§ 9-436 — Use, number and adjustment of voting tabulators; voting booths; conditions and rules for use of paper ballots; qualification, appointment and training of primary officials.

Connecticut § 9-436

• Jurisdiction: Connecticut
• Title 9: Elections
• Ch. 153: Nominations and Political Parties

Text

(a) Voting tabulators shall be used at each primary, provided, (1) if, because of the number of offices and positions to be voted upon at a primary, there is an insufficient number of vertical columns on any ballot to be used in a municipality, the vote in such municipality at such primary for such offices or positions as the Secretary of the State determines shall be taken by paper ballots, and (2) if, because of the number of candidates for any office or position to be voted upon at a primary, there is an insufficient number of horizontal rows with respect to such office or position on any ballot to be used in the municipality, the vote in such municipality at such primary for such office or position shall be taken by paper ballots. More than one voting tabulator may be used in any voting district if the registrar so prescribes. The registrar shall furnish a number of voting booths sufficient to provide a voting booth for each five hundred or fraction of five hundred electors eligible to vote at such primary in the municipality or voting district, as the case may be, and other necessary equipment. In each polling place in which a party has authorized unaffiliated electors, pursuant to section 9-431, to vote for some but not all offices to be contested at the primary, a separate voting tabulator shall be used for such unaffiliated electors and the registrar shall separately furnish one voting booth for each five hundred or fraction of five hundred enrolled party members and one voting booth for each five hundred or fraction of five hundred unaffiliated electors authorized to vote at such primary in such district. In determining such number of electors, enrolled party members or unaffiliated electors, the registrar shall not count the names on the enrollment or registry lists of seventy-five per cent of such electors, unaffiliated electors or enrolled party members who reside in institutions, as defined in section 9-159q. The registrar may provide more than the minimum number of voting booths required by this section. (b) Each tabulator shall be so arranged that the elector may vote for as many persons for nomination or election to each office or position as there are persons to be nominated or elected, as the case may be, and no more, and so that the elector may vote for individual candidates; provided the vote for justices of the peace shall be by slate, as provided in section 9-443 . (c) The registrar shall appoint from among the enrolled party members in the state, to serve in each polling place, the primary polling place officials, who shall consist of (1) one moderator, (2) at least one but not more than two official checkers, (3) at least one but not more than two ballot clerks, (4) at least one but not more than two voting tabulator tenders for each tabulator in use at such primary, and (5) in towns with two or more voting districts, at least one but not more than two assistant registrars, provided (A) in the case of either a municipality or a political subdivision holding a primary, if no enrolled party member can be found or no such person consents to serve as a moderator, the registrar may appoint any elector who resides in the state and is a certified moderator to be moderator, (B) in the case of a political subdivision holding a primary, if an insufficient number of enrolled party members who reside in the state consent to serve as checkers, voting tabulator tenders or assistant registrars, the registrar may appoint any elector who resides in the state to be a checker, voting tabulator tender or assistant registrar, and (C) in the case of either a municipality or a political subdivision holding more than one primary on the same day for different political parties, one certified moderator may serve as moderator for both primaries, if the registrars of voters so agree. If unaffiliated electors are authorized under section 9-431 to vote for some but not all of the offices to be contested at the primary, the registrar shall appoint two additional checkers to check the list of unaffiliated electors who are authorized to vote on the separate tabulators. If unaffiliated electors are authorized under section 9-431 to vote in the primary of either of two parties in the same polling place, whether for some or for all offices to be contested at the primary, each such registrar shall appoint two additional checkers to check the list of unaffiliated electors who are authorized to vote in either such primary. (d) The registrar shall designate one of the moderators so appointed by the registrar to be head moderator or shall appoint as head moderator an elector who is not also moderator of a polling place and who shall be deemed a primary official. The registrar may also appoint a deputy head moderator to assist the head moderator in the performance of the head moderator's duties. A deputy head moderator shall also be deemed to be a primary official. Each registrar's appointments of primary polling place officials, except moderators of polling places, and of designees to conduct supervised voting of absentee ballots pursuant to sections 9-159q and 9-159r shall be divided equally, as nearly as may be, between designees of the party-endorsed candidates and designees of one or more of the contestants, provided, if a party-endorsed candidate is a member of a party other than the one holding the primary, such primary officials shall be enrolled party members of the party holding the primary. Names of designees and alternate designees for such positions shall be submitted in writing by party-endorsed candidates and contestants to the registrar not later than twenty-one days before the primary and, if such lists are not so presented, all such appointments shall be made by the registrar but in the above-mentioned proportion. The registrar shall notify all such candidates and contestants of their right to submit a list of designees under this section. The registrars shall train each prospective primary poll worker to perform in the poll worker's designated position. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the registrar shall appoint as moderators only persons who are certified to serve as moderators or alternate moderators pursuant to section 9-229 , unless there is an insufficient number of such persons who are enrolled members of the registrar's party holding the primary, in which case the registrar may appoint a new moderator in accordance with section 9-229 , but only to the extent of such insufficiency. Primary central counting moderators and absentee ballot counters shall also be deemed primary officials. No primary official shall perform services for any candidate at the primary on primary day. (e) If paper ballots are required for the vote on any office or position in a municipality, the clerk of the municipality, in consultation with the registrars of voters, shall print a paper ballot for use in such primary for nomination to such office or election to such position. The Secretary of the State shall prescribe the form of such paper ballot. The Secretary of the State may prescribe general rules for the use of paper ballots in any primary, including the duties of officials at the polls with regard to the same, the marking of the same and the counting of the same. The procedure to be followed when paper ballots are so used shall conform, as nearly as may be, to the procedure applicable to voting tabulators provided in this chapter and to the law governing the use of paper ballots in regular elections and such rules shall have the force and effect of law. Chapter 54 shall not apply to rules made pursuant to this section. (f) The provisions of section 9-258 concerning additional lines of electors at a polling place, and of section 9-258a concerning two shifts of officials at a polling place, shall apply to a primary. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, the provisions of the general statutes relating to the use of voting tabulators at regular elections shall apply as nearly as may be to the use of voting tabulators at primaries.

