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Issuing Provisional Ballots

  1. Include questions that will help you investigate the voter's eligibility in the application process for provisional ballots. Such questions would include asking where or how they registered: at the DMV? By mail?

    Example:
    The Missouri provisional envelope leaves space for the voter to explain why he or she believes they're eligible to vote. Boone County, MO, provides a supplemental checklist for the voter to select the location where they registered.

  2. Use information from provisional ballot application process to register voters who weren't registered. Alternatively, attach application to the provisional ballot envelope.

    Example:
    Two sample letters to voters from Marshall County, Iowa: Not Counted and Why and Good News Letter. The "Not Counted and Why" letter advises voters that for those ballots not counted, the provisional envelope has been designed to serve as a registration application and that the voter is now eligible to vote in future elections.

  3. Ensure secrecy of the provisional ballot. For paper-based systems, consider developing a two-envelope system: voters place the provisional ballot in one envelope - a secrecy envelope - that is placed within the envelope that has the application and processing information printed on one side.
  4. Put a window or hole-punch in the provisional ballot envelope to make it easy to check and make sure the voter has put the ballot inside.

    Example:
    Hamilton County, Ohio.

  5. Simplify the process for pollworkers. For example, print the information on one side of the envelope - pollworkers often forget to turn things over. Provide procedural flow charts.

    Example:
    Los Angeles County, has a 3-piece provisional ballot envelope:

  6. Promote pollworker accountability. Remind pollworkers they are responsible for making sure that the provisional ballot envelope is filled out properly.
  7. Ensure provisional ballots cast by voters voting after polling hours because of a court order are kept separate from other provisional ballots.

    Example:
    Virginia's provisional envelope includes a check box for the pollworker to check indicating that the provisional is due to the poll have to be kept open.

  8. Alert your pollworkers that some voters might refuse to vote electronically; educate pollworkers on the policy of how to handle such voters.

    Example:
    The Maryland State Board of Elections issued a policy for the March 2004 Primary stating that paper provisional ballots were not to be provided to voters who were properly listed in the precinct register and wished to avoid voting on DREs.