Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE ATIORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN
Ronorsba* rohn 8. 8hook
Crlmiml’Dt8triot Attom~
Sal Antoao, Taxa8 _
rm8r 8iri
ab8ontoa VOW8 uhloh voting 08 h8~0 b0.a aa0ptOa otltw ha8 h@rOtOiOra boon followed or 0 p~~8i4hg Orrt0Or in 8Oh g8-eoin0t on the maohinr the rot. aa shown o&s, bet-on tha hours of two and three o'olook as~poovldod br law.
xt i8 our oplnlon that those rote8 should bo oountad and tabulated a8 the otatut* ProvMao." ia a OOWtty where Voting maOhinO8
Absentee Voting ara adopted use ia oontrolled by Sootion 7 of Artiolm *2 Honorable Joha R. Shook, Page 3
89978, Revi8ed awl 3tatute8 0r Texae (arr emended, Aats 1937, 46th Lee., 3u.d 0. S., p. 1933, Ch. 6.9, 8 31 AQta 1939, 46th Leg., P. 301, 9 it).' Thfr statute aqnmm8 the authority oharged with
holding en l leotion, in WmUtfO8 In whloh voting mohiner ale ror U80, to detenlne by proper re8olution and/or ‘adopt*6 order whothar or not voting meahlnes &all be ured rot the oa8ting a? 8brentiea vote8. It mEa8 in part a8 rOiiOW8:
i6ootloa 9. "Absentee Voting. -- fn OOUllti68 in whloh voting luiOhflr8 are adopted ror UOO, etathority ohaxged with holding enbleatidn ahall bt8OXebiOit aeterldno by proper rewlu- wlthlm itB tion eeQ/or 03tdu: whsther or not voting ~aohin~r 8hfiu be UHd iOr the -8tiw Of abeetee vote8 et moh eleotlon. . . ."
Ii it i8 determlned that the oaatlng of eb8entee VOtb8 #ha11 be by II80 Or VotiIl&~Ohior,8, the tabulation Or eUOh V&68 i8 001~~O~iOd by the i6kloriUg prOviSiOu8 Oi the 8t8tut.s . and if it be deterplinrd rruoh author;
t&*vothlg maahine8 rhall be used the oast- ity -1ng of abrrotee VOtO8 at suoh eleotlon, a voting
B~ohine Or~BaOhine8 8h611 be plaoed in the Comty Clerk's ofrim, li an eleatlon held at the XpanSO the oauntJ', or ir a primary eleotion, and if a city or town eleatlon in tha orrio 0r the city or town 8eoret8ry end ir a sohool distriot other eleotion, In a publio plaoe deelgnatod within tho bounderie Oi 8UOh dirtriot or eleotion, with the ballot ot the leotlon thereon as required by law and thO8e entitled under the law, ahall oest their vote on ruoh maohlne or luOhiue8 a8 the 0880 may be, under the 18~8 n6t applloable to abesntse votfngl xoept that the maohlne or maohlnea ehell be sealed et the 0108e the dW8 voting In the prosenoe or authorloed watohlrn, Of all pormps interested, if any, and auoh seal ah811 he brow in the presence ot suoh authorlzsd mtohere, lr any, tho followin morn- ing when votisg shall begin by the pernon authorized by lew Oherged aa ~tha euthorlty holding such eleo- *3 Honorable John B. Shook, Peg8 3 when abaantee voting la legally txmoluded tion.
