§ 163‑182.1. Principlesand rules for counting official ballots.
(a) General PrinciplesThat Shall Apply. The following general principles shall apply in thecounting of official ballots, whether the initial count or any recount:
(1) Only official ballotsshall be counted.
(2) No official ballotshall be rejected because of technical errors in marking it, unless it isimpossible to clearly determine the voter's choice.
(3) If it is impossibleto clearly determine a voter's choice in a ballot item, the official ballotshall not be counted for that ballot item, but shall be counted in all otherballot items in which the voter's choice can be clearly determined.
(4) If an officialballot is marked in a ballot item with more choices than there are offices to befilled or propositions that may prevail, the official ballot shall not becounted for that ballot item, but shall be counted in all other ballot items inwhich there is no overvote and the voter's choice can be clearly determined.
(5) If an official ballotis rejected by a scanner or other counting machine, but human counters canclearly determine the voter's choice, the official ballot shall be counted byhand and eye.
(6) Write‑in votesshall not be counted in party primaries or in referenda, but shall be countedin general elections if all of the following are true:
a. The write‑invote is written by the voter or by a person authorized to assist the voterpursuant to G.S. 163‑166.8.
b. The write‑invote is not cast for a candidate who has failed to qualify under G.S. 163‑123as a write‑in candidate.
c. The voter's choicecan be clearly determined.
(7) Straight‑partyticket and split‑ticket votes shall be counted in general electionsaccording to the following guidelines:
a. If a voter casts avote for a straight‑party ticket, that vote shall be counted for all thecandidates of that party, other than those for President and Vice President, inthe partisan ballot items on that official ballot except as otherwise providedin this subdivision.
b. If a voter casts avote for a straight‑party ticket and also votes in a partisan ballot itemfor a candidate not of that party, the official ballot shall be counted in thatballot item only for the individually marked candidate. In partisan ballotitems where no mark is made for an individual candidate, the official ballotshall be counted for the candidates of the party whose straight ticket thevoter voted.
c. If a voter casts avote for a straight‑party ticket and also casts a write‑in vote inany partisan ballot item, the straight‑party ticket vote shall notcontrol the way the official ballot is counted in that ballot item, except tothe extent it would control in the case of crossover voting under thissubdivision. The following principles shall apply:
1. If the write‑invote is proper under subdivision (6) of this subsection, that write‑incandidate shall receive a vote.
2. If the write‑invote is not proper under subdivision (6) of this subsection and no othercandidate is individually marked in that ballot item, then no vote shall becounted in that ballot item.
3. If the straight‑ticketvoter casts both write‑in votes and individually marked votes for ballotcandidates in a ballot item, then the write‑in and individually markedvotes shall be counted unless the write‑in is not proper undersubdivision (6) of this subsection or an overvote results.
(b) Procedures andStandards. The State Board of Elections shall adopt uniform andnondiscriminatory procedures and standards for voting systems. The standardsshall define what constitutes a vote and what will be counted as a vote foreach category of voting system used in the State. The State Board shall adoptthose procedures and standards at a meeting occurring not earlier than 15 daysafter the State Board gives notice of the meeting. The procedures and standardsadopted shall apply to all elections occurring in the State and shall besubject to amendment or repeal by the State Board acting at any meeting wherenotice that the action has been proposed has been given at least 15 days beforethe meeting. These procedures and standards shall not be considered to be rulessubject to Article 2A of Chapter 150B of the General Statutes. However, theState Board shall publish in the North Carolina Register the procedures andstandards and any changes to them after adoption, with that publication notedas information helpful to the public under G.S. 150B‑21.17(a)(6). Copiesof those procedures and standards shall be made available to the public uponrequest or otherwise by the State Board. For optical scan and direct recordelectronic voting systems, and for any other voting systems in which ballotsare counted other than on paper by hand and eye, those procedures and standardsshall do both of the following:
(1) Provide for a samplehand‑to‑eye count of the paper ballots or paper records of astatewide ballot item in every county. The presidential ballot item shall bethe subject of the sampling in a presidential election. If there is nostatewide ballot item, the State Board shall provide a process for selectingdistrict or local ballot items to adequately sample the electorate. The StateBoard shall approve in an open meeting the procedure for randomly selecting thesample precincts for each election. The random selection of precincts for anycounty shall be done publicly after the initial count of election returns forthat county is publicly released or 24 hours after the polls close on electionday, whichever is earlier. The sample chosen by the State Board shall be of oneor more full precincts, full counts of mailed absentee ballots, full counts ofone or more one‑stop early voting sites, or a combination. The size ofthe sample of each category shall be chosen to produce a statisticallysignificant result and shall be chosen after consultation with a statistician.The actual units shall be chosen at random. In the event of a materialdiscrepancy between the electronic or mechanical count and a hand‑to‑eyecount, the hand‑to‑eye count shall control, except where paper ballotsor records have been lost or destroyed or where there is another reasonablebasis to conclude that the hand‑to‑eye count is not the true count.If the discrepancy between the hand‑to‑eye count and the mechanicalor electronic count is significant, a complete hand‑to‑eye countshall be conducted.
