CHAPTER 505
FORMERLY
SENATE BILL NO. 444
AS AMENDED BY SENATE AMENDMENT NO. 1 AND
H0USE AMENDMENT NO. 1
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 15 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO ELECTIONS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1. Amend §101 of Title 15 of the Delaware Code by adding a new subsection "(23)" to read as follows:
"(23) 'Election District Record' shall no longer mean the binders which contain, among other information, voter registration record (sometimes referred to as 'Blues') and shall hereafter mean the electronic records or the print out reflecting said electronic records as designated by the respective County Department of Elections."
Section 2. Amend § 1302(a) of Title 15 of the Delaware Code by deleting the second paragraph in its entirety. Further amend § 1302 of Title 15 of the Delaware Code by deleting subsections (b), (c), and (d).
Section 3. Amend §4937 of Title 15 of the Delaware Code by deleting said section in its entirety and replacing said section with the following:
"(a) A voter, upon entering the room where an election is being held, shall announce his or her name and address and provide proof of identity, whereupon the clerks shall place a mark or make a notation of his or her name upon the Election District Record. In the event the voter does not have proof of identity with them, he or she shall sign an affidavit of affirmation that he or she is the person listed on the Election District Record.
(b) If it appears that the voter is properly registered, an election officer shall hand to the voter a voter signature card which the voter shall sign. In the event that the voter is unable to sign a voter signature card for any reason the election officer shall sign the voter's name on the voter signature card and the election officer's name and make note that the voter is unable to personally sign the card.
(c) In the event of a challenge as to the identity of the voter or residency of the voter, the voter's right to vote shall be determined by a majority vote of the inspector and the 2 judges of the election. In the event that the voter is not permitted to vote, the voter's signature card shall he marked "not permitted to vote" and signed by 2 election officers and shall he forwarded to the department at the same time and in the same manner as other voter signature cards are sent to the department.
(d) If the voter is not challenged or if a challenge is decided in the voter's favor, I of the election officers to be stationed at the entrance of the voting machine shall announce the name of the voter and permit the voter to pass through the entrance to the booth of the voting machine for the purpose of casting the voter's vote. No voter shall remain in the voting machine longer than 3 minutes, unless for good and sufficient reason the voter be granted a longer period of time by the election officers in charge. When the voter has east their vote, the voter shall at once leave the room. If the voter refuses to leave alter a reasonable period, they shall be removed by the election officers. No voter, after having entered and emerged from the voting machine booth shall be permitted to enter the voting machine booth. No voter shall hold any conversation or communicate with any other person than an election officer while in the voting room, except as otherwise provided in this title,
(e) The rest of this title notwithstanding, any voter permitted to enter the voting machine may be accompanied by 1 of his or her children or wards of not more than 14 years of age. Any challenge as to the relationship of the voter to the child and/or the age of the child shall be resolved by the voter signing an affidavit (which shall be prepared by the Election Commissioner) that lie or she is the parent or guardian of the child in question and/or that the child is not more than 14 years of age."
Section 4. Amend §5515 of Title 15 of the Delaware Code by deleting the phrase "by comparing the voter's signature upon the voucher envelope with the signature of the voter appearing in the Election District Record," as found in the first sentence of said section and replacing said phrase with the phrase "whose name shall appear on the Election District Record".
Section 5. Amend §5515 of Title 15 of the Delaware Code by deleting the phrase "clerks shall enter the name and address of the absentee voter on the poll lists" and replace said phrase with the phrase "clerks shall mark or make a notation that the absentee voter has voted on the Election District Record".
Section 6. Amend §4981 of Title 15 of the Delaware Code by deleting subsection "(a)" in its entirety and replacing said subsection with the following:
"(a)" Immediately following an election the Commissioner of Elections shall take each voter signature card and through electronic means note that the voter participated in the election on the Election District Record."
Section 7. This Bill requires each County Department of Elections to inform the public through the various forms of the media and at demonstrations of the electronic voting machine that a form of identification will be requested of the voter upon entering the polls on election day.