reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
NH Rev Stat § 659:53 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:53 - Forms Not in Order.

    659:53 Forms Not in Order. –||If the moderator finds that the absentee voter is not entitled to vote, the moderator shall not open the envelope and shall mark across the face of the envelope the reason the ballot is rejected, such as "rejected as not a voter" "voted in person," "affidavit improperly executed," "not signed by proper person," or whatever the reason is and shall record next to the name of the absentee voter on the clerk's list of absentee voter applicants prepared pursuant to RSA 657:15 the word "rejected" and the reason for the rejection. The clerk shall record this information in the statewide centralized voter registration database. The moderator shall save all the unopened envelopes and shall preserve the envelopes with the ballots cast at the election as provided in RSA 659:101.|||Source. 1979, 436:1. 2010, 182:14, eff. June 21, 2010.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:54 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:54 - Immaterial Defects.

    659:54 Immaterial Defects. –||No absentee ballot shall be rejected by the moderator for any immaterial addition, omission, or irregularity in the preparation or execution of any writing or affidavit required herein.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:54-a (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:54-a - Immaterial Defects; Electronically Transmitted Absentee Ballots.

    659:54-a Immaterial Defects;  Electronically Transmitted Absentee Ballots. –|| No electronically transmitted absentee ballot shall be rejected by the moderator for any ballot, envelope, or affidavit weight, size, or color, or any ink font size, alignment, or color.|||Source. 2010, 317:44, eff. July 18, 2010.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:55 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:55 - Absentee Voter Not to Vote in Person.

    659:55 Absentee Voter Not to Vote in Person. –||Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if a red ink "A.V." is properly placed against the name of a voter who has voted by absentee ballot, that voter against whose name the red ink "A.V." has been properly placed and who has voted by absentee ballot shall not be permitted to vote in person. The ballot clerk shall notify the moderator if a voter appears at the polling place on election day to vote and that voter's name has been marked as voting absentee on the checklist.|||Source. 1979, 436:1. 2014, 116:1, eff. Aug. 10, 2014.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:55-a (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:55-a - Repealed by 2020, 14:13, IV, eff. Jan. 1, 2021.

    659:55-a Repealed by 2020, 14:13, IV, eff. Jan. 1, 2021. –|
NH Rev Stat § 659:56 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:56 - Certification of Checklist.

    659:56 Certification of Checklist. –||After the closing of the polls at a state election, the moderator and the town or ward clerk shall certify on the checklist used by them that such checklist is in fact the one used by them at said election and that it contains a correct and complete list of the legal voters in their town or ward.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:57 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:57 - Transfer of Checklist.

    659:57 Transfer of Checklist. –||The certified checklist shall be used to prepare the election return as provided in RSA 659:74 and shall then be delivered to the supervisors by the town or ward clerk.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:58 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:58 - Disqualification of Officials.

    659:58 Disqualification of Officials. –||Any election official, other than the moderator, who is also a candidate for office shall not be allowed to remain within the guardrail during the counting of votes for an office for which he is a candidate. Such official shall disqualify himself from election duties relating to the tabulation of votes; and the moderator shall appoint an assistant who shall take the same oath as, serve in the same capacity as, and have all the powers of the election official who is disqualified until such official may properly return.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:59 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:59 - Optional Counting of Votes at Additional Polling Places.

    659:59 Optional Counting of Votes at Additional Polling Places. –||The moderator may order the assistant moderator in writing to process absentee ballots and to count the votes cast at the additional polling place in the presence of and with the assistance of the assistant town clerk and election officials in the manner prescribed by this chapter. After the processing of absentee ballots and the counting are complete, the assistant moderator shall place the counted ballots in the ballot box and shall seal it, and the assistant town clerk shall certify the same. The assistant moderator shall also seal in a package the duplicate checklists used at the additional polling place together with the absentee envelopes and the spoiled and unused ballots; and he, together with the assistant town clerk, shall immediately deliver the ballot box, checklists, absentee envelopes, unused and spoiled ballots, and a written report of his count signed by him and the assistant town clerk to the moderator of the town at the central polling place. If the moderator does not order the counting as provided herein, the assistant moderator shall comply with the provisions of RSA 659:62.|||Source. 1979, 436:1. 1981, 454:7, eff. Aug. 22, 1981.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:60 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:60 - Duties of Moderator.