(2) Provide that if thevoter selects votes for more than the number of candidates to be elected orproposals to be approved in a ballot item, the voting system shall do all thefollowing:
a. Notify the voter thatthe voter has selected more than the correct number of candidates or proposalsin the ballot item.
b. Notify the voterbefore the vote is accepted and counted of the effect of casting overvotes inthe ballot item.
c. Provide the voterwith the opportunity to correct the official ballot before it is accepted andcounted. (2001‑398,s. 3; 2003‑226, s. 13; 2005‑323, s. 5(a); 2006‑192, s. 7(a);2006‑264, s. 76(b).)
§ 163‑182.1. Principlesand rules for counting official ballots.
(a) General PrinciplesThat Shall Apply. The following general principles shall apply in thecounting of official ballots, whether the initial count or any recount:
(1) Only official ballotsshall be counted.
(2) No official ballotshall be rejected because of technical errors in marking it, unless it isimpossible to clearly determine the voter's choice.
(3) If it is impossibleto clearly determine a voter's choice in a ballot item, the official ballotshall not be counted for that ballot item, but shall be counted in all otherballot items in which the voter's choice can be clearly determined.
(4) If an officialballot is marked in a ballot item with more choices than there are offices to befilled or propositions that may prevail, the official ballot shall not becounted for that ballot item, but shall be counted in all other ballot items inwhich there is no overvote and the voter's choice can be clearly determined.
(5) If an official ballotis rejected by a scanner or other counting machine, but human counters canclearly determine the voter's choice, the official ballot shall be counted byhand and eye.
(6) Write‑in votesshall not be counted in party primaries or in referenda, but shall be countedin general elections if all of the following are true:
a. The write‑invote is written by the voter or by a person authorized to assist the voterpursuant to G.S. 163‑166.8.
b. The write‑invote is not cast for a candidate who has failed to qualify under G.S. 163‑123as a write‑in candidate.
c. The voter's choicecan be clearly determined.
(7) Straight‑partyticket and split‑ticket votes shall be counted in general electionsaccording to the following guidelines:
a. If a voter casts avote for a straight‑party ticket, that vote shall be counted for all thecandidates of that party, other than those for President and Vice President, inthe partisan ballot items on that official ballot except as otherwise providedin this subdivision.
b. If a voter casts avote for a straight‑party ticket and also votes in a partisan ballot itemfor a candidate not of that party, the official ballot shall be counted in thatballot item only for the individually marked candidate. In partisan ballotitems where no mark is made for an individual candidate, the official ballotshall be counted for the candidates of the party whose straight ticket thevoter voted.
c. If a voter casts avote for a straight‑party ticket and also casts a write‑in vote inany partisan ballot item, the straight‑party ticket vote shall notcontrol the way the official ballot is counted in that ballot item, except tothe extent it would control in the case of crossover voting under thissubdivision. The following principles shall apply:
1. If the write‑invote is proper under subdivision (6) of this subsection, that write‑incandidate shall receive a vote.
2. If the write‑invote is not proper under subdivision (6) of this subsection and no othercandidate is individually marked in that ballot item, then no vote shall becounted in that ballot item.
3. If the straight‑ticketvoter casts both write‑in votes and individually marked votes for ballotcandidates in a ballot item, then the write‑in and individually markedvotes shall be counted unless the write‑in is not proper undersubdivision (6) of this subsection or an overvote results.
