For the purposes of this article and section, the term "provisional
ballot" means a ballot that is cast by an individual but not counted
until the individual's qualifications to vote have been confirmed
by the Town Board of Supervisors of Elections.
The individual declares in a written affirmation submitted with
the provisional ballot that the individual is a registered voter and
is eligible to vote in the Town election; and
An individual eligible to cast a provisional ballot pursuant to Subsection B above shall be issued and may cast a provisional ballot at the polling place on the day of a Town election.
The individual shall complete and sign a provisional ballot application prescribed by the Town's Board of Supervisors of Elections, which shall be completed and signed by the individual seeking to vote under the penalties of perjury, and which shall be attached to or printed on a provisional ballot envelope into which the ballot shall be placed and sealed pursuant to Subsection F below; and
The election official issuing the provisional ballot shall give
the individual written information advising the individual that, and
describing how, the individual will be able to ascertain whether the
vote was counted and, if it was not counted, the reason it was not.
An oath, under the penalties of perjury, by the individual seeking
to vote stating that he or she is qualified to vote in the Town election
and that the other information provided by the individual in the application
is true and complete;
A provisional ballot shall be accompanied by instructions, prescribed
by the Town Board of Supervisors of Elections, for marking and returning
the ballot, and shall be marked "provisional ballot."
When voted, a provisional ballot shall be enclosed and sealed in
an envelope designated "provisional ballot," and which shall have
printed on it the provisional ballot application to be completed and
signed by the individual seeking to vote under the penalties of perjury.
The Town Board of Supervisors of Elections shall promptly, but in no event more than 24 hours after the polls close, or within 24 hours after the County Board of Elections Office next opens after the polls close in the event that the County Board of Elections is closed during that twenty-four-hour period, make a determination as to whether a provisional ballot that has been cast shall be counted. A provisional ballot shall be counted only if a majority of the members of the Town Board of Supervisors of Elections agree that the vote should be counted. Each individual casting a provisional ballot shall then promptly, but in no event more than the twenty-four-hour period specified above, be sent written notification of the action taken on the provisional ballot and the reasons therefor. The Board of Supervisors of Elections' determination on whether to count a provisional ballot shall be subject to further challenge as set forth in § 10-27 below after announcement of final election results.
Whether to announce election results before and/or after making determinations as to whether provisional ballots shall be counted shall be in the sound discretion of the Chairman of the Town Board of Supervisors of Elections, except that election results announced before determinations and/or counting of provisional ballots shall be preliminary only and only the final announcement of election results after the counting of all provisional ballots that the Board has determined should be counted shall trigger the forty-eight-hour periods for applications for recount or contest as set forth respectively in §§ 10-26 and 10-27.
The Town Board of Supervisors of Elections, using forms approved
by the Board, shall create and maintain a full record of provisional
ballot voting, including:
The envelope and ballot for any provisional ballot accepted
and counted, with provisional ballots accepted and counted kept segregated
from the remainder of the ballots counted;
Public access to provisional ballot applications prior to announcement
of final election results shall be prohibited. Public access after
announcement of final election results shall thereafter be permitted,
except that provisional ballots rejected by the Board of Supervisors
of Elections shall remain in their sealed envelopes.