Arkansas Code of 1987 (2023) › Title 7 - ELECTIONS (§§ 7-1-101 — 7-11-303) › Chapter 5 - ELECTION PROCEDURE GENERALLY (§§ 7-5-101 — 7-5-906) › Subchapter 5 - VOTING MACHINES (§§ 7-5-501 — 7-5-532) › Section 7-5-504 - Machine specifications

No make of voting machine shall be approved for use unless it is so constructed that:
(1)
It will ensure secrecy to the voter in the act of voting;
(2)
It shall provide the capacity for voting for or against as many questions as may be submitted;
(3)
It shall permit the voter to vote separately for the candidate of his or her choice for each office or position to be voted upon and to vote separately on each issue to be decided by election;
(4)
It shall permit the voter to vote for as many persons for an office for whom he or she is lawfully entitled to vote, but no more;
(5)
It shall prevent the voter from voting for the same candidate or question more than one (1) time;
(6)
It shall permit the voter to verify in a private and independent manner the votes selected by the voter on the ballot before the ballot is cast;
(7)
It shall provide the voter with the opportunity in a private and independent manner to change the ballot or correct any error before the ballot is cast;
(8)
If it is a direct recording electronic voting machine, it shall include a voter-verified paper audit trail, except as provided under §
7-5-301(b)
;
(9)
If the voter is legally entitled to select only one (1) candidate for an office but the voter selects more than one (1) candidate for the office, it shall notify the voter before the ballot is cast that he or she has selected more than one (1) candidate for the office on the ballot, notify the voter of the effect of casting multiple votes for the office, and provide the voter with the opportunity to correct the ballot before the ballot is cast;
(10)
It shall permit the voter to vote for or against any question on which he or she may have the right to vote, but no other;
(11)
It shall be capable of being programmed to display for voting purposes only the voter's proper ballot;
(12)
It shall correctly register and record and accurately count all votes cast for any and all persons and for or against any and all questions;
(13)
It shall be provided with a protective device to prevent any unauthorized operation of the machine before or after the election;
(14)
It shall be provided with a counter or tabulator which shall show at all times during the election how many persons have voted;
(15)
It shall be so equipped and constructed so that it can be made inaccessible to further voting after the polls have closed and all voters who were in line at the time the polls closed have voted;
(16)
It shall permit a voter to vote in any election for any person for whom he or she wishes to vote when the person's name does not appear upon the voting machine;
(17)
It bears a unique numerical, alphabetical, or alphanumeric sequence identifier that distinguishes it from any other machine;
(18)
It shall be provided with a screen, hood, or partition which shall allow the voter to vote a secret ballot;
(19)
It shall be capable of being operated from an alternate power source should the need arise;
(20)
It shall permit voters with disabilities to vote unassisted if they so desire;
(21)
It shall be:
(A)
Qualified by an authorized federal agency or national testing and standards laboratory which is acceptable to the Secretary of State;
(B)
Approved by the State Board of Election Commissioners; and
(C)
Selected by the Secretary of State; and
(22)
It can operate without a connection to the internet or an external network by:
(A)
A cable;
(B)
A wireless modem; or
(C)
Any other mechanism or process.
Amended by Act 2021, No. 735,§ 2, eff. 7/28/2021.
Amended by Act 2015, No. 1218,§ 5, eff. 7/22/2015.
Acts 1969, No. 465, Art. 12, § 2; A.S.A. 1947, § 3-1202; Acts 2005, No. 654, § 1; 2005, No. 2233, § 11.