LEGAL SOURCES FOR VOTING ISSUES

PRIMARY ELECTION

2006

 

 

 

1.         Poll Watchers

           

Citizens are permitted to observe the election procedures at the polling place, provided they comply with standards set forth by election officials.

 

Source: Poll Watchers are referred to at several points in the Election Code.  The best source for our purpose is the “Election Officer Handbook” provided to polling place inspectors and workers by the Riverside County Registrar of Voters.  On page 54 the authority for poll watchers is established in the following:

-  “Anyone may be a poll watcher”

-  “A poll watcher is someone who is observing the procedures at the polls... who         has or has not voted.”

-  “Although the law allows poll watchers, the following rules and guidelines                must be followed” (The specific rules and guidelines are listed in your                     notebook and are the ones that were reviewed with you during training.)

 

 

2.         Voting Machines in Plain View

                       

            The voting machines must be in plain view for all to see.  This prevents tampering and             preserves the integrity of the vote.  Watching the voting machines is essential to our purpose.

 

Source: EC 19362 “The exterior of the voting machine and every part of the polling place shall be in plain view of the precinct board and the poll watchers.

 

3.         First Voter

 

When the first voter of the day is determined to be qualified to vote, he/she inspects the ballot box to verify that it is empty.  The first voter also confirms the unit number of each DRE and verifies that the DRE screen reflects a “0" in the public counter section.

 

Source: Registrar of Voter’s Handbook, pages 26 and 27.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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4.         Intimidation of Voters

 

Persons who appear at the polls for the purpose of voting may not be threatened or coerced.

 

Source: EC 18540(a) “ Every person who makes use of or threatens to make use of any force, violence, or tactic of coercion or intimidation to induce or compel any other person

            to vote or refrain from voting ... is guilty of a felony.”

 

 

4.            Provisional Ballots

 

            A person who claims to be registered and eligible to vote, but whose name can not be             found on the voting list, should be issued a paper ballot and be permitted to vote provisionally.  The provisional ballot will be counted in the final tally, if the person’s eligibility can be established.

 

Source: EC 14310(a) “At all elections, a voter who claims to be properly registered, but whose qualification or entitlement to vote can not be immediately established upon examination of the index for the precinct or upon examination of the records on file with the county election official shall be entitled to vote a provisional ballot...”

 

 

5.         In Line at Close of Voting

 

At 8:00 PM the polls are closed for voting; however all persons who are in line to vote must be permitted to do so.  Anyone arriving in line after 8:00 PM is not allowed to vote.  The Inspector should make a loud statement that the polls are closed and identify those in line who will be permitted to vote.

 

Source: EC 14401 “When the polls are close, the precinct board shall proclaim that fact aloud at the place of the election.  After the proclamation no ballot shall be received.  However, if at the hour of closing there are other voters in the polling place, or in line at the door, who are qualified to vote and have not been able to do so since appearing, the polls shall be kept open a sufficient time to enable them to vote.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

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6.         Election Observation Panels

 

Every county in the State that uses an electronic voting system must establish an Election Observer Panel to provide meaningful public observation of the vote counting process.   Each such county must submit an Election Observer Panel Plan to the Secretary of State by January 15 of each even-numbered year.

 

Source: The Secretary of State has issued several directives pertaining to electronic voting machines, including the establishment of Election Observer Panels. Those directives have the force of law pursuant to Section 12172.5 of the Government Code and must be followed by the individual counties.

 

 

7.         Posting Election Results at Each Precinct

 

At the close of elections, the vote of each precinct is supposed to be tabulated by precinct personnel and posted in writing.  The cumulative results of the precinct-by-precinct vote tally provides a check against the vote tally performed at the central voting place, typically the Registrar of Voters headquarters.  In the 2000 and 2004 elections, this requirement was  waived for Riverside County, on the basis that the voting machines did not have a printing capability.  In this primary election, the machines will have a printers, so no waiver should be given.           

 

Source: EC 19384 “The precinct board shall, before it adjourns, post conspicuously on the outside of the polling place a copy of the result of the votes cast at the polling place.  The copy of the result shall be signed by members of the precinct board.  If the machine is provided with a recording device, the statement of result of votes cast produced by operating its mechanism may be considered the “result of the votes cast” at the polling place.” 

 

 

8.         Logic and Accuracy Testing

 

The County is responsible for testing all devices used to tabulate votes (which includes electronic voting systems) no later than seven days before the election to confirm their accuracy.  In the 2004 New Mexico presidential election there were a much higher percentage of under votes and “phantom” votes where electronic voting machines were used, than where paper ballots were used.  (That election was decided by fewer that 6,000 votes).

 

 

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Source: EC 15000 “No later than seven days prior to any election conducted pursuant to this code, the elections official shall conduct a test or series of tests to ensure that every device used to tabulate ballots accurately records each vote.  The exact method employed in this test shall conform to the voting procedures for the specific voting systems, as adopted by the Secretary of State.”

 

 

 

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9.         One Percent Manual Audit

 

As a check to ensure the accuracy of the vote count, the County must conduct an audit of the votes from one percent of the precincts.  There are approximately, 1,700 precincts in Riverside County so the Registrar must randomly select 17 and manually tally each vote

from those precincts.  The new DREs have paper rolls that are supposed to permit this manual audit, but there are serious concerns whether the rolls will accommodate a physical count.  The Election Observer Panel will be vital in insuring that the precincts are, in fact, chosen randomly and that a true manual audit is performed.

 

Source: EC 15360 “During the official canvass of every election in which a voting system is used, the official conducting the election shall conduct a public manual tally of the ballots tabulated by those devices cast in 1 percent of the precincts chosen at random by the election official.”

 

 

10.       Non-County Computer Specialists

 

Computer specialists, other than those employed by the County or the voting machine

vendor, may be present during the accuracy testing of the electronic voting tabulators and during the election.  This provision adds a technical level check against improper use of the electronic equipment.  The actual tabulating programs are proprietary assets of the vendors; therefore, they are not open to inspection by either County or non-County computer specialists.

 

Source: EC 15004 “The county central committee of each qualified political party may employ, and may have present at the central counting place or places, not more than two qualified data processing specialists or engineers to check and review the preparation and operation of the tabulating devices, their programming and testing, and have the specialists or engineers in attendance at any or all phases of the election.”