Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024
This section applies to rechecks and recounts conducted
pursuant to Sections
1-14-14
and
1-14-24
NMSA 1978, and recounts resulting from audits performed under Section
1-14-13.2
NMSA 1978. The recheck and recount procedures in this section shall be used in
conjunction with the procedures in Sections
1-14-16
and
1-14-18
through
1-14-23 NMSA
1978, along with guidance from the secretary of state.
A.
Time and place; ballot
security.
(1) Pursuant to Subsection A
of Section
1-14-16
NMSA 1978, the recount or recheck shall be held at the county seat.
(2) The county clerk shall arrange for
transportation of ballots to the recount or recheck site and contact the
sheriff or state police to move the ballot boxes from the current place of
storage to the recount or recheck site.
(3) The county clerk shall convene the
recount precinct board no more than 10 days after the filing of the application
for a recount or recheck, notice of an automatic recount, or notice of a
recount required by Subsection B of Section
1-14-13.2
NMSA 1978.
(4) The presiding judge
of the recount precinct board shall assign counting teams of at least two
members, of opposite political parties if possible, to particular
precincts.
(5) At least one person
in addition to the district judge or presiding judge shall witness all movement
of ballots during the recount, and all movement of ballots from and to the
ballot box during the recount process shall be logged. Each time that ballots
are removed from or returned to a ballot box, the number of ballots shall be
determined and compared to the number of ballots that should be in that
particular ballot box. Any discrepancies shall be noted.
B.
Random selection of ballots to
determine whether the recount shall be hand tallied or electronically
tabulated. This subsection does not apply to recounts resulting from
audits performed under Section
1-14-13.2
NMSA 1978. To determine whether votes shall be recounted using optical scan
vote tabulating systems pursuant to Section
1-14-23 NMSA
1978, the recount precinct board shall electronically tabulate recount ballots
from the precincts to be recounted in accordance with the procedures in this
subsection.
(1) A separate results cartridge
programmed with ballot configurations for all precincts in the county or the
ballot configuration for the precinct to be tabulated shall be inserted into an
optical scan vote tabulating system. A summary zeros results report shall be
generated and certified by the precinct board.
(2) Recount ballots equal to at least the
number required by Subsection B of Section
1-14-23 NMSA
1978 shall be fed into the optical scan vote tabulating system. Any recount
ballots rejected by the optical scan vote tabulating system shall be placed
back into the ballot boxes and additional recount ballots shall be inserted
until the number of ballots tabulated by the system is equal to at least the
amount required by Subsection B of Section
1-14-23 NMSA
1978. If the recount precinct board uses a results cartridge programmed with
only the ballot configuration for the precinct being tabulated, then the
procedure in Paragraph (1) of this subsection shall be repeated for each
precinct being tabulated.
(3) The
recount precinct board shall then hand tally the votes from the same ballots
counted by the optical scan vote tabulating system in accordance with the
procedures in Section
1-14-23 NMSA
1978.
C.
Electronic recount procedures..
(1) If the remaining ballots in a non-class A
county are to be retabulated using optical scan vote tabulating systems, the
[absent voter] recount precinct board shall use [M-100] optical scan vote
tabulating systems selected at random by the county clerk in accordance with
the procedures in this paragraph.
(a) A
separate results cartridge programmed with ballot configurations for all
precincts in the county or the ballot configuration for the precinct to be
tabulated shall be inserted into the optical scan vote tabulating system chosen
by the county clerk.
(b) A summary
zeros report shall be generated and certified by the precinct board.
(c) The ballots for the ballot type (e.g.,
absentee ballots, election day ballots, early in-person ballots) and precincts
to be recounted shall be fed into the optical scan vote tabulating
system.
(d) All ballots rejected by
the tabulator shall be tallied by hand in accordance with the procedures in
Subsection E of this section.
(e) A
machine report shall be generated and certified by the recount precinct board.
If the recount precinct board uses a results cartridge
programmed with ballot configurations for all precincts in the county, then the
procedures in this paragraph shall be repeated for each ballot type being
recounted. If the recount precinct board uses a results cartridge programmed
with only the ballot configuration for the precinct being tabulated, then the
procedures in this paragraph shall be repeated for each precinct being
tabulated.