    659:60 Duties of Moderator. –||The moderator, or the moderator pro tempore if the moderator is disqualified under RSA 658:24, shall oversee the counting of votes by other election officers, including the selectmen and the town clerk, and may discharge any other duties relating to the counting of votes.|||Source. 1979, 436:1. 1999, 31:1, eff. July 10, 1999.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:61 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:61 - Votes Counted After Processing of Absentee Ballots.

    659:61 Votes Counted After Processing of Absentee Ballots. –||After all absentee ballots have been processed, or processed and counted, as provided in RSA 659:49-55, and after the polls have closed, the election officials, except those disqualified in accordance with RSA 659:58, shall, under the supervision of the moderator, immediately begin counting the votes cast at the election. The moderator may use the assistance of a person appointed by the secretary of state or the attorney general to assist in the completion of the election return forms.|||Source. 1979, 436:1. 1981, 454:8. 1987, 371:2. 2010, 317:45, eff. July 18, 2010.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:62 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:62 - Return of Materials From Additional Polling Place.

    659:62 Return of Materials From Additional Polling Place. –||Except as provided in RSA 659:59, upon the closing of the polls at each additional polling place, the ballot box at such polling place shall be sealed by the assistant moderator. Such sealing shall be done in the presence of the inspectors of election and shall be certified by the assistant clerk at such polling place. The assistant moderator shall also seal in a package the duplicate checklists used at the additional polling place together with the unused and spoiled ballots. The ballot box and the package shall be delivered to the moderator at the central polling place without unnecessary delay and with the seals unbroken by 2 election officials designated by the assistant moderator. Such 2 election officials shall be of different political parties.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:63 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:63 - Counting to be Public.

    659:63 Counting to be Public. –||The counting of votes shall be public and conducted within the guardrail and shall not be adjourned nor postponed until it shall have been completed. No ballot shall be placed within 4 feet of the guardrail during the counting of votes.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:64 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:64 - Determining Intention of Voter.

    659:64 Determining Intention of Voter. –||If a ballot is marked for any office in a way which does not readily admit of counting or if a disagreement over how to count the ballot for any office occurs among the election officers present and counting votes, then the ballot shall be counted for that office in accordance with the majority vote of the election officials present and counting votes; provided that, if no alternative count receives a majority vote, the ballot shall be regarded as defective for that office as provided in RSA 659:65.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:64-a (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:64-a - Counting Write-In Votes.

    659:64-a Counting Write-In Votes. –||I. In a town or city that uses a ballot counting device approved by the ballot law commission pursuant to RSA 656:40 and which prints an image of all write-in votes as part of the device's report of votes cast, a moderator may use the printed images to count write-in votes in place of examining each ballot to obtain the name of the person who received a write-in vote.||II. The moderator shall cause all write-in votes, whether viewed on the ballot or on the print out, to be examined for write-in votes that are for a person whose name is printed on the ballot as a candidate. Provided the voter did not overvote for that office, a write-in vote for a person whose name is on the ballot, shall be counted as a vote for that candidate. The moderator shall include that vote in the total of the number of votes cast for that candidate, adding votes by write-in to votes by a marked oval.||III. A ballot where the voter marked the oval beside the name of a candidate whose name is printed on the ballot and also wrote that same candidates name in as a write-in shall be counted as one vote for that candidate. The moderator shall include that one vote in the total number of votes cast for that candidate. The write-in shall not be counted separately as a write-in vote.||IV. If the moderator shall not use the device report of printed images of write-in votes to fulfill the requirement for publicly announcing all persons receiving votes and the number of votes that person received, the printed images shall be stored for future reference and kept in the possession of the town or city clerk. If write in votes are tallied using the device report, the report shall be marked "name on ballot" or "NOB" beside each write-in vote that was counted as a vote for a candidate whose name was printed on the ballot.||V. If the device report is used to tally write-in votes, a copy of the report shall be preserved with the ballots used at the election. The printed report showing the write-in votes in the voter's handwriting shall be a non-public record, and shall be exempt from RSA 91-A. The moderator shall also provide the clerk with a copy of the printed images of all write-in votes to be available as a non-public record to assist with post-election reporting.||VI. For all state elections, if used in the ballot counting process, the moderator and the clerk shall retain a copy of the printed images of all write-in votes to be available for reference if needed to resolve questions regarding the return of votes. The copy shall be a non-public document and shall be stored and used in a manner that limits the risk of exposing, through recognition of handwriting, the candidate written in by any voter.|||Source. 2020, 23:8, eff. July 17, 2020.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:65 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:65 - Defective Ballots.

