reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
15 DE Code § 5509. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5509. Procedure on receipt of ballot envelope by Department.

§ 5509. Procedure on receipt of ballot envelope by Department. (a) Upon receipt of a ballot envelope the Department, or a person authorized by the Department, shall:  (1) Ascertain the names of each elector as they appear on the face of each ballot envelope; (2) Ascertain from the information on the ballot envelope the election district with whose votes the ballot within it shall be tallied; and (3) Place the ballot envelope in a secure location until such time as it is opened and the ballot within it is counted. (b) No member of the Department (the director or any other person) shall open or attempt to open the ballot envelope, or change or alter or attempt to change or alter the ballot envelope, or any writing, printing or anything whatsoever thereon. 44 Del. Laws, c. 118, §  10;  45 Del. Laws, c. 155, §  9;  15 Del. C. 1953, §  5512;  57 Del. Laws, c. 567, §  48;  58 Del. Laws, c. 148, §§  130, 131;  60 Del. Laws, c. 414, §§  19, 20;  68 Del. Laws, c. 301, §  7;  75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  75 Del. Laws, c. 427, §§  8, 9;  77 Del. Laws, c. 227, §  1;  79 Del. Laws, c. 275, §  89;
15 DE Code § 5510. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5510. Counting procedure for absentee ballots.

§ 5510. Counting procedure for absentee ballots. At any time between the Friday before the day of the election and the closing of the polls on an election day, absentee election judges within each county, selected by the administrators of the Department in that county, shall count absentee ballots at the Department's offices in the county as follows:  (1) An absentee judge shall select the ballot envelopes in order of the election districts within the county; (2) For each ballot envelope, the absentee judges shall ascertain whether a challenge has been made pursuant to this chapter; (3) If a challenge has been made, the BALLOT ENVELOPE shall be marked as “CHALLENGED” and shall be set aside in a secure location for consideration at a later time as provided elsewhere in this title. (4) If no challenge has been made, the absentee judges shall:  a. Open the ballot envelopes in such a manner as not to deface or destroy the statement thereon or the absentee ballot enclosed; b. Remove the ballots from the ballot envelopes; c. Determine whether the ballots have been properly completed and/or whether the elector's intent can be determined pursuant to § 4972 of this title; d. Tally any absentee votes that were written-in, or that must be counted by hand pursuant to § 4972 of this title, on absentee vote tally sheets for the election district with whose votes the absentee votes are to be counted; and e. Record the proper notations of such votes in the election records for the election district to which they apply. f. A ballot that a team determines cannot be read by the tabulating equipment or which the tabulating equipment rejects, shall be duplicated as provided for in § 5510A of this title. (5) Once absentee votes have been recorded, an absentee judge shall deposit the voted ballots, rejected ballots, and any absentee vote tally sheet that may have been used, in a carrier envelope for the election district with whose votes the absentee votes are counted; provided, however, that each carrier envelope shall contain absentee ballots, rejected ballots, and tally sheets for no more than one election district and only one carrier envelope shall be filled at a time. (6) Once a carrier envelope is filled, it shall be sealed by an absentee judge. The absentee judge shall sign the absentee judge's name on each sealed carrier envelope, affirming that the absentee judge sealed the envelope and that the envelope contains ballots for the election district to which the envelope is assigned. Each sealed and signed carrier envelope shall be placed in a secure location and held there until such time as it is destroyed or moved for further legal process. (7) The results of the absentee ballots shall not be extracted or reported before the polls have closed on the day of the election.75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  70 Del. Laws, c. 186, §  1;  75 Del. Laws, c. 427, §  10;  78 Del. Laws, c. 304, §  8;  79 Del. Laws, c. 275, §  89;  81 Del. Laws, c. 106, § 5;
15 DE Code § 5510A. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5510A. Preparing absentee ballots for tabulation.

§ 5510A. Preparing absentee ballots for tabulation. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or regulations adopted by the Department, a Department of Elections may open absentee ballots in public meetings beginning the Friday before the day of the election in order to prepare them for tabulation. The Department shall notify each party on the ballot that they may have challengers at the meetings during which the Department opens the absentee ballots. The challengers may challenge ballots as provided elsewhere in this title. (b) The Department shall appoint teams composed of an equal number of Democrats and Republicans to open and duplicate ballots. (c) The teams shall open ballots by election district, check them off against the list of absentee voters, duplicate ballots that the team determines that the tabulating equipment cannot read and then secure the opened and duplicated ballots along with the envelopes in a carrier envelope. The teams shall record the number of the carrier envelope and the election district number on a log sheet that it shall also secure in the same carrier envelope. (d) Teams shall duplicate ballots by marking them according to the voter's intent as shown on the ballot marked by the voter. If a team cannot determine a voter's intent, they consult the director and deputy director for advice and guidance. (e) When duplicating ballots, the teams shall assign the same unique identifier to the ballot that they duplicate and the duplicated ballot. After the team has duplicated ballots for an election district, the team shall put the ballots that the team duplicated in a separate envelope and put it in the carrier envelope for the election district and the team shall put the duplicated ballots with the ballots that the Department shall tabulate on the day of the election. (f) The Department shall secure the carrier envelopes in locked cabinets until opened in a subsequent public meeting to insert additional ballots or to tabulate the ballots on the day of the election. 75 Del. Laws, c. 427, §  11;  77 Del. Laws, c. 227, §  1;
15 DE Code § 5511. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5511. Carrier envelope specifications; carrier envelopes as ballot boxes.

