Code of Virginia - Title 24.2 Elections - Chapter 6 The Election

24.2-600 Cost of elections
The cost of conducting elections under this title shall be paid by the counties and cities, respectively. The cost of town elections shall be paid ...

24.2-601 Town election process
The electoral board and general registrar of the county within which a town, or the greater part thereof, is situated shall control the election process ...

24.2-602 Exemption for ballots and election materials from certain purchasing and procurement requirement...
The provisions of Article 3, Division of Purchases and Supply, (§ 2.2-1109 et seq.) of Chapter 11 of Title 2.2 and of Articles 1 (§ ...

24.2-603 Hours polls to be open; closing the polls
At all elections, the polls shall be open at each polling place at 6:00 a.m. on the day of the election and closed at 7:00 ...

24.2-603.1 Postponement of certain elections; state of emergency
For purposes of this section, "election" means (i) any local or state referendum, (ii) any primary, special, or general election for local or state office ...

24.2-604 Prohibited activities at polls; notice of prohibited area; presence of representatives of parties o...
A. During the times the polls are open and ballots are being counted, it shall be unlawful for any person (i) to loiter or congregate ...

24.2-604.1 Signs for special entrances to polling places
The electoral board shall provide and have posted outside each polling place appropriate signs to direct people with disabilities and elderly persons to any special ...

24.2-604.2 Polling places; prohibited area; emergency situations
If an emergency causes the dimensions of the prohibited area for a polling place to be perceived as increasing the risk of danger for persons ...

24.2-605 Loudspeakers prohibited at polls; penalty
Notwithstanding any contrary statute or ordinance of a county, city, or town, except for school purposes or in an emergency, no loudspeaker shall be used ...

24.2-606 Preservation of order at elections
The officers of election, with the consent of the chief law-enforcement officer for the county or city, may designate a law-enforcement officer who shall attend ...

24.2-607 Prohibited conduct; intimidation of voters; disturbance of election; how prevented; penaltie...
A. It shall be unlawful for any person to hinder, intimidate, or interfere with any qualified voter so as to prevent the voter from casting ...

24.2-608 Officers to decide order of voting
The officers of election shall promptly decide any dispute as to the order in which qualified voters may vote, deciding who first offered, or if ...

24.2-609 Voting booths
Each electoral board shall provide at each polling place in its county or city one or more voting booths. At least one booth shall be ...

24.2-610 Materials at polling places
A. The State Board shall provide copies of this title to each electoral board for each precinct in its county or city. The electoral board ...

24.2-611 Form and signing of pollbooks; records of persons voting; electronic pollbooks
A. The following oath shall be on a form prescribed by the State Board, administered to all officers of election, and kept by the officers ...

24.2-612 List of offices and candidates filed with State Board and checked for accuracy; when ballots printe...
Immediately after the expiration of the time provided by law for a candidate for any office to qualify to have his name printed on the ...

24.2-612.1 Ballots; death, withdrawal, or disqualification of candidates
In the case of the death, withdrawal, or disqualification of any candidate, other than a party nominee, who has qualified to have his name printed ...

24.2-613 Form of ballot
The ballots shall comply with the requirements of this title and the standards prescribed by the State Board. For elections for federal, statewide, and General ...

24.2-614 Preparation and form of presidential election ballots
As soon as practicable after the seventy-fourth day before the presidential election, the State Board shall certify to the secretary of each county and city ...

24.2-615 Separate ballots for proposed constitutional amendments, etc.; uniform ballots
A separate ballot shall be printed for each of the following: proposed amendments to the Constitution submitted to the qualified voters at one election; proposals ...

24.2-616 Duties of printer; statement; penalty
The printer contracting with or employed by the electoral board to print the ballots shall sign a statement before the work is commenced agreeing, subject ...

24.2-617 Representative of electoral board to be present at printing; custody of ballots; electoral board ma...
The electoral board shall designate one person to be continuously present in the room in which the ballots are printed from the start to the ...

24.2-618 Delivery of ballots to electoral board; checking and recording number
The electoral board shall designate one of its members or employees or the general or an assistant registrar to receive the ballots after they are ...

24.2-619 Sealing ballots
The electoral board shall designate one of its members or some other person to cause the seal of the board to be affixed in his ...

