SF 2725

as introduced - 89th Legislature (2015 - 2016) Posted on 03/15/2016 11:30am

A bill for an act
relating to elections; modifying provisions related to electronic voting systems;
permitting alternative printed ballot styles; amending Minnesota Statutes 2014,
sections 204B.35, by adding a subdivision; 204C.24, subdivision 1; 206.80;
206.86, by adding a subdivision.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204B.35, is amended by adding a
subdivision to read:

new text begin Subd. 6. new text end

new text begin Electronic voting systems. new text end

new text begin Notwithstanding sections 204B.35 to 204B.44
and chapter 204D, a jurisdiction may prepare paper ballots that omit information
required by law, if the jurisdiction employs an electronic voting system and the required
information is instead displayed on a touch screen or other electronic device in a format
that substantially meets the requirements of law.
new text end

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 204C.24, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Information requirements.

Precinct summary statements shall be
submitted by the election judges in every precinct. For all elections, the election judges
shall complete three or more copies of the summary statements, and each copy shall
contain the following information for each kind of ballot:

deleted text begin (a) deleted text end new text begin (1) new text end the number of ballots delivered to the precinct as adjusted by the actual count
made by the election judges, the number of unofficial ballots made, and the number of
absentee ballots delivered to the precinct;

deleted text begin (b) deleted text end new text begin (2) new text end the number of votes each candidate received or the number of yes and no
votes on each question, the number of undervotes, the number of overvotes, and the
number of defective ballots with respect to each office or question;

deleted text begin (c) deleted text end new text begin (3) new text end the number of spoiled ballots, the number of duplicate ballots made, the
number of absentee ballots rejected, and the number of unused ballots, presuming that the
total count provided on each package of unopened prepackaged ballots is correct;

new text begin (4) the number of ballot styles used in the precinct and the number of voters who
voted using each style of ballot;
new text end

deleted text begin (d) deleted text end new text begin (5) new text end the number of individuals who voted at the election in the precinct which
must equal the total number of ballots cast in the precinct, as required by sections 204C.20
and 206.86, subdivision 1;

deleted text begin (e) deleted text end new text begin (6) new text end the number of voters registering on election day in that precinct; and

deleted text begin (f) deleted text end new text begin (7) new text end the signatures of the election judges who counted the ballots certifying that
all of the ballots cast were properly piled, checked, and counted; and that the numbers
entered by the election judges on the summary statements correctly show the number of
votes cast for each candidate and for and against each question.

At least two copies of the summary statement must be prepared for elections not
held on the same day as the state elections.

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 206.80, is amended to read:

206.80 ELECTRONIC VOTING SYSTEMS.

(a) An electronic voting system may not be employed unless it:

(1) permits every voter to vote in secret;

(2) permits every voter to vote for all candidates and questions for whom or upon
which the voter is legally entitled to vote;

(3) provides for write-in voting when authorized;

(4) automatically rejects, except as provided in section 206.84 with respect to
write-in votes, all votes for an office or question when the number of votes cast on it
exceeds the number which the voter is entitled to cast;

(5) permits a voter at a primary election to select secretly the party for which the
voter wishes to vote;

(6) automatically rejects all votes cast in a primary election by a voter when the voter
votes for candidates of more than one party; and

(7) provides every voter an opportunity to verify votes recorded on the permanent
paper ballot, either visually or using assistive voting technology, and to change votes or
correct any error before the voter's ballot is cast and counted, produces an individual,
discrete, permanent, paper ballot cast by the voter, and preserves the paper ballot as an
official record available for use in any recount.

(b) An electronic voting system purchased on or after June 4, 2005, may not be
employed unless it:

(1) accepts and tabulates, in the polling place or at a counting center, a marked
optical scan ballot; deleted text begin or
deleted text end

(2) creates a marked optical scan ballot that can be tabulated in the polling place or
at a counting center by automatic tabulating equipment certified for use in this state new text begin ; or
new text end

new text begin (3) creates a marked paper ballot indicating, at a minimum, the voter's votes for each
office or question, generated from the voter's use of a touch screen or other electronic
device on which a complete ballot meeting the information requirements of any applicable
law was displayed electronically new text end .

new text begin (c) The use of multiple styles of electronic voting systems in a jurisdiction is not a
violation of a voter's right to vote in secret, provided that a record of the style of electronic
voting system used by a voter is not recorded by the election judges or any other elections
official in any form.
new text end

Sec. 6.

Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 206.86, is amended by adding a subdivision
to read:

new text begin Subd. 5a. new text end

new text begin Ballots in precincts with multiple styles of voting system. new text end

new text begin (a) This
subdivision applies to precincts where multiple ballot styles are required due to the use of
multiple styles of electronic voting system in the precinct.
new text end

new text begin (b) In the event the results of a precinct are subject to a recount under sections
204C.35 or 204C.36, or are subject to a postelection review under section 206.89, a ballot
style that was used by ten or fewer voters in the precinct at the election must be comingled
with the ballots of another precinct for purposes of conducting the recount or postelection
review. To preserve the anonymity of the ballots, the ballots may only be comingled
with the ballots of a precinct where an identical ballot style was used and which is also
subject to a recount or postelection review.
new text end