§ 5511. Carrier envelope specifications; carrier envelopes as ballot boxes. (a) The Department shall purchase envelopes to be used as carrier envelopes, which shall be security mailing envelopes, designed to securely protect the contents thereof from tampering, removal, or substitution without detection and shall be large enough to accommodate multiple absentee ballots cast in the election. (b) Carrier envelopes shall:  (1) For all purposes of this title be considered the official ballot boxes for absentee votes cast during a given election; (2) Contain voted absentee ballots from a single election district; (3) Be labeled to reflect the election district whose absentee ballots are held inside; and (4) Ensure the security of said ballots in the event they must be moved for the purposes of certifying an election or recounting votes cast in an election. (c) A sealed carrier envelope may be reopened only when necessary to certify an election or recount votes cast in an election. (d) In the event the Department must move absentee ballots for the purposes of certifying an election, or recounting votes cast in an election, it shall select the carrier envelopes for the affected election districts and move them, in a secure fashion, to the location where the carrier envelopes will be opened and the votes inside inspected. (e) Upon completion of any inspection of votes pursuant to this subsection, absentee ballots shall be returned to the carrier envelopes from which they were removed and the carrier envelopes shall be:  (1) Resealed in a secure manner, or shall be placed in another security envelope, for the purposes of securely protecting the contents thereof from tampering, removal, or substitution without detection; and (2) Placed in a secure location and held there until such time as it is destroyed or moved for further legal process.44 Del. Laws, c. 118, §  10;  45 Del. Laws, c. 155, §  9;  15 Del. C. 1953, §  5513;  49 Del. Laws, c. 278, §  9;  50 Del. Laws, c. 173, §  4;  58 Del. Laws, c. 148, §  132;  60 Del. Laws, c. 414, §  21;  68 Del. Laws, c. 301, §  8;  75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  79 Del. Laws, c. 275, §  90;
15 DE Code § 5512. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5512. Envelopes in general; approval by Attorney General.

§ 5512. Envelopes in general; approval by Attorney General. The Attorney General shall personally approve each kind or type of envelope for use pursuant to this chapter. The Department shall not purchase, use, have printed upon, mail or deliver any envelope for use pursuant to this chapter unless such type or kind of such envelope has first been approved personally by the Attorney General. 44 Del. Laws, c. 118, §§  5, 7, 8;  45 Del. Laws, c. 155, §§  4, 6, 7;  15 Del. C. 1953, §  5508;  60 Del. Laws, c. 414, §§  16, 17;  75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  79 Del. Laws, c. 275, §  91;
15 DE Code § 5513. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5513. Challenges.

§ 5513. Challenges. (a) The ballot of any elector choosing to vote by absentee ballot may be challenged for the same causes and in the same manner as provided in this title for other voters. (b) In addition, the vote of an absentee voter may be challenged:  (1) On the ground that the statement filed by the voter in compliance with § 5503 of this title is false; or (2) On the ground that the statement in the center of the face of the ballot envelope is not signed. (c) If a challenge is made pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, an absentee judge shall return the ballot to its ballot envelope, shall mark the ballot envelope as “CHALLENGED,” and shall set the envelope aside in a secure location for consideration at a later time as provided elsewhere in this title. If a challenge is made pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, an absentee judge shall mark the ballot envelope as “CHALLENGED” and shall set it aside in a secure location for consideration at a later time as provided elsewhere in this title. (d) All challenges to absentee ballots voted in a particular election district must be resolved before the counting of votes in that election district may be considered complete. Any challenge not resolved by the absentee judges within a reasonable time of the challenge having been made shall be referred for resolution to the county director and deputy county director of the Department in the county where such election district is located. 44 Del. Laws, c. 118, §  14;  15 Del. C. 1953, §  5517;  50 Del. Laws, c. 173, §  2;  58 Del. Laws, c. 148, §  135;  75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  77 Del. Laws, c. 227, §  1;  79 Del. Laws, c. 275, §  92;  81 Del. Laws, c. 106, § 6;
15 DE Code § 5514. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5514. Rejected ballots.

