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Colorado > Colorado Electoral Code > Election Offenses

1-13-709. Voting in wrong polling location

Statute

Any person who, at any election provided by law, knowingly votes or offers to vote in any polling location in which he or she is not qualified to vote shall be punished by a fine of not more than five thousand dollars or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than eighteen months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

 

Source: L. 80: Entire article R&RE, p. 434, § 1, effective January 1, 1981.L. 95: Entire section amended, p. 853, § 86, effective July 1.L. 2013: Entire section amended, (HB 13-1303), ch. 185, p. 748, § 119, effective May 10.

Editor’s note: This section is similar to former § § 1-13-135 and 1-30-128 as they existed prior to 1980.

Cross references: In 2013, this section was amended by the “Voter Access and Modernized Elections Act”. For the short title and the legislative declaration, see sections 1 and 2 of chapter 185, Session Laws of Colorado 2013.
 
ANNOTATION

Conduct prohibited by this section is sufficiently distinguishable from felony election statute to create two separate offenses, avoiding violation of equal protection clause. This section relates to voting or the offer to vote in a precinct in which defendant is not qualified to vote. Felony statute relates to actually voting by providing false information regarding place of residence. People v. Onesimo Romero, 746 P.2d 534 (Colo. 1987).

Voting in the wrong precinct is an unclassified misdemeanor, and trial court may not reclassify the offense as a petty offense but must apply the penalties and statute of limitation consistent with the limits and constraints legislatively imposed by statute. People v. Onesimo Romero, 746 P.2d 534 (Colo. 1987).

Definition [Title]

A brief statement that fairly and accurately represents the true intent and meaning of the proposed text of the initiative.

Definition [Person]

Any natural person, partnership, committee, association, corporation, labor organization, political party, or other organization or group of persons. Section 2(11) of article XXVIII of the state constitution.

Definition [Section]

A bound compilation of initiative forms approved by the secretary of state, which shall include pages that contain the warning required by section 1-40-110 (1), the ballot title, the abstract required by section 1-40-110 (3), and a copy of the proposed measure; succeeding pages that contain the warning, the ballot title, and ruled lines numbered consecutively for registered electors’ signatures; and a final page that contains the affidavit required by section 1-40-111 (2). Each section shall be consecutively prenumbered by the petitioner prior to circulation.

Definition [Election]

Any election under the “Uniform Election Code of 1992” or the “Colorado Municipal Election Code of 1965”, article 10 of title 31, C.R.S. C.R.S. § 1-7.5-103.

Cases

Colorado Cases

Case Name: People v. Onesimo Remeroi

Citation: 746 P.2d 534

Year: 1987

Case URL: https://www.ravellaw.com/opinions/71f4f46baa698f1842a9eb76a882cf88

Case Summary: Directing the trial court to reinstate misdemeanor charges against a defendant for voting in a precinct in which he was not qualified to vote because he resided at an address in a different precinct.

Out-of-State Cases

Federal Cases