§ 2019-A — Voting by persons whose names are not in the registration poll ledgers

§ 2019-a. Voting by persons whose names are not in the registration\npoll ledgers. 1. Whenever a voter presents himself and offers to cast a\nballot at any school district meeting or election, and the address at\nwhich he claims to live is in the election district in which he seeks to\nvote but his name cannot be found on the list of registered voters or in\nthe registration poll ledger, he shall be permitted to vote only as\nhereinafter provided:\n a. He may present a court order requiring that he be permitted to\nvote. He shall be required to sign his full name on top of the first\npage of such order, together with his registration serial number, if\nany. The voter shall then be permitted to vote in the manner otherwise\nprescribed for voters whose names are found on the registration lists,\nwhose registration poll records are found in the ledger; or\n b. He may request, swear to and subscribe an affidavit stating that he\nhas duly registered to vote, the address in such election district from\nwhich he registered, that he remains a duly qualified voter in such\nelection district and that his registration poll record appears to be\nlost or misplaced, or that his name has been incorrectly omitted from\nthe list of registered voters. Such affidavit shall be printed on an\nenvelope and shall contain an acknowledgement that the affiant\nunderstands that any false statement made therein is perjury punishable\naccording to law. The voter shall then be permitted to vote a paper\nballot. Such ballot shall thereupon be placed in the envelope containing\nhis affidavit, and the envelope sealed and returned to the board of\neducation with other records of the meeting or election.\n 2. a. Before certifying the result of any school district meeting or\nelection at which voters are required to sign their registration poll\nrecords or the list of registered voters before voting, the board of\neducation shall proceed in the manner hereinafter prescribed to cast and\ncanvass any ballots voted by voters whose registration poll records were\nmissing or whose names did not appear on the list of registered voters\non the day of such meeting or election. Each such ballot shall be\nretained in the original envelope containing the voter's affidavit and\nsignature, in which it is delivered to the board of education until such\ntime as it is to be cast and canvassed.\n b. The board of education shall designate itself or such of its\nemployees as it shall deem appropriate as a set of poll clerks to cast\nand canvass such ballots, and fix a time and place for their meeting for\nsuch purposes, provided that such meeting shall be no more than ten days\nafter any election at which such ballots are voted. The board may\ndesignate additional sets of poll clerks and if it designates more than\none such set, shall apportion among all such sets the election districts\nfrom which such ballots have been received, provided that all such\nballots from a single election district shall be assigned to a single\nset of clerks. Each such set of clerks shall be deemed a central board\nof inspectors for purposes of this section.\n c. At least five days prior to the time fixed for such meeting, the\nboard shall send notice by first class mail to each candidate entitled\nto have had watchers or challengers present at the polls in any election\ndistrict from which any such ballot has been received, or, if such\nnotice is sent prior to the day of the election, to each such candidate\nso entitled for each election district in the board's jurisdiction. Such\nnotice shall state the time and place fixed by the board for such\ncanvass.\n d. Each such candidate shall be entitled to appoint such number of\nwatchers or challengers to attend upon each central board of inspectors\nas such candidate was entitled to appoint at such election in any one\nelection district for which such central board of inspectors is\ndesignated to act.\n 3. Upon assembling at the time and place fixed for such meeting, each\ncentral board of inspectors shall consider each affidavit envelope and\nballot from the election districts assigned to it.\n a. First, the central board of inspectors shall reject any ballot not\nfound sealed in the envelope in which it was placed at the polling\nplace, second the ballot of any voter for whom there is no registration\npoll record or central registration record in the office of the board of\nelections.\n b. The central board of inspectors shall then proceed to consider,\ncast, and canvass the remaining envelopes and the ballots therein\ncontained as nearly as practicable in the manner provided by this\nchapter for a board of inspectors to consider, cast, and canvass paper\nballots at school district meetings or elections.\n c. Any person lawfully present may object to the refusal to cast or\ncanvass any ballot on the grounds that the voter is a properly qualified\nvoter of the election district, or to the casting or canvassing of any\nballot on the grounds that the voter is not a properly qualified voter\nof the election district, or otherwise not entitled to cast such ballot.\nWhen any such objection is made, the board of education shall forthwith\nproceed to determine such objection and reject or cast such ballot\naccording to such determination.\n d. Upon completing the casting and canvassing of ballots as\nhereinabove provided for any election district, the central board of\ninspectors shall thereupon, as nearly as practicable in the manner\nprovided in this section, verify the number of ballots so cast, tally\nthe votes so cast, add such tally to the previous tally of all votes\ncast in such election district, and announce the result.\n 4. Whenever the ballot of any person, voted in an affidavit envelope\nin the manner prescribed by this section, is rejected under the\nprovisions of this section on the grounds that such person is not a\nqualified voter of the election district wherein he sought to vote, the\nboard of education shall immediately notify such person by first class\nmail directed to the address given in his affidavit, of the rejection of\nhis ballot, together with the reason therefor and the appropriate\ninformation on the times and places where he may register or reregister.\nWhere appropriate, a form of application for personal registration by\nmail pursuant to the election law shall be included with such notice.\n