§ 5514. Rejected ballots. (a) No vote shall be accepted or counted if:  (1) The statement of the absentee voter that appears on the front of the ballot envelope is found to have been altered or is not signed; or (2) The absentee voter is not a duly registered elector in this State; or (3) The ballot envelope is open; or (4) It is evident that the ballot envelope has been opened and resealed; (5) It is evident that the ballot envelope has been tampered with or altered. (b) If the ballot envelope has not been opened at the time an absentee judge decides that the offered ballot contained therein should not be accepted or voted for any of the reasons set forth in subsection (a) of this section, it shall not be opened but shall instead be endorsed thereon as, “REJECTED,” giving reason therefore. (c) If the ballot envelope has been opened at the time an absentee judge decides that the offered ballot contained therein should not be accepted or voted for any of the reasons set forth in subsection (a) of this section, the ballot shall be returned to its ballot envelope and the absentee judge shall endorse on the ballot envelope, “REJECTED,” giving reason therefore. (d) Whenever it is made to appear by due proof to an absentee judge that any absentee voter, who has marked and forwarded the absentee voter's ballot, has died, the ballot envelope containing the ballot shall not be opened but shall be marked “REJECTED, DEAD,” and shall be preserved and disposed of as other rejected ballots. (e) Whenever a ballot has not been counted but has been rejected pursuant to this section, the appropriate notation shall be made on the absentee ballot tally and the number of ballots so rejected shall be noted on the certificates of election. (f) Ballots rejected pursuant to this section shall be deposited in a carrier envelope for the election district to which they apply. 15 Del. C. 1953, §  5518;  50 Del. Laws, c. 173, §  8;  58 Del. Laws, c. 215, §  38;  70 Del. Laws, c. 186, §  1;  75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  81 Del. Laws, c. 106, § 7;
15 DE Code § 5515. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5515. Validity of absentee voter's ballot for wrong district.

§ 5515. Validity of absentee voter's ballot for wrong district. If an absentee voter marks and returns an absentee ballot for an election district other than the 1 of which the absentee voter is a resident and a duly registered elector, such ballot, because thereof, shall not be adjudged invalid, but, as indicated by the marking of the ballot by the voter, shall be counted as a vote for every candidate appearing thereon who is a candidate for an office to be duly voted for in the election district. 44 Del. Laws, c. 118, §  17;  15 Del. C. 1953, §  5519;  70 Del. Laws, c. 186, §  1;  75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;
15 DE Code § 5516. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5516. Procedure if requests or ballots sent to wrong official; absentee ballots received by election officers.

§ 5516. Procedure if requests or ballots sent to wrong official; absentee ballots received by election officers. 44 Del. Laws, c. 118, §  24;  45 Del. Laws, Sp. Sess., c. 5,, §  4;  45 Del. Laws, c. 155, §  16;  15 Del. C. 1953, §  5520;  75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  repealed by 79 Del. Laws, c. 275 § 93, eff. July 1, 2015.;
15 DE Code § 5517. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5517. File of absentee voters.

§ 5517. File of absentee voters. (a) The Department shall maintain records providing for the prevention of fraud and to make possible the tracing and detection of any attempt to do so. Such records shall include, but shall not be limited to, the following entries:  (1) The name of elector; (2) The address at which elector is registered; (3) The address where ballot is to be mailed; (4) The date the statement is received by the Department; (5) The elector's election and representative district; (6) The ballot envelope identification number; (7) The date the ballot is mailed or delivered to the elector; and (8) The date the ballot is returned. (b) The Department shall compile from its files a list of names and addresses of all applicants for absentee ballots, and shall send current and complete copies thereof without cost to all political parties with candidates on the ballot in the forthcoming election. Such lists shall be provided no later than 2 weeks prior to the date of the election and copies of the lists must be mailed on the same date to the respective chairs of each political party involved in the election. Comparable information from the file shall also be made available to representatives of all political parties at each office of the Department during the remaining 2 weeks before the election, such information to be recorded by such representatives from the daily records of the Department with the cooperation and assistance of the employees thereof. 44 Del. Laws, c. 118, §  16;  45 Del. Laws, c. 155, §  13;  47 Del. Laws, c. 316, §  3;  15 Del. C. 1953, §  5522;  57 Del. Laws, c. 181, §  76;  58 Del. Laws, c. 148, §  136;  68 Del. Laws, c. 301, §  16;  70 Del. Laws, c. 186, §  1;  75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  79 Del. Laws, c. 275, §  93;  81 Del. Laws, c. 106, § 8;
15 DE Code § 5518. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5518. Members of the armed forces and certain other electors; 1 absentee request to cover all elections; federal post card application (FPCA); electronic transmission of balloting materials.