    659:65 Defective Ballots. –||A ballot shall be regarded as defective in whole or in part and shall not be counted in whole or in part as follows:||I. A ballot shall be regarded as defective in whole and shall not be counted in whole if either or both of the following conditions exist:||(a) The ballot does not have printed upon it the official endorsement in accordance with RSA 656:17, unless it has been prepared in accordance with RSA 658:35.||(b) No count of the ballot for any office received a majority vote of the election officials as provided in RSA 659:64.||II. A ballot shall be regarded as defective in part and that part shall not be tabulated if either or both of the following conditions exist:||(a) No count of the ballot for one or more (but less than all) offices received a majority vote of the election officials as provided in RSA 659:64, but the count of the ballot for the other offices results in no disagreement or can be agreed on by majority vote as provided in RSA 659:64.||(b) The ballot has attached to it an adhesive slip, sticker, or paster not prepared in accordance with RSA 656:21 in the space for any office, but the rest of the ballot admits to counting as provided in subparagraph II(a).|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:66 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:66 - Repealed by 2007, 1:2, III, eff. June 15, 2007.

    659:66 Repealed by 2007, 1:2, III, eff. June 15, 2007. –|
NH Rev Stat § 659:67 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:67 - Write-In Votes.

    659:67 Write-In Votes. –||In the case of a write-in vote for a candidate whose name appears on the ballot as the nominee of a party for the same office, said write-in vote shall be counted as an additional vote for said candidate; but the said individual ballot shall be counted as only one vote for the same person for the same office.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:68 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:68 - Repealed by 1996, 36:12, eff. June 23, 1996.

    659:68 Repealed by 1996, 36:12, eff. June 23, 1996. –|
NH Rev Stat § 659:69 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:69 - Counting Votes on Different Party Ballots.

    659:69 Counting Votes on Different Party Ballots. –||Votes cast for the same person for the same office on the ballots of different parties at any primary election shall not be added together but shall be credited to the party on whose ballot his name appears and the vote is cast.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:70 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:70 - Final Counting; Result.

    659:70 Final Counting;  Result. –||The final count of all votes on all ballots cast at the central and additional polling places, if any, shall be combined and the moderator shall announce the final count for each office and question.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979. 2020, 35:6, eff. Sept. 26, 2020.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:71 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:71 - When to Prepare Return.

    659:71 When to Prepare Return. –||After the tabulation of votes has been completed and the result has been announced by the moderator as provided in RSA 659:70, the town or ward clerk shall prepare the election return in the presence of the other election officials.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:72 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:72 - Secretary of State to Prepare Return Blanks.

    659:72 Secretary of State to Prepare Return Blanks. –||Prior to any state election, the secretary of state shall prepare and distribute to each town, city, or ward clerk election return forms together with such instructions as the secretary of state shall deem necessary.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:74 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:74 - Preparing Return.

    659:74 Preparing Return. –||The town or ward clerk shall prepare the election return in duplicate on the forms supplied by the secretary of state and shall sign and shall certify such returns.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:75 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:75 - Forwarding; Retaining Copies of Return.

    659:75 Forwarding;  Retaining Copies of Return. –||One copy of the election return shall be forwarded by the town or ward clerk to the secretary of state in both paper and electronic form no later than 8:00 a.m. on the day following a state election unless the secretary of state orders them at a different time and date. The other shall be kept by the town or city clerk in accordance with RSA 33-A:3-a and shall be open to public inspection at reasonable times. If an official state election return is sealed along with the ballots, the clerk having custody of the sealed ballots shall, at the request of the secretary of state, and in the presence of a state election official, unseal the ballots and retrieve the election return. The ballots shall be immediately resealed and the election return shall be delivered to the secretary of state by the election official.|||Source. 1979, 436:1. 1994, 4:17. 2007, 75:1. 2010, 317:80. 2011, 185:3, eff. Jan. 1, 2012.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:76 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:76 - Return From Unincorporated Place.

