CHAPTER 404
FORMERLY
SENATE BILL NO. 527
AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 50 OF TITLE 15, DELAWARE CODE, PERTAINING TO THE PREPARATION OF VOTING MACHINES.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Delaware:
Section 1. Amend §5008 of Title 15, Delaware Code, by deleting said section in its entirety and inserting in lieu thereof a new §5008 to read as follows:
"§5008. Preparation of voting machines.
(a) The Department of Elections shall see to it that sufficient voting machines are delivered to the proper polling places prior to the time appointed for the election officers to report for duty. The Department shall see to it that each machine to be used in an election has been properly prepared and inspected.
(b) The Department shall mail written notices to the Chairman of the county committee of each of the two principal political parties, stating the time and place at which the voting machines will be inspected. It shall be the privilege of each principal political party to have one representative present during this inspection.
(c) The Board of Elections shall designate at least two representatives of opposite political affiliation, other than the person or persons preparing the machine:
(2) to test the lever beside the name of each candidate and the write-in roll slot to make certain they are operating properly.
These representatives shall certify to this upon a record provided by the Department.
(d) The Department shall cause all registering counters to be set at zero (000) and the paper in the write-in roll slots to be blank. The ballot frames of each machine shall be sealed with a numbered metal seal. Two representatives of the Board of Elections, of opposite political affiliation, shall examine each machine to make certain this has been done.
They shall certify (1) the numbers on the machines and the election districts for which they are designated; (2) that all registering counters and write-in slots are set at zero (000) or are blank; and (3) that the ballot frames are sealed.
At the same time, they shall record and certify the number on the protective counter, the numbered seal, and the write-in paper roll.
(e) The Department shall see to it that each machine is properly prepared in all respects for the election, that its doors are locked, and the necessary keys prepared for delivery to the election officers. Two representatives of the Board of Elections, of opposite political affiliation, shall certify that this has been done.
(f) The certification required by this section shall be a public record in the office of the Department of Elections.
(g) The Department shall require. that all persons entrusted with custody of the machines either for deliver or storage before and after the election shall see to the machines' safety and protection.'