(b) Procedures andStandards. The State Board of Elections shall adopt uniform andnondiscriminatory procedures and standards for voting systems. The standardsshall define what constitutes a vote and what will be counted as a vote foreach category of voting system used in the State. The State Board shall adoptthose procedures and standards at a meeting occurring not earlier than 15 daysafter the State Board gives notice of the meeting. The procedures and standardsadopted shall apply to all elections occurring in the State and shall besubject to amendment or repeal by the State Board acting at any meeting wherenotice that the action has been proposed has been given at least 15 days beforethe meeting. These procedures and standards shall not be considered to be rulessubject to Article 2A of Chapter 150B of the General Statutes. However, theState Board shall publish in the North Carolina Register the procedures andstandards and any changes to them after adoption, with that publication notedas information helpful to the public under G.S. 150B‑21.17(a)(6). Copiesof those procedures and standards shall be made available to the public uponrequest or otherwise by the State Board. For optical scan and direct recordelectronic voting systems, and for any other voting systems in which ballotsare counted other than on paper by hand and eye, those procedures and standardsshall do both of the following:
(1) Provide for a samplehand‑to‑eye count of the paper ballots or paper records of astatewide ballot item in every county. The presidential ballot item shall bethe subject of the sampling in a presidential election. If there is nostatewide ballot item, the State Board shall provide a process for selectingdistrict or local ballot items to adequately sample the electorate. The StateBoard shall approve in an open meeting the procedure for randomly selecting thesample precincts for each election. The random selection of precincts for anycounty shall be done publicly after the initial count of election returns forthat county is publicly released or 24 hours after the polls close on electionday, whichever is earlier. The sample chosen by the State Board shall be of oneor more full precincts, full counts of mailed absentee ballots, full counts ofone or more one‑stop early voting sites, or a combination. The size ofthe sample of each category shall be chosen to produce a statisticallysignificant result and shall be chosen after consultation with a statistician.The actual units shall be chosen at random. In the event of a materialdiscrepancy between the electronic or mechanical count and a hand‑to‑eyecount, the hand‑to‑eye count shall control, except where paper ballotsor records have been lost or destroyed or where there is another reasonablebasis to conclude that the hand‑to‑eye count is not the true count.If the discrepancy between the hand‑to‑eye count and the mechanicalor electronic count is significant, a complete hand‑to‑eye countshall be conducted.
(2) Provide that if thevoter selects votes for more than the number of candidates to be elected orproposals to be approved in a ballot item, the voting system shall do all thefollowing:
a. Notify the voter thatthe voter has selected more than the correct number of candidates or proposalsin the ballot item.
b. Notify the voterbefore the vote is accepted and counted of the effect of casting overvotes inthe ballot item.
c. Provide the voterwith the opportunity to correct the official ballot before it is accepted andcounted. (2001‑398,s. 3; 2003‑226, s. 13; 2005‑323, s. 5(a); 2006‑192, s. 7(a);2006‑264, s. 76(b).)
§ 163‑182.1. Principlesand rules for counting official ballots.
(a) General PrinciplesThat Shall Apply. The following general principles shall apply in thecounting of official ballots, whether the initial count or any recount:
(1) Only official ballotsshall be counted.
(2) No official ballotshall be rejected because of technical errors in marking it, unless it isimpossible to clearly determine the voter's choice.
(3) If it is impossibleto clearly determine a voter's choice in a ballot item, the official ballotshall not be counted for that ballot item, but shall be counted in all otherballot items in which the voter's choice can be clearly determined.
(4) If an officialballot is marked in a ballot item with more choices than there are offices to befilled or propositions that may prevail, the official ballot shall not becounted for that ballot item, but shall be counted in all other ballot items inwhich there is no overvote and the voter's choice can be clearly determined.
(5) If an official ballotis rejected by a scanner or other counting machine, but human counters canclearly determine the voter's choice, the official ballot shall be counted byhand and eye.
(6) Write‑in votesshall not be counted in party primaries or in referenda, but shall be countedin general elections if all of the following are true:
a. The write‑invote is written by the voter or by a person authorized to assist the voterpursuant to G.S. 163‑166.8.
b. The write‑invote is not cast for a candidate who has failed to qualify under G.S. 163‑123as a write‑in candidate.
c. The voter's choicecan be clearly determined.
