California Code of Regulations › Title 2 - Administration › Division 7 - Secretary of State › Chapter 4.5 - Uniform Vote Counting Standards › Section 20283 - Optical Scan Voting Systems

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 28, July 12, 2024
(a) When
				optical scan technology is used to count the votes on a ballot, the provisions
				of this section shall apply.
(b)
				The following standards shall be used to determine whether there is a clear
				indication on the ballot that the voter has made a definite choice. The
				examples used in this section refer to the "voting position target" as defined
				in Section 20281. The same principles demonstrated in the examples below shall
				apply to all types of voting position targets on optical scan ballots,
				regardless of what form they may take (e.g., rectangle, oval, circle, square,
				open arrow).
(c) A voter's choice
				shall be considered a valid vote if the voter:
(1) Indicates their vote choice by
				consistently filling inside the entire voting position target.
(2) Indicates their vote choice by
				consistently filling in less than the entire voting position target for all
				vote choices on the ballot and the ballot is processed in a manner consistent
				with the use procedures provided and approved for the voting system used in the
				county.
(3) Indicates their vote
				choice by consistently placing a distinctive mark, such as (X) or ([TICK]) or
				([LEFTWARDS ARROW]), inside the associated voting position target for a
				candidate choice or ballot measure.
(4) Indicates their vote choice by
				consistently placing a distinctive mark, such as (X) or ([TICK]) or ([LEFTWARDS
				ARROW]), in the corresponding space directly above, below or beside the
				associated voting position target for a candidate or ballot measure.
(5) Marks their vote choices by encircling
				the entire voting position target for a candidate or ballot measure, or the
				candidate's name or Yes/No option for a measure.
(6) Indicates a voting error correction by
				using correction tape, strikeover, white-out or generic written note of
				instruction and marks another vote choice for the same contest on the
				ballot.
(7) Writes in a qualified
				write-in candidate's name, or a reasonable facsimile of the spelling of the
				name, in the designated write-in spaces directly below the list of candidates
				for that office and marks the associated write-in voting target
				position.
(8) Writes in a listed
				candidate's name in the designated write-in space and marks the associated
				write-in voting target position. In such case, the vote shall be counted as a
				single vote for the listed candidate.
(9) Marks a voting target position for a
				listed candidate and also enters the listed candidate's name in the designated
				candidate write-in space. In such case, the vote shall be counted as a single
				vote for the listed candidate.
(10)
				Writes in a qualified write-in candidate's name, or a reasonable facsimile of
				the spelling of the name, on the secrecy sleeve envelope or stub and indicates
				the contest for which the vote is being cast, in the case of voting systems
				where write-in spaces appear separately from the list of candidates for an
				office and do not provide voting position targets.