Absentee & “Paper” Ballots
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Types of Absentee Ballots (issued by Town Clerks and Counted by Registrars)
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Regular Full Ballot
 Federal – State – Municipal Offices
 Registered Electors unable to vote in person (mark voter list with Red A)
 Military Service
 Out of Town
 Illness
 Physical Disability
 religious beliefs
 Service as an election official in a polling area other than your own.
Sec 9-135
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Official Blank Absentee Ballot
 Federal – State – Municipal Offices ( ED-81a)
 Registered Electors temporarily residing over seas or expecting to be traveling overseas and all
servicemen, spouses and dependants whether living within or outside the U.S.
Sec 9-153e
 90 day Military Blank Ballot
 Registered Electors in Military Service, spouses and dependants with special military contingencies
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Overseas Ballot.
 Federal Offices Only. (ED-71)
 Outside envelope will say “Overseas Ballot”
 Not Registered
 18 years old
 Residing outside the U.S.
 Must be former resident of CT town immediately prior to moving outside the U.S.
Sec 9-158a
Presidential Ballots (Last year for this part) (Same day registration in 2013)
 President / Vice President only (ED-31)
 Resident of town,
 Not registered
------------------------------- Former resident – Voting Rights Act 1967 (mark Official Voter list with RED PF)
 Moved within 30 days prior to election to another location after new locations cut-off date.
Sec 9-158a
Emergency Absentee Ballot
 Issued only on Election – Primary Day
 Registered Electors who were planning on voting in person.
Became very ill within 6 days from Election Day.
 Only certain individuals may carry these ( call Registrar of Voters )
 Federal – State – Municipal Offices (mark Official Voter list with RED EB)
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Types of Special Paper Ballots
(Ballots issued by Registrars to be done in the Polling Place)
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Emergency Paper Ballot
 Sec 9-263 states that no ballots will be counted unless NO voting machine are able to be used. All
voting machines must be broken. All provisions of the statute have been complied with
 Now that all of our ballots are paper based – this would be used if we run out of ballots. They would
be put into the auxiliary bin and “Hand Counted” at the end of voting, if no tabulator is available or
if these ballots were photocopied. The tabulator cannot read a photocopied ballot.
Sec 9-263
2. “ Regular Paper Ballot for people with Disabilities” (Voter’s Choice)
 These ballots can be used for “Curb Side Voting” Where the Elector, who made it to the Polling
Place but cannot get into the building.
 Send 2 Assistant Registrars out to help Elector vote his ballot.
 Use a privacy folder.
 Use same process for voting in person (see ID – Check name on voter list)
 Must be processed in the Tabulator after the Elector has filled out the ballot.
Sec 9-264 b
3. Challenged Ballot ( Will disappear when Provisional Ballots are used for ALL Elections)
 Used only to challenge someone right to vote for conviction of Felony
 Identity – not who they say they are
 Addresses – does not live where he says he does.
 Application done by Elector & Moderator (mark official voter list with Red CB )
 Record in diary
 Does not count only court system will order it to be counted.
But do not tell the voter.
Sec 9-170, 9-171, 9-172, 9-232, 9-431
4. Provisional Ballot
(Hopefully this will change in next legislation year to have full ballots for all Elections)
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Only during Federal Elections ( Even numbered years when we elected federal offices such as
US Senator or US Representative)
Anyone who is not on your Active or In-Active lists and cannot be restored
to be Active
Anyone who just wants to vote and insists that they should be on the
voters list.
Anyone with an asterisk * next to their name and does not have ID
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Absentee procedures and some simple rejections:
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Town Clerks issue Absentee Ballots
When absentee ballots are returned from the Elector they are signed into the Town Clerks office
by an endorsement. This is a date stamp of time and date and signature of the Town Clerk.
Up until Election Day Registrars will pre mark the Official Voter list with the A in front of the
Electors Name, so as to show that the Elector has voted by Absentee Ballot.
When doing this if we see that a ballot has not be endorsed, we will hand it to the Town Clerk
and get it endorsed. The Voter has not lost their right to vote.
If this gets by us and it is Election Day and you see that it is not endorsed than you
MUST reject the ballot. Write on the envelope “not endorsed–Rejected” - sign your name.
On Election Day the Town Clerks turns the absentee ballots over to the Registrars by 10 AM.
If an Elector has voted by absentee ballot and now wants to vote in person they must go
to the Office of the Town Clerk and get the absentee ballot rescinded. With a letter from
the town clerk they will be allow to vote in person.
It is the choice of the Registrars the type of counting of ballots they will do.
When counting Ballots
Inside envelope
 Ballot must be in inside envelope or REJECTED
 If ballot and no inside envelope _ REJECTED
 Has place for signature and date
 Does not have to be sealed
 Does not have to have date
 But if it appears that there is NO signature on it than REJECTED
 If 2 inside envelopes – we can match outside envelope to signature of inside
envelope and count that one - other one REJECTED
 If inside envelop has 2 ballots – REJECTED
Remember CYA Write all your decisions on the ballot so that the next person has somewhere to start.
It makes things run more smoothly.
Use of Provisional Ballots for Absentee Ballots - only for one usage …….
 If an Absentee, first time voter, is rejected because of not producing a valid ID
and you have checked way down to the inner envelope, than it is REJECTED.
 You must place this ballot in a Provisional envelope and send to the Registrars to verify the
Federal Offices only after the close of the polls.
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District Counting
of Absentee Ballots
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This is done in every districts Polling Place in the same room as the voting.
But over in a corner – not so the public can observe.
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It is the District Moderator who will assist in the decisions for these ballots.
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Any absentee Ballots received prior to the deadline may have been previously marked on the official check list
with a RED “ A ” in front of the name to designate that this voter has voted by absentee ballot.
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If there are other ballots that are to be counted, the Absentee Counters or the Assistant Registrar as the
case may be will mark off the official check list with a RED “ A ” in front of the name.
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The deadline for withdrawing an absentee ballot is 10:00 AM on Election Day.
The Elector must present a note signed with the date & time by the Town Clerk in order to vote in
person.
Central Counting
of Absentee Ballots:
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All Absentee Ballots are counted in one central location (not at the individual Polling places)
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Any absentee ballot received prior to the deadline have been previously marked on the
official check list ( at the polling place ) & the duplicate absentee official list (kept with the
absentee counters) with an RED “A” in front of the name ( to designate absentee ballot )
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If a other ballots are received to be counted Central Absentee Moderator or the Registrars
Will call into each polling place with the additional names to be marked off the
official check list with a RED “A” in front of the name. (prior to the counting of the ballots)
All Counting personal must stay until 8 PM or when the ballots are completed even if after 8 PM.
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The Assistant Registrars in each polling Place will mark the list in the polling Place with a RED “A”
in front of the name.
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The Absentee Counters or the Moderator at central Counting will mark their list with a RED “A”
in front of the name before counting the new ballots.
Most important …
The secrecy of the Absentee Ballot results must be preserved until the close of the polls @ 8 PM
If your counters of Absentees leave the central counting area or the district area they can NOT go to a
Political Party Headquarters
Points to remember …
If you are doing Central Counting of Absentee Ballots -your district Moderator Returns
1. Will have NO Certificate of Absentee Ballots filled out ( leave this blank )
2. NO Tally of Absentee Ballot counts are recorded on the tally sheet.
3. On the Official Checkers Certificate regarding … names checked as having been checked for absentee
ballot, this total is always zero “O” !! Better yet - is not to have that statement.
4. If you do not touch Absentee Ballots than you do not record anything about Absentee Voting or
Absentee Ballots.
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