(7) Straight‑partyticket and split‑ticket votes shall be counted in general electionsaccording to the following guidelines:
a. If a voter casts avote for a straight‑party ticket, that vote shall be counted for all thecandidates of that party, other than those for President and Vice President, inthe partisan ballot items on that official ballot except as otherwise providedin this subdivision.
b. If a voter casts avote for a straight‑party ticket and also votes in a partisan ballot itemfor a candidate not of that party, the official ballot shall be counted in thatballot item only for the individually marked candidate. In partisan ballotitems where no mark is made for an individual candidate, the official ballotshall be counted for the candidates of the party whose straight ticket thevoter voted.
c. If a voter casts avote for a straight‑party ticket and also casts a write‑in vote inany partisan ballot item, the straight‑party ticket vote shall notcontrol the way the official ballot is counted in that ballot item, except tothe extent it would control in the case of crossover voting under thissubdivision. The following principles shall apply:
1. If the write‑invote is proper under subdivision (6) of this subsection, that write‑incandidate shall receive a vote.
2. If the write‑invote is not proper under subdivision (6) of this subsection and no othercandidate is individually marked in that ballot item, then no vote shall becounted in that ballot item.
3. If the straight‑ticketvoter casts both write‑in votes and individually marked votes for ballotcandidates in a ballot item, then the write‑in and individually markedvotes shall be counted unless the write‑in is not proper undersubdivision (6) of this subsection or an overvote results.
(b) Procedures andStandards. The State Board of Elections shall adopt uniform andnondiscriminatory procedures and standards for voting systems. The standardsshall define what constitutes a vote and what will be counted as a vote foreach category of voting system used in the State. The State Board shall adoptthose procedures and standards at a meeting occurring not earlier than 15 daysafter the State Board gives notice of the meeting. The procedures and standardsadopted shall apply to all elections occurring in the State and shall besubject to amendment or repeal by the State Board acting at any meeting wherenotice that the action has been proposed has been given at least 15 days beforethe meeting. These procedures and standards shall not be considered to be rulessubject to Article 2A of Chapter 150B of the General Statutes. However, theState Board shall publish in the North Carolina Register the procedures andstandards and any changes to them after adoption, with that publication notedas information helpful to the public under G.S. 150B‑21.17(a)(6). Copiesof those procedures and standards shall be made available to the public uponrequest or otherwise by the State Board. For optical scan and direct recordelectronic voting systems, and for any other voting systems in which ballotsare counted other than on paper by hand and eye, those procedures and standardsshall do both of the following:
(1) Provide for a samplehand‑to‑eye count of the paper ballots or paper records of astatewide ballot item in every county. The presidential ballot item shall bethe subject of the sampling in a presidential election. If there is nostatewide ballot item, the State Board shall provide a process for selectingdistrict or local ballot items to adequately sample the electorate. The StateBoard shall approve in an open meeting the procedure for randomly selecting thesample precincts for each election. The random selection of precincts for anycounty shall be done publicly after the initial count of election returns forthat county is publicly released or 24 hours after the polls close on electionday, whichever is earlier. The sample chosen by the State Board shall be of oneor more full precincts, full counts of mailed absentee ballots, full counts ofone or more one‑stop early voting sites, or a combination. The size ofthe sample of each category shall be chosen to produce a statisticallysignificant result and shall be chosen after consultation with a statistician.The actual units shall be chosen at random. In the event of a materialdiscrepancy between the electronic or mechanical count and a hand‑to‑eyecount, the hand‑to‑eye count shall control, except where paper ballotsor records have been lost or destroyed or where there is another reasonablebasis to conclude that the hand‑to‑eye count is not the true count.If the discrepancy between the hand‑to‑eye count and the mechanicalor electronic count is significant, a complete hand‑to‑eye countshall be conducted.
(2) Provide that if thevoter selects votes for more than the number of candidates to be elected orproposals to be approved in a ballot item, the voting system shall do all thefollowing:
a. Notify the voter thatthe voter has selected more than the correct number of candidates or proposalsin the ballot item.
b. Notify the voterbefore the vote is accepted and counted of the effect of casting overvotes inthe ballot item.
c. Provide the voterwith the opportunity to correct the official ballot before it is accepted andcounted. (2001‑398,s. 3; 2003‑226, s. 13; 2005‑323, s. 5(a); 2006‑192, s. 7(a);2006‑264, s. 76(b).)
