§ 24.2-701.1 Absentee voting in person
Statute
A. Absentee voting in person shall be available on the forty-fifth day prior to any election and shall continue until 5:00 p.m. on the Saturday immediately preceding the election.
1. Any registered voter eligible to vote absentee pursuant to subsection A of § 24.2-700 may vote absentee in person beginning on the forty-fifth day prior to the election in which he is offering to vote and continuing until the second Friday immediately preceding such election. He shall complete the application for an absentee ballot required by § 24.2-701, and the general registrar shall process that application in accordance with the provisions of § 24.2-706.
2. Any registered voter may vote absentee in person on or after the second Saturday immediately preceding the election in which he is offering to vote. He shall provide his name and his residence address in the county or city in which he is offering to vote. After verifying that the voter is a registered voter of that county or city, the general registrar shall enroll the voter’s name and address on the absentee voter applicant list maintained pursuant to § 24.2-706.
A registered voter voting by absentee ballot in person shall provide one of the forms of identification specified in subsection B of § 24.2-643. If he does not show one of the forms of identification specified in subsection B of § 24.2-643, he shall be offered a provisional ballot under the provisions of § 24.2-653. The State Board shall provide instructions to the general registrar for the handling and counting of such provisional ballots pursuant to subsection B of § 24.2-653 and this section.
B. Absentee voting in person shall be available during regular business hours. The electoral board of each county and city shall provide for absentee voting in person in the office of the general registrar. For purposes of this chapter, such office shall be open a minimum of eight hours between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on the first and second Saturday immediately preceding all elections. Any applicant who is in line to cast his ballot when the office of the general registrar or location being used for in-person absentee voting closes shall be permitted to cast his absentee ballot that day.
C. Additional locations in the county or city approved by the electoral boards may be available for absentee voting in person. Any such location shall be in a public building owned or leased by the county, city, or town within the county and may be in a facility that is owned or leased by the Commonwealth and used as a location for Department of Motor Vehicles facilities or as an office of the general registrar. Any such location shall have adequate facilities for the protection of all elections materials produced in the process of absentee voting in person, the voted and unvoted absentee ballots, and any voting systems in use at the location.
D. The general registrar may provide for the casting of absentee ballots in person pursuant to this section on voting systems. The Department shall prescribe the procedures for use of voting systems. The procedures shall provide for absentee voting in person on voting systems that have been certified and are currently approved by the State Board. The procedures shall be applicable and uniformly applied by the Department to all localities using comparable voting systems.
E. At least two officers of election shall be present during all hours that absentee voting in person is available and shall represent the two major political parties, except in the case of a party primary, when they may represent the party conducting the primary. However, such requirement shall not apply when (i) voting systems that are being used pursuant to subsection D are located in the office of the general registrar and (ii) the general registrar or an assistant registrar is present.
F. The Department shall include absentee ballots voted in person in its instructions for the preparation, maintenance, and reporting of ballots, pollbooks, records, and returns.
1. Definition for Department
The state agency headed by the Commissioner of Elections.
See § 24.2-101.
2. Definition for State Board
The State Board of Elections.
See § 24.2-101.
3. Definition for Voting system
The electronic voting and counting machines used at elections. This term includes direct recording electronic machines (DRE) and ballot scanner machines.
See § 24.2-101.
4. Definition for Electoral board
A board appointed pursuant to § 24.2-106 to administer elections for a county or city. The electoral board of the county in which a town or the greater part of a town is located shall administer the town’s elections.
See § 24.2-101.
5. Definition for Registered voter
Any person who is maintained on the Virginia voter registration system. All registered voters shall be maintained on the Virginia voter registration system with active status unless assigned to inactive status by a general registrar in accordance with Chapter 4 (§ 24.2-400 et seq.). For purposes of applying the precinct size requirements of § 24.2-307, calculating election machine requirements pursuant to Article 3 (§ 24.2-625 et seq.) of Chapter 6, mailing notices of local election district, precinct or polling place changes as required by subdivision 13 of § 24.2-114 and § 24.2-306, and determining the number of signatures required for candidate and voter petitions, “registered voter” shall include only persons maintained on the Virginia voter registration system with active status. For purposes of determining if a signature on a petition shall be included in the count toward meeting the signature requirements of any petition, “registered voter” shall include only persons maintained on the Virginia voter registration system (i) with active status and (ii) on inactive status who are qualified to vote for the office for which the petition was circulated.
See § 24.2-101.
6. Definition for General Registrar
The person appointed by the electoral board of a county or city pursuant to § 24.2-110 to be responsible for all aspects of voter registration, in addition to other duties prescribed by this title. When performing duties related to the administration of elections, the general registrar is acting in his capacity as the director of elections for the locality in which he serves.
See § 24.2-101.
7. Definition for Party
An organization of citizens of the Commonwealth which, at either of the two preceding statewide general elections, received at least 10 percent of the total vote cast for any statewide office filled in that election. The organization shall have a state central committee and an office of elected state chairman which have been continually in existence for the six months preceding the filing of a nominee for any office.
See § 24.2-101.
8. Definition for Board
The State Board of Elections.
See § 24.2-101.
9. Definition for State
A state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.
See § 24.2-452.
10. Definition for Person
Any individual or corporation, partnership, business, labor organization, membership organization, association, cooperative, or other like entity.
For the purpose of applying the filing and reporting requirements of this chapter, the term “person” shall not include an organization holding tax-exempt status under § 501(c) (3), 501(c) (4), or 501(c) (6) of the United States Internal Revenue Code which, in providing information to voters, does not advocate or endorse the election or defeat of a particular candidate, group of candidates, or the candidates of a particular political party.
See § 24.2-945.1.
11. Definition for Primary
An election held for the purpose of selecting a candidate to be the nominee of a political party for election to office.
See § 24.2-101.
12. Definition for Election
A general, primary, or special election.
See § 24.2-101.
13. Definition for Residence
For all purposes of qualification to register and vote, means and requires both domicile and a place of abode. To establish domicile, a person must live in a particular locality with the intention to remain. A place of abode is the physical place where a person dwells.
See § 24.2-101.