24.2-620 Dividing ballots into packages for each precinct; delivery of absentee ballots
The electoral board shall cause to be made, in the presence of at least one member of the board, or an employee of the board ...

24.2-621 Delivery of packages to officers; opening packages
Before every election the secretary of the electoral board, or another board member, board employee, or the general or an assistant registrar designated by the ...

24.2-622 Sample ballots
Nothing contained in this title shall be construed to prohibit: (i) the printing and circulation of sample paper ballots, which are not printed on white ...

24.2-623 Ballot containers to be supplied by governing bodies; construction and custody
The governing body of each county and city shall provide a ballot container for each precinct and each part of a split precinct. The container ...

24.2-624 Opening and closing ballot containers; opening polls
Immediately before the opening of the polls, an officer of election shall open the ballot containers in the presence of the political party or candidate ...

24.2-625 Application of Title 24.2 and general law
All of the provisions of this title and general law not inconsistent with the provisions of this article shall apply to elections in counties, cities, ...

24.2-625.1 Voting equipment security
A. Records of the State Board of Elections or of a local electoral board, to the extent such records describe protocols for maintaining the security ...

24.2-625.2 Wireless communications at polling places
There shall be no wireless communications on election day, while the polls are open, between or among voting machines within the polling place or between ...

24.2-626 Governing bodies shall acquire electronic voting or counting systems
The governing body of each county and city shall provide for the use of electronic voting or counting systems, of a kind approved by the ...

24.2-626.1 Acquisition and use of accessible voting devices.
The governing body of any county or city shall provide for the use of a voting or counting system in all elections that shall: 1. ...

24.2-627 Mechanical and electronic voting or counting devices; number required
A. The governing body of any county or city which adopts for use at elections mechanical or direct electronic voting systems shall provide for each ...

24.2-628 Authorized use of mechanical voting devices
A. Any person, firm, or corporation manufacturing, owning, or offering for sale any mechanical voting device may apply to the State Board, in the manner ...

24.2-629 Authorized use of electronic systems and ballots
A. Any person, firm, or corporation hereinafter referred to as the "vendor," manufacturing, owning, or offering for sale any electronic voting or counting system and ...

24.2-630 Experimental use of approved systems
With the approval of the State Board, the governing body of any county, city, or town may provide for the experimental use at an election ...

24.2-631 Experimental use of voting systems and ballots prior to approval of the system
The State Board is authorized to approve the experimental use of voting or counting systems and ballots for the purpose of casting and counting absentee ...

24.2-632 Voting equipment custodians
A. For the purpose of programming and preparing voting and counting equipment, including the programming of any electronic activation devices or data storage media used ...

24.2-633 Notice of final testing of equipment; sealing equipment
Before the final testing of voting or counting equipment for any election, the electoral board shall mail written notice (i) to the chairman of the ...

24.2-634 Locking and securing after preparation
When voting or counting equipment has been properly prepared for an election, it shall be locked against voting and sealed, or, if the device cannot ...

24.2-635 Demonstration of equipment
In each county, city, or town in which voting or counting equipment is to be used, the electoral board may designate times and places for ...

24.2-636 Instruction as to use of equipment
No fewer than three nor more than thirty days before each election, the electoral board shall instruct, or cause to be instructed, on the use ...

24.2-637 Furniture and equipment to be at polling places
Before the time to open the polls, each electoral board shall have the voting and counting equipment and all necessary furniture and materials at the ...

24.2-638 Voting equipment to be in plain view; officers and others not permitted to see actual voting; unloc...
During the election, the exterior of the voting and counting equipment and every part of the polling place shall be in plain view of the ...

24.2-639 Duties of officers of election
The officers of election of each precinct at which voting or counting equipment is used shall meet at the polling place by 5:15 a.m. on ...

24.2-640 Ballots generally
In every county and city using mechanical or direct electronic voting systems requiring printed ballots, the electoral board shall furnish a sufficient number of ballots ...

24.2-641 Sample ballot
The electoral board shall provide for each precinct in which mechanical voting machines or direct electronic voting devices are used, two sample ballots, which shall ...

24.2-642 Inoperative equipment
A. When any voting or counting device becomes inoperative in whole or in part while the polls are open, the officers of election shall immediately ...

