Chapter 3.32
CANVASS OF RETURNS FOR SPECIAL CITY ELECTIONS
Sections:
3.32.020 Counting of challenged, questioned and absentee ballots.
3.32.030 Challenge of absentee voter ballots.
3.32.040 Disposition of accepted ballots.
3.32.050 Disposition of refused ballots.
3.32.010 Canvass of returns.
A. Before each special City election, the Council shall appoint at least three qualified voters, who shall constitute the election canvass board for that election. All members of the election canvass board, before entering upon their duties, must subscribe to the oath required of all public officers by the Constitution of the State in the manner prescribed the Clerk.
B. On the day following each election, the canvass board shall meet in public session and canvass all election returns. In full view of those present, the election canvass board shall determine the applicability of absentee and questioned ballots, shall open and tally those accepted and shall compile the total votes. The canvass of the votes counted by the precinct election boards shall be accomplished by reviewing the tallies of the recorded votes to check for mathematical error by comparing totals with the precinct’s certificate of results. All obvious errors found by the election canvass board in the transfer of totals from the precinct tally sheets to the precinct certificate of returns shall be corrected in the canvass board certificate of election returns and reported to the Council as having been corrected. If in the opinion of the canvass board a mistake has been made in precinct returns which is not clearly an error in the transfer of results, the canvass board may recommend to the governing body that a recount of the precinct’s results be made for that portion of the returns in question.
C. Upon completion of the canvass, the canvassing board shall prepare a certificate of the results of the votes cast by absentee ballots, questioned ballots, challenged ballots, and regular ballots, and shall prepare and submit to the Council a written report of those results. (Ord. 05-09 § 2, 2005)
3.32.020 Counting of challenged, questioned and absentee ballots.
No ballot shall be counted if the voter has failed to properly execute the certificate, if the witness, officer or other person authorized by law to administer the oath fails to affix his signature, or if the voter fails to enclose his marked ballot inside the small envelope provided. A person whose registration has been canceled under State law and who votes a questioned/absentee ballot shall not have the ballot counted. (Ord. 05-09 § 2, 2005)
3.32.030 Challenge of absentee voter ballots.
The Clerk or a member of the canvassing board may challenge the name of an absentee voter when read from the voter’s certificate on the back of the large envelope, if he has good reason to suspect that the voter is not qualified to vote, is disqualified, or has voted at the same election. The person making the challenge shall specify the basis of the challenge in writing. The canvassing board by majority vote may refuse to accept the challenge and count the ballot of a person properly challenged. (Ord. 05-09 § 2, 2005)
3.32.040 Disposition of accepted ballots.
If a ballot is not refused, the large envelope shall be opened and the smaller inner envelope shall be placed in a container and mixed with other blank absentee ballot envelopes, or, in the case of counting questioned ballots, with other blank questioned ballot envelopes. The envelopes shall then be drawn from the container, opened, and the ballots counted according to the rules of determining properly marked ballots. (Ord. 05-09 § 2, 2005)
3.32.050 Disposition of refused ballots.
If a ballot is refused, the Clerk shall return a copy of the statement of the challenge to the voter, and shall enclose all rejected ballots in a separate envelope with statements of challenge. The envelope shall be labeled “rejected ballots” and placed with the election certificates and other returns. (Ord. 05-09 § 2, 2005)