§ 21-A §753-B — Procedure for issuing absentee ballot

1.
Issuance of absentee ballots.
Upon receipt of an application or written request for an absentee ballot that is accepted pursuant to section 753‑A, and after the official ballots become available, the clerk shall immediately issue an absentee ballot and return envelope by mail or in person to the applicant or to the immediate family member or to a 3rd person designated in a written application or request made by the voter, except as provided in subsection 2. Upon receipt of the official ballots, the clerk shall immediately issue an absentee ballot and return envelope by mail to any voter who has qualified for ongoing absentee voter status under section 753‑A, subsection 7. The clerk shall type or write in ink the name and the residence address of the voter in the designated section of the return envelope. The clerk may not make any mark visible on the outside of the return envelope for use in a general election that indicates the political party of the voter to whom an absentee ballot is issued.
2.
Restrictions on issuing ballot.
The clerk may not issue an absentee ballot:
3.
Return of ballot by 3rd person.
A 3rd person shall, unless good cause is shown, return an absentee ballot to the clerk's office within 2 business days of the date that ballot was provided to the 3rd person or by the close of the polls on election day, whichever is earlier. The clerk shall inform the 3rd person of the deadline for the return of the ballot.
4.
Duplicate ballot.
The clerk may issue a duplicate state absentee ballot to an applicant if the initially issued ballot has not already been marked and returned to the clerk, the applicant requests one by an acceptable method outlined in this subchapter and:
5.
Alternate method of absentee voting by residents of certain facilities.
Residents of certain nursing homes, residential care facilities, assisted living facilities, mental health residential facilities, residential facilities for individuals with intellectual disabilities and state mental health institutes may cast absentee ballots under the provisions of this subsection. This subsection applies to a licensed nursing home subject to the provisions of Title 22, chapter 405; a licensed level IV residential care facility with more than 6 beds subject to the provisions of Title 22, chapter 1664; a licensed assisted living facility with more than 6 beds subject to the provisions of Title 22, chapter 1664; a mental health residential facility with more than 6 beds licensed under Title 34‑B, section 1203‑A; a residential facility for individuals with intellectual disabilities with more than 6 beds licensed under Title 34‑B, section 1203‑A; and a state mental health institute specified in Title 22‑A, section 208. As used in this subsection, "level IV residential care facility" means a residential care facility as defined by Title 22, section 7852, subsection 14 that has a licensed capacity of more than 6 residents.
6.
Clerk to keep list of absentee voters.
The clerk shall create and maintain, in the central voter registration system, an alphabetical list, by district, of the persons who requested or were furnished absentee ballots, including the persons who voted in the presence of the clerk under subsection 8 and the persons whose ballots were issued to a 3rd person under subsection 1. The clerk shall maintain a copy of the lists required under this subsection for a period of 2 years as a public record.
7.
Registration verified.
If the applicant is registered, the ballot must be sent to the applicant. If the applicant has registered under section 155 and will attain 18 years of age on or before the date of the election, the registrar or clerk shall accept the application in the central voter registration system and issue a ballot to the applicant; if not, the registrar or clerk shall reject the application in the central voter registration system. Whenever an application for an absentee ballot is rejected, the municipal clerk shall immediately notify the applicant in writing or by e-mail of the reason for the rejection.
8.
Absentee voting in presence of clerk.
For the 30 days preceding an election, during the hours when the clerk's office is open, a person who wishes to vote by absentee ballot may, without completing an application, vote by absentee ballot in the presence of the clerk, except as provided in subsection 2. Before issuing a ballot, the clerk shall verify that it is the voter who is requesting the ballot by confirming the voter's residence address and year of birth with the information in the voter's record. The method of voting is otherwise as prescribed in this article. After the person has voted, the clerk shall sign the affidavit on the return envelope as a witness, indicate on the envelope that the voter voted in the presence of a clerk and ensure that the affidavit on the return envelope is properly completed by the voter. During this 30-day period, the display or distribution of any advertising material intended to influence a voter's decision regarding a candidate or question on the ballot for that election is prohibited within the clerk's office and on public property within 250 feet of the entrance to the building in which the clerk's office is located.
9.
Restrictions on absentee voting in presence of clerk.
Except as allowed by subsection 5, a municipal clerk may not remove absentee ballots from the municipal office for the purpose of conducting absentee voting in the presence of the clerk except upon receipt of an application or written request from the voter. The clerk may not be assisted in delivering or providing an absentee ballot by any person who is a candidate or a member of a candidate's immediate family. Assistance includes, but is not limited to, providing transportation to a clerk who is delivering absentee ballots to a voter who is not marking the absentee ballot in the municipal clerk's office.

Legislative History

PL 1999, c. 645, §6 (NEW). RR 2001, c. 2, §A28 (COR). PL 2001, c. 310, §§52-54 (AMD). PL 2003, c. 407, §§24,25 (AMD). PL 2003, c. 447, §§30,31 (AMD). PL 2005, c. 364, §7 (AMD). PL 2005, c. 568, §§18,19 (AMD). PL 2007, c. 455, §41 (AMD). PL 2007, c. 515, §11 (AMD). PL 2009, c. 253, §48 (AMD). PL 2009, c. 563, §2 (AMD). PL 2011, c. 40, §1 (AMD). PL 2011, c. 342, §29 (AMD). PL 2011, c. 399, §§22-24 (AMD). PL 2011, c. 534, §§17-20 (AMD). PL 2013, c. 457, §3 (AMD). PL 2017, c. 248, §7 (AMD). PL 2017, c. 433, §1 (AMD). PL 2019, c. 371, §35 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 273, §§16-21 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 398, Pt. UUUU, §5 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 398, Pt. UUUU, §7 (AFF). PL 2021, c. 570, §4 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 750, §12 (AMD). PL 2021, c. 750, §14 (AFF). PL 2023, c. 128, §1 (AMD). PL 2023, c. 176, §1 (AMD). PL 2023, c. 304, Pt. A, §§25-27 (AMD). PL 2023, c. 304, Pt. A, §§37, 39 (AFF). PL 2025, c. 133, §1 (AMD). PL 2025, c. 397, §46 (AMD).