(2) If
the remaining ballots in a non-class A county are to be re-tabulated using
optical scan vote tabulating systems, the recount precinct board shall use
optical scan vote tabulating systems selected at random by the county clerk in
accordance with the procedures in this paragraph.
D.
Review of rejected ballots and
re-tally of provisional, in-lieu of absentee ballots and other paper ballots in
a recount.
(1) The district judge shall
orally order that any ballot boxes, envelopes, or containers that hold
provisional, in-lieu of absentee, and absentee provisional ballots be opened
one at a time.
(2) The presiding
judge shall count the total number of provisional, absentee provisional, and
in-lieu of absentee ballots in each precinct and the number shall be compared
to the previously certified signature roster count in that precinct and noted.
Any discrepancies shall be noted.
(3) The county clerk shall review the
qualification of all rejected provisional, absentee provisional, and in-lieu of
absentee ballots pursuant to Section
1-12-25.4
NMSA 1978 and 1.10.22 NMAC.
(4) The
recount precinct board shall review the qualification of all rejected absentee
ballots in accordance with
1.10.12.15
NMAC and any other rejected ballots in accordance with applicable
law.
(5) All previously and newly
qualified ballots (including provisional, absentee provisional, in-lieu of
absentee ballots, absentee ballots and other paper ballots) shall be recounted
and the votes shall be added to the tally of the appropriate
precinct.
(6) If any voting data
changes as a result of this review, the county clerk shall update the report
required in Subsection I of
1.10.22.9
NMAC.
E.
Hand
counting procedures for recounts. This subsection applies to hand
recounts. The secretary of state shall provide tally sheets for only those
races being recounted, and shall include options for marking undervotes and
overvotes.
(1) The counting team shall ensure
that the precinct and the ballot type (eg., election day, early in-person,
absentee, in-lieu of absentee, and provisional) being counted are prominently
displayed on the tally sheet.
(2)
To recount the votes, the reader shall read the vote to the marker and the
marker shall observe whether the reader has correctly read the vote; the marker
shall then mark the tally sheet of the appropriate precinct, and the reader
shall observe whether the marker correctly marked the tally sheet. Upon
completion of the recount of a precinct, the marker shall add the total number
of votes for each candidate as well as any undervotes or overvotes. The reader
shall confirm these amounts. Both the marker and the reader shall sign the
tally form.
(3) If a ballot is
marked indistinctly or not marked according to the instructions for that ballot
type, the counting team shall count a vote as provided for in Subsection A and
Paragraphs (1) through (4) of Subsection B of Section
1-1-5.2
NMSA 1978. In no case, shall the counting team mark or re-mark the ballot.
1.10.23.12
NMAC contains illustrative examples of how to discern voter intent.
(4) If a recount for an office selected for a
voting system check is conducted pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 1,
Article 14 NMSA 1978, the vote totals from the hand count of ballots for that
office in precincts selected for the voting system check may be used in lieu of
recounting the same ballots for the recount.
F.
Recount and recheck reconciliation
procedures.
(1) Upon completion of a
recount, the district judge or presiding judge shall tabulate the total vote
count from the machine generated tapes or reports and the tally sheets from the
hand recount.
(2) The county clerk
or secretary of state in a statewide race shall compare the results of each
recount or recheck to the results of the county or statewide canvass. County
clerks shall make available to the public and provide to the secretary of state
the results of the recount or recheck within five days of the completion of the
recount or recheck. The secretary of state shall combine the county files and
place the results on the secretary of state's website.
(3) Pursuant to Subsection A of Section
1-14-18
NMSA 1978, the recount precinct board shall send the certificate of recount or
recheck executed pursuant to Subsection D of Section
1-14-16
NMSA 1978 to the proper canvassing board.
(4) In the event of a recount or recheck
conducted pursuant to Section
1-14-14
NMSA 1978, if no error or fraud appears to be sufficient to change the winner,
the county clerk may provide documentation of costs to the secretary of state,
or directly to the candidate, for reimbursement from the money provided
pursuant to Section
1-14-15
NMSA 1978.
