ELECTION DAY PREPARATION AT THE POLLING PLACE

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1 ELECTION DAY PREPARATION AT THE POLLING PLACE Summary Before the first elector enters the polling place, election inspectors should take the time to make sure the polling place is set-up correctly and that they have all of the needed supplies. The way a polling place is set up affects how easy it will be for you to do your job and the voters to cast their ballots. The proper set-up is one of the most important elements to ensuring that Election Day will run as smoothly as possible. Tabulator All the supplies in the tabulator should be emptied out. There should be nothing remaining in any of the three compartments of the blue box. The contents should be sorted into piles for distribution to the various areas in the facility. Once all the compartments are emptied the tabulator can be turned on by plugging it in. This should be done prior 7:00am when the polls open. NO ONE SHOULD VOTE BEFORE 7:00AM NOT EVEN THE ELECTION OFFICIALS. The zero tape will run automatically. The machine tape will read Ready to accept ballots. Watch to ensure that the paper is feeding properly and not jamming. Check the District/Prescient number be sure the printout tape agrees with the ballot for your District. All totals on the tape should be at zero. The front of the machine should indicate zero (no voters have voted at this time) An odd number of inspectors should sign the tape Co-inspectors and an odd number of inspectors that are working all day Voting at the tabulator Electors waiting in line should stand at least ten (10 ) feet from the machine while another elector is casting their ballot in the machine. This allows for privacy. The voter will give the Election Official their voter ticket number. This ticket should be placed in the envelope designated for this use. A person may request to place a blank ballot (doesn t want to vote for any candidate or on any issue on the ballot) in the machine for the purpose of preserving his/her voting history. This request will require an override. - A blank ballot from an absent elector will need to be overridden. - An absentee ballot that is returned by the machine should be recreated. Both ballots should be marked remade ballot # ). The action should be accounted for on the Inspector s Statement. If a ballot is rejected the voter and the Inspector should read the tape to determine the reason for the rejection. The voter should tear up the ballot, and return to the ballot table to obtain another ballot. The voter is allowed to remake three ballots, after three attempts they will loose their privilege to vote. At the close of the polls Once the polls have officially closed all areas should be checked to insure that all ballots have been run through the machine. i.e. absentee, remade, held ballots, ballots in the reserve bin Press the Print total key on the machine Refer to the To Receive Result Tapes sheet

2 HAVA Machine The HAVA should be set up in an area that allows for handicapped individuals to access it, yet allows for privacy. _ Unpack the HAVA and place on table. Ensure the public doesn t have access to view how the voter is voting. Plug the machine in and leave sit for 20 minutes (without turning ON yet) Insert ink cartridge Flip up screen and turn the key to ON. At the close of the polls _ Once the polls have been closed, turn the key to OFF and unplug. _ Remove ink cartridge and return to City Hall along with election paperwork _ Return screen to starting position and pack in HAVA container. Facility Attention needs to be given to the special needs of electors with disabilities. It is important to examine the route of an elector, from the parking lot to the entrance of the polling place to the voting area. All obstacles should be removed that may hinder a disabled voter. Booths The polling booths should be set up so the electrical cords are stretched the full length. The cords will plug into the booth next to them. They will string together just as Christmas lights do. The handicap booth should be placed at an end location. There maybe a site map of the facility on how the booths should be set up. A ballot marking pen should be placed in each booth. Check to be sure all pens are in working condition. Check for any signs that must be posted in the booths (Preference and General Elections) Signs It is important that the proper signs are posted at the facility. The bulletin board contains all the signs that should be in the facility. In addition the following signs should be posted. Sample ballots for each ballot type. Post in the hallway leading to the entrance of the room. Some elections may require signs to be posted in the booths. Election Observers The chief inspector should designate a clearly designated area for election observers. Individuals should be able to readily observe the public aspects of the voting process from this area. They should be able to see and hear the election inspectors as well as hear any instructions given to the voters. All signs should be removed from the hallways and entrances and returned to the main storage box. All bulletin boards should be brought back into the room, and placed by the other election materials. All booths should be unplugged they do not have to be dismantled. All ballots pens should have the caps put on them and returned to the Ballot Pen Envelop.