    659:76 Return From Unincorporated Place. –||As provided in RSA 668:7, the town clerk shall prepare and forward a return of the votes cast in his town by voters of unincorporated places, if any, in the same manner as provided in RSA 659:71-75.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:77 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:77 - General Neglect by Town or Ward Moderator and Clerk.

    659:77 General Neglect by Town or Ward Moderator and Clerk. –||I. If any moderator shall intentionally neglect to cause an accurate count to be made of the votes cast as required by law, for which no other penalty is provided, he or she shall be guilty of a violation.||II. If any town or ward clerk shall intentionally neglect to make any return of votes required by law, for which neglect no other penalty is provided, he or she shall be guilty of a violation.||III. If a return of votes is not timely submitted or is submitted with significant defects, if a recount discloses that the election night vote count was significantly inaccurate, or if other significant deficiencies in the conduct of an election are documented the secretary of state shall report the same to the attorney general. Upon a finding by the attorney general that the late submission, miscount, or other significant deficiency was due to lack of training, lack of established procedures, negligence, or misconduct, the secretary of state in consultation with the attorney general shall appoint an election monitor who shall be an individual trained in the conduct of elections and who shall attend portions of the ballot casting and all of the ballot counting to monitor the next election conducted in that town or ward. The finding of the attorney general may be appealed to the ballot law commission.||IV. An election monitor appointed under paragraph III shall have full access to the polling place, including authority to directly observe the registration of voters on election day, the checking in of voters by inspectors of elections, assistance to voters with disabilities, the use of the accessible voting system, the receipt of ballots, the processing of absentee ballots, and the counting of ballots, and may handle marked ballots for the purposes of instruction during the counting and tabulating process.||V. An election monitor appointed under paragraph III may provide training and guidance to the moderator and clerk who conducts the election. The election monitor shall issue a public written report within 30 days following the election to the voters of the town or ward, the secretary of state, and the attorney general, which shall be posted on the secretary of state's website, documenting the extent to which the town or ward complies with state law and utilizes the best practices set forth in the election procedures manual and the on-line training available on the secretary of state's website in conducting the monitored election.|||Source. 1979, 436:1. 2010, 317:48. 2011, 185:4, eff. Jan. 1, 2012.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:78 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:78 - Late Return.

    659:78 Late Return. –||Whenever the election return of any town or ward has not been received by the secretary of state by 8:00 a.m. on the day after a state election, the secretary of state shall so notify the attorney general and the moderator, the selectmen, and the clerk of the town or ward who shall forward such return forthwith.|||Source. 1979, 436:1. 2010, 317:49, eff. July 18, 2010.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:79 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:79 - Incorrect or Incomplete Return; Amendment.

    659:79 Incorrect or Incomplete Return;  Amendment. –||If a town or ward clerk shall make an incorrect or incomplete election return, the moderator may require that clerk, at his or her own expense, to appear and amend the return according to the facts within 4 hours of receipt of notification from the secretary of state. If the clerk shall refuse to appear and amend the return, he or she shall be guilty of a violation.|||Source. 1979, 436:1. 2010, 317:50, eff. July 18, 2010.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:80 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:80 - False Return.

    659:80 False Return. –||If a town or ward clerk shall knowingly make a false election return, he shall be guilty of a class B felony.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|
NH Rev Stat § 659:81 (2021)
2021 New Hampshire Revised Statutes|Title LXIII - Elections|Title 659 - Election Procedure|Section 659:81 - Canvass and Declaration Generally.

    659:81 Canvass and Declaration Generally. –||Except as provided in RSA 659:82, when the secretary of state has received the returns for an office from all towns or wards comprising the elective district for that office, he shall examine, record and total such returns and shall declare elected to the office the same number of persons as the number of officers to which the district is entitled; provided that those persons declared officers-elect shall be those persons who received the highest number of votes cast for said office.|||Source. 1979, 436:1, eff. July 1, 1979.|