A. In any election of officers of the irrigation district, a qualified elector shall be entitled to vote by absent ballot. Absent ballots shall be furnished by the secretary of the board of directors and such ballots shall be in a form prescribed by the board of directors. In addition to the absent ballot, the secretary of the board of directors shall furnish each qualified elector requesting an absent ballot an official inner envelope for use in sealing the completed absent ballot and an official outer envelope for use in returning the inner envelope to the secretary.
B. A qualified elector voting by absent ballot shall secretly mark his ballot, place it in the official inner envelope and securely seal the envelope. He shall then place the inner envelope inside the outer envelope and securely seal the envelope. The qualified elector shall then sign his name and address on the outer envelope and deliver or mail it to the secretary of the board of directors any time prior to the opening of the polls on election day.
C. Upon receipt of an absent ballot, the secretary of the board of directors shall remove the outer envelope and enter in a register the name and address of the qualified elector and the date and time the ballot was received. The secretary shall keep the inner envelope sealed and unmarked or unidentified in any manner as to the qualified elector and place it in a safe place until the opening of the polls on election day. At the time the polls open on election day, the secretary shall deliver all the sealed inner envelopes to the chairman of the election board of the precinct nearest to the office of the district. The sealed inner envelopes shall be accompanied by a signed affidavit setting forth the number of ballots received, the number of ballots delivered and a statement to the effect that the ballots delivered are in the same condition as when received.
D. Absent ballots shall be counted, tallied and canvassed as are other ballots.
History: 1953 Comp., § 75-23-11.1, enacted by Laws 1973, ch. 112, § 1.