Legislative History

(June, 1955, S. 600d; November, 1955, S. N83; 1957, P.A. 518, S. 29; 1958 Rev., S. 9-111; 1963, P.A. 17, S. 62; 129; 1971, P.A. 836, S. 5; P.A. 82-426, S. 11, 14; 82-472, S. 29, 183; P.A. 83-391, S. 19, 24; P.A. 84-319, S. 47, 49; P.A. 85-592, S. 11; P.A. 87-382, S. 45, 55; 87-509, S. 15, 24; P.A. 89-297, S. 6, 18; P.A. 90-156, S. 7, 11; P.A. 93-384, S. 4, 28; P.A. 94-203, S. 4, 12; P.A. 95-177, S. 5, 7; P.A. 96-180, S. 14, 166; 96-119, S. 7, 14; P.A. 97-47, S. 53; P.A. 98-67, S. 3, 10; P.A. 03-241, S. 43, 58; P.A. 11-20, S. 27; P.A. 12-49, S. 1; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 21-2, S. 114.) History: 1963 acts restated previous provisions and placed time limit on submission of designees for primary officials to registrar; 1971 act provided for designation of a head moderator by the registrar; P.A. 82-426 amended section to provide that names of designees and alternates for primary moderator are to be submitted 21 days before primary and to require appointment of only certified moderators unless the number of such persons is insufficient; P.A. 82-472 substituted reference to Ch. 54 for obsolete reference to repealed Secs. 4-41 to 4-50; P.A. 83-391 amended section to reduce number of voting machines and officials required, to provide that mechanics need not be electors of any town and to provide that provisions of Secs. 9-258 and 9-258a concerning additional lines of electors and shifts of officials shall apply to primaries and to prohibit primary officials from performing services for any candidate on the day of the primary; P.A. 84-319 added requirement that registrar notify candidates and contestants of their right to submit list of designees for election official positions; P.A. 85-592 authorized registrars to appoint a deputy head moderator who shall be deemed a primary official; P.A. 87-382 repealed provision re locking of party levers; P.A. 87-509 substituted “electors eligible to vote at such primary” for “enrolled party members whose names are on the last-completed enrollment list”, established requirement for separate voting machines for unaffiliated electors in each polling place in which a party authorizes unaffiliated electors to vote for some but not all offices to be contested at primary, required registrar to appoint at least one assistant registrar as a primary polling place official in a town with two or more voting districts, required appointment of two additional checkers if unaffiliated electors authorized to vote for some but not all offices to be contested at primary and required appointment of two additional checkers if unaffiliated electors authorized to vote in primary of either of two parties in same polling place; P.A. 89-297 allowed registrar, in case of a political subdivision holding a primary, to appoint enrolled party members residing elsewhere in municipality to serve as moderator, checker, challenger or voting machine tender, when necessary; P.A. 90-156 authorized registrar to appoint any enrolled party member residing in municipality to be an assistant registrar if insufficient number of enrolled party members residing in political subdivision holding primary consent to be assistant registrars; P.A. 93-384 renumbered Subdivs. and inserted new Subdivs. (2) and (4) authorizing appointment of any resident elector when enrolled party members cannot be found