24.2-643 Qualified voter permitted to vote; procedures at polling place; voter identification
A. After the polls are open, each qualified voter at a precinct shall be permitted to vote. The officers of election shall ascertain that a ...

24.2-644 Voting by paper ballot; voting for presidential electors; write-in votes
A. The qualified voter shall take the official paper ballot and enter the voting booth. After entering the voting booth, the qualified voter shall mark ...

24.2-645 Defaced paper ballots
If any paper ballot is unintentionally or accidentally defaced and rendered unfit for voting, the voter may deliver the defaced ballot to the officer of ...

24.2-646 Voter folds paper ballot and hands same to officer who deposits it unopened in ballot containe...
The qualified voter shall fold each ballot with the names of the candidates and questions on the inside and hand the folded ballot to the ...

24.2-646.1 Permitted use of paper ballots.
The official paper ballot shall be used by a voter to cast his vote only in one of the following circumstances: 1. The official paper ...

24.2-647 Voting equipment; demonstration on election day
The electoral board shall provide at each polling place on election day, for the voting device in use, a model of, or materials displaying, a ...

24.2-648 Write-in votes on voting equipment
Write-in votes may be cast on voting equipment for any person whose name does not appear on the ballot as a candidate for the office ...

24.2-649 Assistance for certain voters
A. Any voter age 65 or older or physically disabled may request and then shall be handed a paper ballot or a mark sense ballot ...

24.2-650 Officers to sign only official papers, etc
No officer of election shall sign or otherwise mark any paper, form, or item, other than one furnished by the State Board, his electoral board, ...

24.2-651 Voter who is challenged; how challenge tried
Any qualified voter may, and the officers of election shall, challenge the vote of any person who is listed on the pollbook but is known ...

24.2-651.1 Voter who is shown as having already voted; challenge and procedure for voting; voter identificatio...
The officers of election shall challenge the vote of any person who offers to vote, who is listed on the pollbook, and whose name is ...

24.2-652 Voter whose name erroneously omitted from pollbook
When a person offers to vote and his name does not appear on the pollbook, the officers of election shall permit him to vote only ...

24.2-653 Voter whose name does not appear on pollbook; handling of provisional ballots; ballots cast after n...
A. When a person offers to vote pursuant to § 24.2-652 and the general registrar is not available or cannot state that the person is ...

24.2-653.1 Voters who did not receive absentee ballots; provisional ballots.
A. The provisions of this section shall apply when (i) a person offers to vote pursuant to § 24.2-643 at his proper polling place, (ii) ...

24.2-654 Officers to lock and seal voting equipment and ascertain vote after polls closed; statement of resu...
As soon as the polls are closed, the officers of election shall lock each voting and counting device against further voting. They shall then proceed ...

24.2-655 Representatives of political parties and candidates to be present on request
Before proceeding to ascertain the vote, the officers of election shall determine whether no more than two representatives of each political party having candidates in ...

24.2-656 Description unavailable
Repealed by Acts 2003, c. 1015. ...

24.2-657 Determination of vote on voting equipment
In the presence of all persons who may be present lawfully at the time, giving full view of the voting equipment and counters or printed ...

24.2-658 Devices with printed return sheets; disposition of sheets
If devices that print returns are used, the printed inspection sheet and two copies of the printed return sheet containing the results of the election ...

24.2-659 Locking voting and counting devices after election and delivering keys to clerk; printed returns a...
A. If the voting or counting device is secured by the use of equipment keys, after the officers of election lock and seal each voting ...

24.2-660 Description unavailable
Repealed by Acts 2004, cc. 993 and 1010. ...

24.2-661 Detection and setting aside of double ballots
After the votes on all voting and counting equipment have been determined and recorded, the officers of election shall proceed to examine and count the ...

24.2-662 Procedure when paper ballots exceed names on pollbooks
If the ballots in the container exceed the number of names on the pollbooks of persons who voted on paper ballots, all ballots shall be ...

24.2-663 When ballot void
If a ballot is found to have been voted for a greater number of names for any one office than the number of persons required ...

24.2-664 Reduction in number of ballots
Whenever the number of ballots is reduced by fraudulent or void ballots below the number of names of qualified voters on the pollbooks who voted ...

24.2-665 How paper ballots counted
A. When the number of paper ballots to be counted has been verified, the officers shall proceed to ascertain the number of votes cast by ...

