lists, which last list shall be under the title "to be made", and they shall give a copy of such corrected lists to any elector asking for the same, and shall deposit a certified copy of the same in the Town Clerk's office.
It shall be the duty of each registrar immediately after his election, to appoint a deputy registrar, whose name and appointment shall be deposited with the Town Clerk where said registrar resides, and shall be by said Town Clerk recorded on the Town Records at the end of the record of the Town Meeting at which said registrar was elected, and in case said deputy registrars shall from any cause be unable or unwilling to perform the duties of his office, then the registrar shall remove said deputy registrar and appoint another in his place, which said removal and new appointment shall be duly recorded on the town records by the Town Clerk.
It shall be the duty of the deputy registrar to act in preparing the registry list only in case of the inability of the registrar to perfect the same; and, in case of the resignation or death of the registrar then said deputy registrar shall become the registrar, and shall immediately appoint another person to the office of deputy registrar, which said appointment shall be duly recorded by the Town Clerk.
The registrars and deputy registrars shall before entering upon the duties of their office, take the oath by law provided for executive officers, and lodge a certificate of the fact with the Town Clerk, who shall keep the same on file in his office.
The registrars and their deputies shall have the right to administer oaths or affirmations whenever in the discharge of any of the duties of their office they or either of them shall deem it necessary or proper to take the testimony of any person whatsoever, regarding the right of any person to vote or to be made a voter. The form of the oath to be administered by the registrars and their deputies shall be as follows: You solemnly swear that concerning the matter now in question you will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God, and the said registrar and their deputies shall keep a record of the names and residence and testimony of all persons to whom said oath or affirmation was administered, and any person who shall swear falsely before said registrars or their deputies, shall be deemed to be guilty of the crime of perjury, and punished with the penalty thereof.
It shall be the duty of the Registrars to be at the ballot boxes in their respective voting districts in each of the elections for state officers and presidential electors in said town held during the year for which they were elected, to hear and decide any questions pertaining to them, which may arise touching the right of any person to vote who may offer to vote at either of said elections, and if any person whose name is not on the registry list shall vote, or attempt to vote at either of the elections named in this act, on the name of any other person whose name is on said list, he shall pay a fine of one hundred dollars, and be imprisoned one year in the county jail.
If any person other than the Registrars shall make any alterations by additions, erasures, or otherwise, in the lists prepared by said registrars, or if the presiding officer in any of said districts having charge of the ballot box in any of said voting districts shall allow any person to deposit his vote herein, whose name is not on the registry list, without the assent of both of the Registrars of said voting district, he shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding three months, or by such fine and imprisonment both; and it shall be the duty of either of the grand jurors of said town, and also the right of the person aggrieved, or either of the registrars of said town, to forthwith prosecute any violation of this section.
The compensation of Registrars and Deputy Registrars shall be fixed by the Selectmen of said Town of Haddam, and all expenses incurred by the Registrars for printing lists of voters, and all other necessary expenses incurred by them in the discharge of their duties, shall be paid by the Treasurer of said town.
The Selectmen and Town Clerk of said town shall meet at such convenient place therein as they may appoint, on the Monday of the third week preceding the week on which the annual state election or the election for the choice of electors of president and vice-president of the United States shall be held, for the purpose of deciding upon all applications to be admitted to the privileges of an elector, and shall continue in session for that purpose from nine o'clock in the forenoon, till five o'clock in the afternoon of said day, if so long a time be necessary, and may adjourn said meetings from time to time, and place to place, as may be necessary, until the Thursday of the following week, at nine o'clock in the forenoon, when they shall, at five o'clock in the afternoon of said Thursday, adjourn to Tuesday of the week preceding the day of election, for the purpose only of hearing and deciding upon all appeals that may be made from the Registrars, but any appeal that can be made at that time shall not be allowed to be made after that day, and no appeal shall be heard by the Selectmen on the day of election that might have been made prior to said last preceding meeting of the Selectmen; and said Selectmen shall, on said Tuesday, adjourn to the hour of seven o'clock on the morning of Election Day, and shall then continue in session for the admission of electors for two hours and no longer: provided, that at said last session they shall not admit any person to the privileges of an elector except those whose names are on the corrected registry lists as made out by the Registrars under the title, "To be made", certified copies of which list shall be furnished by said Registrars to said Selectmen.
It shall be the duty of the Town Clerk of said town to give to each of the persons who may be admitted to the privileges of an elector at said last mentioned meeting of the Selectmen and Town Clerk, a certificate of his admission, which shall contain the name and number of the voting district wherein such person resides, and shall be delivered to the Registrars of said district, and the name and residence of such person shall be entered upon the registry list before such person shall cast his ballot therein.
When any person exhibits to the Board of Selectmen and Town Clerk, papers of naturalization issued to him in due form by a court having jurisdiction, if said board is satisfied of the genuineness of such papers, and that they were issued to the persons presenting them, they shall approve them by a written endorsement thereon, with the date thereof, signed by the Town Clerk of said town, and if such applicant shall, have the other legal qualifications for an elector, they shall admit him in due form, and cause his name to be entered on said list.
The ballot boxes at each of the elections herein provided for, except town meetings, shall be opened at nine o'clock in the forenoon, and in the first district closed at five o'clock, and in the second and third districts closed at four o'clock in the afternoon.
If any officer named in this act shall, without just or reasonable cause, refuse or neglect to discharge any of the duties herein prescribed, he shall, on conviction, be punished by a fine of three hundred dollars; or, if any of the officers named in this act shall willfully violate any of the provisions of this act, or if the Town Clerk of said town shall give a false certificate to any person, such officer or Town Clerk shall be punished by a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars, and by imprisonment in the common jail six months.
All acts and part of acts inconsistent therewith, are hereby repealed.