or do not consent to serve as primary officials, effective June 29, 1993; P.A. 94-203 required registrars to exclude 75% of names of electors, enrolled party members or unaffiliated electors residing in institutions when calculating required number of voting machines, effective July 1, 1994; P.A. 95-177 divided section into Subsecs., divided Subsec. (a) into Subdivs., made technical changes, amended Subsec. (e) by adding provision re designees to conduct supervised voting, and moved provisions re additional lines, shifts of officials and statutes re voting machines applying at primaries to Subsec. (g), effective January 1, 1996; P.A. 96-119, effective May 24, 1996, and P.A. 96-180, effective June 3, 1996, both deleted provision in Subsec. (g) specifying that Chapter 54 is inapplicable to rules made under this section; P.A. 97-47 amended Subsec. (e) by changing the reference to Secs. 9-150q and 9-150r to Secs. 9-159q and 9-159r, respectively; P.A. 98-67 amended Subsec. (e) to exempt polling place moderators from requirement that polling place officials be divided between designees of candidates, effective July 1, 1998; P.A. 03-241 amended Subsec. (a) by substituting “twenty-four hundred” for “twelve hundred” and amended Subsec. (c) by substituting “justices of the peace” for “delegates to conventions”, effective January 1, 2004, and applicable to primaries and elections held on or after that date; P.A. 11-20 replaced references to voting machines or machines with references to voting tabulators, ballots or voting booths throughout, amended Subsec. (a) by changing required number of booths to one for each 500 or fraction of 500 electors or unaffiliated electors, deleted former Subsec. (b) re mechanics, redesignated existing Subsecs. (c) to (g) as Subsecs. (b) to (f), amended Subsec. (c) by adding provisions re ballot clerks and maximum number of official checkers and tabulator tenders and by adding Subdiv. (5) re holding of more than one primary, amended Subsec. (d) by deleting reference to mechanics, and amended Subsec. (e) by adding provision re consultation with registrars of voters, effective May 24, 2011; P.A. 12-49 amended Subsec. (c) by replacing provisions re appointment of party members in the municipality or political subdivision with provisions re appointment of party members in the state, deleting former Subdiv. (1) re appointment in the case of a political subdivision holding a primary and former Subdiv. (4) re appointment when sufficient number of enrolled party members cannot be found or will not serve, redesignating existing Subdivs. (2), (3), and (5) as Subdivs. (1), (2) and (3), replacing “enrolled party member” with “elector” re appointment to serve as checker, challenger, voting tabulator tender or assistant registrar in redesignated Subdiv. (2) and making a technical change, and amended Subsec. (d) by changing the deadline for submission of names of designees and alternates from ten to twenty-one days before the primary, adding provision re training for poll workers and making technical changes, effective May 31, 2012; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 21-2 amended Subsec. (c) to delete references to challengers, to designate existing provisions re enumerated primary officials as Subdivs. (1) to (5) and redesignate former Subdivs. (1) to (3) as Subparas. (A) to (C), effective June 23, 2021.