§ 5518. Members of the armed forces and certain other electors; 1 absentee request to cover all elections; federal post card application (FPCA); electronic transmission of balloting materials. (a) Any person who qualifies for an absentee ballot pursuant to § 5502(1), (2) or (7) of this title, and who has requested the same, shall qualify for an absentee ballot in all elections conducted under the provisions of this title during the period from receipt of the application following the last general election and through December 31 of the year following the last general election. Additionally, if a person states the duration of his or her absence from the State, their federal post card application (FPCA) shall be valid for that period. (b) The receipt of a federal post card application from any person eligible to use the FPCA for an absentee ballot who is not registered to vote in Delaware but is eligible to register to vote in Delaware shall serve as an application to register to vote as well as a request and statement for an absentee ballot. (c) The Department may send and receive absentee ballot applications, FPCAs, absentee ballots and federal write-in absentee ballots by electronic transmission. 65 Del. Laws, c. 455, §  7;  70 Del. Laws, c. 186, §  1;  70 Del. Laws, c. 188, §  28;  74 Del. Laws, c. 168, §  15;  75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  77 Del. Laws, c. 134, §§  1, 2;  77 Del. Laws, c. 269, §  6;  78 Del. Laws, c. 297, §  6;  79 Del. Laws, c. 275, §  93;  81 Del. Laws, c. 106, § 9;
15 DE Code § 5520. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5520. Special write-in absentee ballot; procedures; qualifications.

§ 5520. Special write-in absentee ballot; procedures; qualifications. (a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this title, an elector who qualifies under any of the reasons set forth in § 5502(1), (2) or (7) of this title may, during the calendar year in which an election is to be held for President, United States Senator or Representative in Congress, request a special write-in absentee ballot. (b) The request for a special write-in absentee ballot may be made on the federal post card application (FPCA) form, or on a form prescribed by the State Election Commissioner. (c) In order to qualify for a special write-in absentee ballot, the elector must state under oath and under penalty of perjury that the elector is unable to vote by regular absentee ballot or in person due to requirements of military service or due to living in isolated or extremely remote areas of the world. (d) Upon receipt of an application pursuant to this section, the Department may hold said application until 90 days prior to an election, but shall mail a ballot and the related materials to the elector as soon thereafter as possible. The special write-in absentee ballot shall be in a form prescribed and provided by the State Election Commissioner, and shall permit the elector to vote by writing in a party preference for each office, or the name of the person whom the voter prefers for each office. 65 Del. Laws, c. 455, §  7;  70 Del. Laws, c. 186, §  1;  75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  77 Del. Laws, c. 227, §  2;  79 Del. Laws, c. 275, §  93;
15 DE Code § 5521. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5521. Federal write-in absentee ballot; acceptance; combined request for registration and ballot submission.

§ 5521. Federal write-in absentee ballot; acceptance; combined request for registration and ballot submission. (a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this title, an elector who qualifies under any of the reasons set forth in § 5502(7) of this title may:  (1) Use the federal write-in absentee ballot (FWAB) in any election for local, state, or federal offices in this State; (2) Write on the FWAB the name of a specific candidate for whom the elector wants to vote, the name of the political party of a candidate for a specific office for whom the elector wants to vote, or the name of the political party of all candidates for all offices for whom the elector wants to vote; (3) Use the FWAB transmission envelope as a registration request simultaneously with the submission of the FWAB if:  a. The voter is otherwise eligible to vote by absentee ballot in this State; and b. The completed ballot is received no later than the 3rd Monday prior to the date of the election. (b) [Repealed.] (c) A person eligible to vote by FWAB may return the ballot, eligibility information and signed oath by electronic transmission. Any person returning the FWAB electronically is deemed to have acknowledged that there may be situations where the secrecy of that person's ballot cannot be guaranteed. 75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  70 Del. Laws, c. 186, §  1;  77 Del. Laws, c. 134, §  3;  77 Del. Laws, c. 227, §  2;  79 Del. Laws, c. 275, §  94;
15 DE Code § 5522. (2021)
2021 Delaware Code|Title 15 - Elections|Chapter 55. Absentee Voting|§ 5522. Duties of Department of Elections; political balance of absentee judges; security.

§ 5522. Duties of Department of Elections; political balance of absentee judges; security. (a) The Department shall ensure that each panel of absentee judges selected to officiate the procedures set forth in this chapter represent a politically balanced cross section of the major political parties participating in the election for which absentee ballots are being counted. (b) The Department shall promulgate regulations to ensure the security and integrity of the procedures set forth in this chapter and that the counting process for absentee ballots is not subject to improper influences. 75 Del. Laws, c. 149, §  1;  79 Del. Laws, c. 275, §  95;