at IIE laotfon or primary eleotion, auoh rotlag meohiner ahell be loaLe end aeelad In the mmar pre8oribed preolnota, to ba kapt inteot until 7 A.M. at the de of the obotion prinary eleo- tion, at whIoh t 3 ne the mechine meohiner ahell be opened and the~vote OaW6886d by the Xleotion Board holdine euoh eleotion ea provide& by law, and If a prlmary eleotlon, by the Chairmen the Ereo- utile 8ooreter~ of the ISxeoutlve Committee oi the pollbloel party holding 89116, urb tha reoultr of 8uoh ouiva88 rhell be returned by 868llng end bellvertng to the proper euthorlty a8 provlded’by lew and MY auoh remlt8 end/or return8 ah@11 be tabulated and qa~88rad ln th e some manner l na~to( eth er with th e tkbuletion end oenreaaing Of the r8turM t?oP other rot14 preoinot8; however, Rrorlded that the reault8 of 8UOh 6b86nt88 vote8 ahell not be 8nSouBoed OP made jiublio until eftar P.M. 0r the d87 0r the aleo- tion, or primary eliotion, when auoh reatit8 8h8u ba asnouaoed and made publlo together +lth tha genaral remltrr of the elaotlon by proolemetion 02 usie pro?ided law. upon suoh maohtna.~and/or MOhill88 in use ror absantae voting bolng opanad end the v&e oanvaPaed, the came 8hall be lame&Uately pr8parad end 8et ror voting as provided by law and ah11 be U8ed.
ii neoe88ery, in any voting plpeoinot of raid aleotlon or prImmy eleotlon, then bafng held. . . .*
U, however, the euthorrity oherged with holding an aleotion ahall progerlp determine tlmt absentee rotas ah611 be oeat by a mpar ballot, the Oountlng of auoh vote8 la oontrolled by the r0ii0ting provlrlooa the 8tetuter
*should the authority oharged with holding en leotlon determine by auoh re8olutlon a8 above pro- vfdad, that absentee votea oaat~et ruoh leotlon be
paper bellot then end In auoh event the ,"%oxtF charged with iold& auoh eleotion ahah pro- vide a ballot ror the oacltln& or ebaenteo voter a8 pre8arrfbed sad rovlaed b mar81 law8 epplloeble lug and those entitled to alectIone9eu under tho law ahell cast their vote by auoh ballot under B to abaen ee vo t & laws appllcebls to absentee votillpt, govIdIn8, how- *4 Honomble W&n R. iihook, m$e
ever, that on the Bay 0r suoh oleotlon ax&Q in the pfe8enormoi the eleatlon otfloerr one of the judge8 Of l leOtlOn 8hall, betwoanthe hours or E p.m. and b p.m. open the carrier envelope only a8 provided br the law8 l pplioeble to abaoatee votiag, macipnce aeoh end every one oi the @lootera* name8 and oampare the 8%@SatUra upon the l pplloation with the $natre upon the 6?tldavlt on the ballot envelope.
the l lrotioa judge8 @ad the errldav~ta dul7 l x8outed, the l pplloent Is a duly qU8lifiOd l lb oto r or the that pr@Oinot and that he h68 not voted in parwn et ,#a%d they 8ha11 open the envelope wntai.nlng the tiaotion, l leotor*8 ballot In 8uoh manner es not to deieee or drlrtroy the erridavit thereon, take out the ballot thereia oontainsd in the preaeaoe of the watohare, it 8ny, aithout parnittlng mime to be unfo d8d or l 8min- mob l b8ent~o ballot ah611 bo ndmaed theraup b g*tlke preridlqg orrioer 8uoh votiry'~prioinot in auah leotion end depo8ited In en ‘Abaaattie Ballot Box*, juovid~ r0r auoh purpose and the am* 0r e8oh alaotor ballot shall be en%ered in t km poll Voting 8Wh ab8OdOO list and numbered th8 8-6 a8 it ha had been prewnt voted in person a8 8uoh 6baontea ballot8 are de- poalted in tieid absentee ballot box. Artor all suoh ob- #onto@ ballot8 have bean depoaltrd in ruoh ebauntee ballot box, the orriaer8 auoh oleotlon 8h8l.l de8ig- net@ 8uoh of their number will not Interfere wkth tho oninterrupted u8e or voting maohim voter8 during 8ald eleotlon, to thereupon imunedIat@ly prooar@ to opon 8UOh abaantee ballot box, oount and/or tally uoh ab8mlteo ballote, and return the 0enve8a therroi together with tha oenvaaa and returns of the voter oaat on voting maohiaea~.and on tho lorma 68 ~ovlded by law. suoh tally end/or oount of auoh aboeuta@ ballot8 shall be oompleted land be aval&bla for the makin@ of :;;~~mettha time or the oloaIn$ of the polls at auoh
. . . .* ??a oonatrue your letter a8 eoaklng the oplnlon of thi8 ~pertmant upon the .0poirl0 que8tion.or whethereb8entee vote8 imsr be lndioeted on a voting nurohlne wbm absentee ootiEg by pepor ballot has been properly authorized.