3 BALLOTS The ballots will arrive to the facility in a secured bin. The ballots should be taken to the ballot table. The secrecy sleeves should also be taken to the ballot table. The provisional ballot envelopes and Provisional Ballot Instructions (blue pages) should be taken to the ballot table. There will be a seal on the bin that needs to be compared with the number on the Inspector s Certificate and initialed. The ballots should be checked to insure they are the ballots for that voting district. If the ward/district/city is not printed on the ballot it will need to be stamped on the ballot. Stamp City of Sun Prairie Ward xxxxxx. Before the opening of the facility, one Inspector should initial each ballot. The second initials should not be placed on the ballot until it is handed to the voter. Insure that there is an adequate supply for the morning shift. People working only the morning shift should only sign enough ballots that will be used in the morning. People working all day can sign as many ballots as they wish. Keep the stacks separated so the morning shift ballots are used first. Once the ballots are stamped and signed, all ballots should be stored in a secure location (box behind the Inspector s table). All unused signed ballots should be torn in half. All unused ballots should be placed back in the box and tapped shut. Date/time/initial across the tape. All secrecy sleeves should be returned to the main supply storage box. All stamps should be returned to the main supply storage box. Check the write-in bin, reserve and main for all ballots. All ballots should be removed from the bins and checked for write-in names. Any ballots with write-in names will need to be recorded. Once all ballots have been checked for written-in names, the ballots should be placed in a secured box. An empty ballot box will work, it must be taped shut. At least 5 election inspectors should sign across the tape sealing the box shut. The Ballot Container Certificate should also be signed and taped to the top of the box. The box of USED ballots should be placed in the large black tote bin. A seal should then be placed on the black bin. The seal number should be recorded on the Inspector Statement and the Inspector s Certificate If the ballots to not all fit in the black bin place them in the blue bin and lock it. (The supplies may need to be left out.)

4 POLL LISTS The first and last number voter ticket number used should be recorded on the Certificate on each of the poll lists. The last ticket number should agree with the total number of voters that is recorded on the tabulator. The poll list should be signed by an odd number of people. The people who will be working on the poll lists should sign the lists through out the day. The blanks on the poll list should be completed. Please note that during the day the number of absentee and provisional ballots will need to be recorded. An area should be declared as the area for the Election Observers. Introduce yourself to the observers and instruct them on the area designated for Election Observers. Make them as comfortable as possible. The Poll List Table should have a binder with the Voter Listing alphabetically by address, alphabetically by last name, and the street listing. (If someone insists they are registered, check the listing by address, their name maybe typed in error.) All unused voter tickets pad should be returned to the blue bin for storage. The poll lists should be placed in the black box (on rollers with yellow handles) that will be brought back to City Hall. If the last ticket number doesn t agree with the number of voters recorded on the machine a notation should be made on the Inspector s Statement, with the reason for the numbers not agreeing. The number of absentee ballots received at the facility needs to be recorded on the poll list certificate. Check to be sure an odd number of people signed the certificate on the poll list.

5 REGISTRATION TABLE/LAPTOPS The registration table should be setup so that all voters have access to the table. Check for the supply of registration forms. Check for the binder that contains the street, voter listing by name, and voter listing by address. Check for an adequate supply of pens. Check to insure there is a power source for the laptops. The Registration Table should have a binder with the Voter Listing alphabetically by address, alphabetically by last name, and the street listing. (If someone insists they are registered, check the listing by address, their name maybe typed in error.) Organize all the unused supplies and return to the bin. The completed forms should be placed in the accordion envelope behind the appropriate letter and sent back to City Hall. Place in the black box (on rollers with yellow handles) that will be brought back to City Hall. The laptops should be packed up and brought back to City Hall. J/clerk/election/ElectionDayManual.doc