What Are Provisional Ballots

Instead of turning away a voter you can try to solve the issue if possible prior to giving the voter a provisional ballot.

What are provisional ballots. What is a provisional ballot. The sealed box of ballots goes to the sheriff s office after the. The content of a provisional ballot may or may not be different from a regular ballot but it is cast provisionally until the voter s eligibility is verified. There is a question about the voter s qualification to vote in the precinct e g the voter is not on the poll book which is not resolved by a fail safe procedure and the voter believes he she is qualified to vote in the precinct.

Before provisional ballots some states allowed voters to cast challenge ballots if the polling places deemed them ineligible. One of the established roles for such observers is to act as challengers in the event. The right of political parties to have observers at polling places is long standing. The provisional vote information sheets are collected separately from the provisional ballots which go into the sealed box.

You may be issued a provisional ballot. Such a situation may occur if your name does not appear on the voter rolls or if you did not bring proper identification or in some states if you received a mail in ballot but are trying to vote in person instead. Provisional ballots are handled separately from normally cast ballots. A provisional ballot is used to record someone s vote if the voter s eligibility is in question and the voter would otherwise not be permitted to vote at their polling place.

If they argue with us and say well i know i voted in the last election so i can vote we let them vote a provisional ballot but what are provisional ballots. The local canvassing boards examined those ballots and decided whether the votes should count. If after the election administrators determine that the voter who cast the provisional ballot was eligible to vote the ballot will be counted as a regular ballot. Election officials may ask that voter to vote a provisional ballot.

A provisional ballot allows the voter to cast a vote if. What is a provisional ballot. Provisional ballots also called affidavit ballots are given to a voter when a question arises about that person s eligibility. A provisional ballot records your vote while the county board of elections determines whether it can be counted.

Provisional ballots provide a way for people to vote whose voter registration or qualifications to vote are in question.