2009 Iowa Code
Title 2 - Elections and Official Duties
Subtitle 1 - Elections
CHAPTER 52 - VOTING SYSTEMS
52.37 - SPECIAL PRECINCT TABULATION PROCEDURE.

        52.37  SPECIAL PRECINCT TABULATION PROCEDURE.
         The tabulation of absentee and provisional ballots cast by means
      of an optical scan voting system shall be conducted as follows:
         1. a.  If any ballot is found damaged or defective, so that it
      cannot be counted properly by the automatic tabulating equipment, a
      true duplicate shall be made by the resolution board team and
      substituted for the damaged or defective ballot, or, as an
      alternative, the valid votes on a defective ballot may be manually
      counted by the special precinct election board, whichever method is
      best suited to the system being used.  All duplicate ballots shall be
      clearly labeled as such, and shall bear a serial number which shall
      also be recorded on the damaged or defective ballot.
         b.  The special precinct election board shall also tabulate
      any write-in votes which were cast.  Write-in votes cast for a
      candidate whose name appears on the ballot for the same office shall
      be counted as a vote for the candidate indicated, if the vote is
      otherwise properly cast.
         c.  Ballots which are rejected by the tabulating equipment as
      blank because they have been marked with an unreadable marker shall
      be duplicated or tabulated as required by this subsection for damaged
      or defective ballots.  The commissioner may instruct the special
      precinct election board to mark over voters' unreadable marks using a
      marker compatible with the tabulating equipment.  The special
      precinct election board shall take care to leave part of the original
      mark made by the voter.  If it is impossible to mark over the
      original marks made by the voter without completely obliterating
      them, the ballot shall be duplicated.
         2.  The record printed by the automatic tabulating equipment, with
      the addition of a record of any write-in or other votes manually
      counted pursuant to this chapter, shall constitute the official
      return of the absentee ballot and special voter's precinct.  Upon
      completion of the tabulation of the votes, the result shall be
      announced and reported in substantially the manner required by
      section 50.11.
         3.  If for any reason it becomes impracticable to count all or any
      part of the ballots with the automatic tabulating equipment, the
      commissioner may direct that they be counted manually, in accordance
      with chapter 50 so far as applicable.  

         Section History: Early Form

         [C77, 79, 81, § 52.37] 

         Section History: Recent Form

         92 Acts, ch 1034, § 2; 93 Acts, ch 143, § 29; 97 Acts, ch 170, §
      65; 2002 Acts, ch 1134, §60, 115; 2007 Acts, ch 190, §39; 2008 Acts,
      ch 1032, §156
         Referred to in § 52.33