In 8UOh situation the statute dOa uot, In our op%n- Ion, authorize the uee ot voting maohIlw8.
. Eonarable John R. Bhook, Page b ve6 that the e tatute proiidm, after the xt is 0
abmntee vote8 ha ooa Qepoeited in an vabaentee ballot box*, that *the offlosrs o? suoh bleation ahall deiegmte euoh of their nwaber as 1111 not interfere wlth,tho uninterrupted use or voting maohiner by the ootere during baia leotion, to thereupon, lsmediatoly iPm%M to open euoh abmntee ballot bm. oount and/or tally auah absentee vote& and return aanvaee therea? together w%th the eanvaee a&d retura of the votem oast on .votlng, maohlnes and on the f anam es protlded by
6 h t lly and/or ocun~3,of uoh abeentee b 11 t hall 6?ioanp&mlaand~ be evailable lor’ the making of rtt.dni~ Xt tlm time or the olosfhg or the poll8 et such eleotlon.* (mphad~ oura. )
Theeb provlsionr of the atatute contemplate the oouut- 1ng of abwntee votea when east by a paper ballot, eeparata aad apart rrom the ta~ulatlon. oi the votes oart on voting ma- chines elootion day, the2 such tabulation shell be prerrented on iormo a8 provided by law, end that It ohall be evallsble alrd oompleted at the time or the eloeiug of the poll8 at euoh eleo- tion.
The statutory’ direction thet *the orriorre or $.Jh leotion ahall deeighato euoh or, their number as aill not in- terrere with the uninterrupted use ot votlng maohiner by.the voter8 during raid eleotlon* is, it Sr believed, merely a re- quireuent that the personnel oZ the oriloere holding the &SO- tloa shall not be reduced to the point of Snterferenoe dth the .uulnterrupted use or voting maohinea by the votere on the day of the eleotion. by reason of the absenoe of those engaged in oounting the absentee votes. lt 16 the personnel or the eleo- tlon orfloere that shall not be reduosd to suoh point rather then the uunber of voting neohlnes available to the voters, and therefore does not lndloate a legislative ~requirement that the voting naohines are to be used in the tabulation or ebaentee voter when suoh votes were caet by a paper ballot. .
Aooordingly, you ore reeimotrullp advised that it is the oplnlon of this De artment that votiog maohinee may not be absentee votes cast by paper ballots is used in the oount I%3 0 oountlso where vo ing machines are adopted u%e, when, PUS- $ p euant to Seotlon 7 of .%rtlole %997a, as emended, the euthorlty cherged with holdi~hg, the election has deterrnihed that absentee
Honorablr John R. Shook, Page 6
Totem at auoh leotioa aball, be oaat bJi a paper ballot.
The oountlng and oanvaaa thereof aust be separate and apart rrca mat the votes oast on eleotion day by the ui3e of the v&&n& maohfnas, and in the mennet provfded in the statute rnd tlIae~saa)(I herd&above.
Your8 very truly ATTORNBY W3XFiAL OF TiCXAS APPROVEDOCT 10, 1940
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ATTORNEY GENEX3AL OF TEXAS