Sec. 778.
The clerk of a city, village, or township in which voting machines are used shall have complete control of the machines. However, if the machines are owned by the county, this control is vested in the county clerk. The clerk and his or her authorized assistants are, for the purpose of this chapter, officers of election and may be paid for the time spent in the discharge of their duties, in the same manner as other election officers are paid. However, this section does not apply to a city where the clerk or his or her authorized assistants receive compensation that is fixed by the legislative body. In cities where there are more than 20 voting machines, more than 1 authorized assistant may be appointed. The clerk or his or her authorized assistants shall cause the machines to be properly labeled, put in order, set, and arranged. In preparing a voting machine for an election, the clerk or his or her authorized assistants shall arrange the machine and the ballots so that it will meet the requirements for voting and counting at the election, and thoroughly test and seal or lock the machine. When a machine has been prepared for the election, the election commissioners, or their authorized assistants, shall inspect the machine to determine whether it is properly prepared. An authorized assistant shall not be the same person who prepared and set the voting machine. The election commissioners or their authorized assistant shall prepare and file with the commissioners a written certificate certifying to the correct adjustment of the machine, the number of the machine, whether or not all the candidates and question counters and the public counter are set at zero, the number registered on the protective counter, if one is provided, and the number of the metal seal with which the machine is sealed. In elections in which state and county officers are to be voted for, an additional certificate shall be filed with the county clerk. Each voting machine shall be furnished with a light sufficient to enable voters while in the booth or other enclosure to read the ballot labels, and suitable for use by the election officers in examining the counters of the machine. The clerk or his or her authorized assistants shall cause the voting machines to be delivered at the polling places in which they are to be used at least 1 hour before the time set for opening the polls. Police protection shall be furnished by the local authorities whenever the officers charged with the duty of preparing the machines consider protection necessary to prevent possible injury to a machine, but the machines shall at all times be under the supervision of an officer, except during the hours prescribed by law for voting on election day.
History: 1954, Act 116, Eff. June 1, 1955 ;-- Am. 1990, Act 95, Imd. Eff. June 6, 1990
Popular Name: Election Code
Last modified: October 10, 2016