Purpose |
The purpose of the manual recount is to
verify the machine count by viewing each ballot, determining how it was voted, and
manually tallying those votes. |
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ADMINISTRATION OF MANUAL RECOUNTS |
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Appoint Spokesperson |
Observers/Representatives for each party
of interest shall appoint a spokesperson for their group. This person can be in addition
to the observers and will have access to all parts of the recount area when escorted by
election office personnel. A different person may be appointed periodically upon
notification to the election official. Such persons shall be authorized by the parties of
interest to make final decisions in their behalf.
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Counting Boards |
Each counting board shall consist of four
clerks. A supervisor will supervise a maximum of two boards.
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Additional Costs |
If additional research is requested prior
to completion of the recount of ballots, the estimated cost of that research shall be
deposited with the election official before such research will commence and before the
ballot counting is complete. |
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Order of precincts |
The initial request for a recount may
specify the order of precincts to be counted. In absence of such request, the election
official shall determine the order of the count. Any change to the order must be requested
in writing and approved by the election official. |
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Relevant material |
Any research/review/handling of relevant
election material shall be done solely at the discretion of the election official. One
representative of each party of interest may be present. Requests to research/review
relevant material must be received before the recounting of the ballots is completed. The
requestor shall pay all additional costs to complete the research/review.
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Schedule |
· Prior to the commencement of the recount,
the election official shall determine the number of boards necessary to complete the
recount in a timely manner.
· The recount shall proceed according
to the schedule set by the election official. The recount must continue daily, except
Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays for a minimum of six hours per day until completed or
discontinued at the request of the initial recount requestor.
· The exact hours of operation, break
and lunch times shall be determined by the election official.
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Security |
The election official shall determine the
security of the ballots. Any additional security measures must be approved in advance by
the election official and paid for by the requestor. (No additional security measures will
be taken unless necessary)
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Results |
· No results or running tallies will be
released to observers or the media during the recount. Observers may keep their own notes
if they wish; however, any numbers they release are not official. Only final numbers
released by the County Clerk are official.
· All precincts in the jurisdiction must be
recounted and the outcome must change in order for the official results of the election to
be recertified.
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OBSERVERS |
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Number of observers |
There should be no more than one observer
per interested party on each side of the recount table (positioned behind members of the
recount board).
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Badges |
Observers and spokespersons will be
required to log in and receive a badge before entering the recount area. Badges must be
worn during the recount and returned to the election official at the end of the day.
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Rules |
· Observers must follow all rules
established by the election official or they may be refused entry to the recount area.
· Observers may not sit at a recount table
and may not touch any ballots, tally sheets or other material of the recount board.
Observers may not place any material on the recount table. Except to challenge a ballot,
talking is discouraged in the recount area.
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Questions |
Questions concerning the specifics of the
recount, other than challenges, are to be routed through the spokesperson who will then
direct the question to the designated election office personnel. Observers and
spokespersons are not to direct questions to the members of the recount boards. Resolution
of questions shall include representatives of all parties of interest. |
CHALLENGES |
How to challenge |
Ballots may be challenged for
incompleteness, ambiguity or other defects.
To challenge a ballot the following procedure shall be used:
· The person challenging shall state the
reason for the challenge.
· The recount board shall determine how to
count the ballot. If the challenger disagrees with the board’s decision, the
challenged ballot shall then be set aside with a notation containing the precinct number,
the unique identifier number, how the ballot was counted, why it was challenged and by
whom.
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Resolutions |
Challenges shall be resolved at the end of
each day, or more often if necessary, at the challenge resolution table. The challenge
resolution table may consist of the election official and/or designee, county counsel, and
no more than two representatives from each party of interest. The determination of the
election official at the challenge resolution table shall be final.
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