24.2-666 Procedures to account for paper ballots
The State Board shall prescribe appropriate forms and procedures for use by the local electoral boards, general registrars, and officers of election to account for ...

24.2-667 Completion of statement of results
At the conclusion of determining the votes cast on voting devices and paper ballots, the officers of election shall verify that all required data has ...

24.2-668 Pollbooks, statements of results, and ballots to be sealed and delivered to clerk or general regist...
A. After ascertaining the results and before adjourning, the officers shall put the pollbooks, the duplicate statements of results, and any printed inspection and return ...

24.2-669 Clerk to keep ballots; inspection; destruction
The clerk to whom the counted and uncounted ballots are delivered shall, without breaking the seal, deposit them in a secure place in his office, ...

24.2-670 Clerk to send for books and ballots if not delivered by officers
If the officers of election fail to deliver the materials to the clerk of the circuit court, or to the principal office of the general ...

24.2-671 Electoral board to meet and ascertain results; conclusiveness of results
Each electoral board shall meet at the clerk's or general registrar's office of the county or city for which they are appointed at or before ...

24.2-671.1 Pilot programs for audits of optical scan tabulators
A. The State Board shall be authorized to provide for pilot programs in one or more localities with respect to an election in which the ...

24.2-672 Electoral board to correct irregularities in returns of officers of election
While ascertaining the results of an election, the electoral board may find that there are irregularities or informalities in the returns of the officers of ...

24.2-673 Candidates having highest number of votes to receive certificate of election
Except in the case of a recount pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 8 (§ 24.2-800 et seq.) of this title, in all elections for ...

24.2-674 Determination by lot in case of tie
If two or more persons have an equal number of votes for any county, city, town, or district office, and a higher number than any ...

24.2-675 Abstracts of votes to be made by secretary and forwarded to State Board and to clerks
As soon as the electoral board determines the persons who have received the highest number of votes for any office, the secretary shall make out ...

24.2-676 Secretary to make out and deliver certificate of election
Immediately after the electoral board has determined the election results, the secretary shall make out certificates of election for each county, city, town, or district ...

24.2-677 State Board to open and record returns; application of Freedom of Information Act
The State Board, on receipt of the certified abstracts of the votes given in the several counties and cities, shall open the abstracts and record ...

24.2-678 Law-enforcement officer to be sent for abstracts not forwarded
If the State Board has not received the abstracts of votes from any county or city within seven days after any election, it shall dispatch ...

24.2-679 State Board to meet and make statement as to number of votes
A. The State Board shall meet on the fourth Monday in November to ascertain the results of the November election. If a majority of the ...

24.2-680 Certificates of election
Subject to the requirements of § 24.2-948.2, the State Board shall without delay complete and transmit to each of the persons declared to be elected ...

24.2-681 How special elections superintended and determined
All special elections shall be superintended and held, notice thereof given, ballots prepared, returns made and certified, votes canvassed, results ascertained and made known, and ...

24.2-682 Times for special elections
A. Notwithstanding any charter or special act to the contrary, the following provisions govern the times for holding special elections. Every special election shall be ...

24.2-683 Writ for special election to fill a vacancy
Whenever the Governor, Speaker of the House, President pro tempore of the Senate, or either house of the General Assembly orders a special election, he, ...

24.2-684 How referendum elections called and held, and the results ascertained and certified
Notwithstanding any other provision of any law or charter to the contrary, the provisions of this section shall govern all referenda. No referendum shall be ...

24.2-684.1 Requirements for voter petitions to call for referendum elections
In addition to other applicable requirements of law, the following requirements shall apply whenever a referendum election is initiated by voter petitions. The requirements of ...

24.2-685 Special elections; request for abolition of constitutional offices
A. The provisions of this section shall be applicable to the holding of any referendum, elsewhere authorized by law, on the abolition of any constitutional ...

24.2-686 Special elections; petition and referendum requirements; abolition of constitutional office by chan...
The provisions of § 24.2-685 shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to any county seeking to change its form of government pursuant to Chapter 3 (§ 15.2-300 ...

24.2-687 Authorization for distribution of information on referendum elections
A. The governing body of any county, city or town may provide for the preparation and printing of an explanation for each referendum question to ...