15 Del. Admin. Code § 200-7.0

Current through Reigster Vol. 28, No. 6, December 1, 2024

Section 200-7.0 - Tabulation Process

7.1 A person or persons designated by the Department shall announce the ED that the Absentee Judges will process and ask if there are any challenges. If a challenger challenges a voter, the Absentee Judges processing the ED shall hear the challenge and then by majority vote determine whether to count the ballot.

7.2 Challengers shall make challenges before the Absentee Judges open the Ballot Envelope for the person that they are challenging.

7.3 A Challenger may make challenges for reasons stated in Chapter 55, §5513.

7.4 A Department member shall give the Absentee Ballots and a check sheet for an ED to a team of Absentee Judges starting with ED 01-01 and continuing in order and shall record the team to which he/she issued an ED's Absentee Ballots.

7.5 The Department shall assign each team of Absentee Judges a specific tabulator to use for tabulating ballots.

7.6 Each Absentee Judge team shall check the ballots received against the check sheet and report any discrepancies to the Administrative Director, the Deputy Administrative Director or a person or persons designated in writing by the Administrative Director and Deputy Administrative Director.

7.7 The Absentee Judge team shall examine each Ballot Envelope and determine whether to count the ballot in accordance with Chapter 55, §5514.

7.7.1 If the Absentee Judges determine that they shall not count a ballot for a reason set forth in Chapter 55, §5514 (a) before opening the Ballot Envelope, they shall write the word REJECTED, the reason the ballot was rejected and their initials on the Ballot Envelope.

7.7.2 If the Absentee Judges determine that they shall not count a ballot for a reason set forth in Chapter 55, §5514 (a) after opening the Ballot Envelope, they shall put the ballot back into the envelope then write the word REJECTED, the reason the ballot was rejected and their initials on the Ballot Envelope.

7.7.3 If the Absentee Judges know that a person who has voted by Absentee Ballot is dead, they shall write the words REJECTED DEAD and their initials on the Ballot Envelope.

7.8 The Absentee Judges shall then open the remaining Ballot Envelopes, remove the absentee ballots therein and place them face down on the table.

7.8.1 If there are two or more ballots in the Ballot Envelope, the Absentee Judges shall put the ballots back into the Ballot Envelope and write the word REJECTED, the reason that they rejected the ballot and their initials on the Ballot Envelope.

7.8.2 If there is no ballot in the Ballot Envelope, the Absentee Judges shall write the word REJECTED, the reason that they rejected the ballot and their initials on the Ballot Envelope.

7.9 Absentee Judges shall put Ballot Envelopes that have been marked as "REJECTED" into the Carrier Envelope for the ED that they are processing and enter the information about the rejection of the Ballot Envelope on to the appropriate log and/or documentation for the ED.

7.10 The Absentee Judges shall tabulate the remaining ballots.

7.11 If the tabulator or scanner cannot tabulate a ballot or ballots, the Absentee Judges shall tally those ballot or ballots on two Absentee Vote Tally Sheets.

7.12 Absentee Judges shall record Write-in votes on the Write-in portion of the Absentee Vote Tally Sheets or on a separate Write-in Vote Tally Sheets as determined by the Department as most suitable for the election.

7.13 After the Absentee Judges have tabulated all of the Absentee Ballots for an ED, they shall put the ballots, the Ballot Envelopes and one copy of the Absentee Vote Tally Sheet and Write-in Vote Tally Sheet (if used) into the Carrier Envelope for the ED. They shall then write security seal number for the seal with which they shall secure the Carrier Envelope on the Absentee Ballot Reconciliation Sheet and put the Absentee Ballot Reconciliation Sheet into the Carrier Envelope. The Absentee Judges shall then seal the Carrier Envelope with the appropriate security seal and put the Carrier Envelope in the appropriate transport device.

7.14 Absentee Judges who processed an ED shall process any other Absentee Ballots that the Department receives for that ED prior to the close of the polls in accordance with the above procedures.

15 Del. Admin. Code § 200-7.0