RSA 657:15 · Sending Absentee Ballots

657:15 Sending Absentee Ballots. –

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I.

When the verification required by RSA 657:12 or 657:13 has been made, the clerk shall retain the application and, without delay, personally deliver, email, or mail to the applicant the appropriate ballot and materials as described in RSA 657:7 through 657:8 or designate an assistant to deliver such materials to the applicant. The clerk's option to email an absentee ballot to a voter shall apply only to absentee ballot applications from UOCAVA voters. The clerk shall mail absentee ballots in response to verified absentee ballot requests that have been received by 12:00 p.m. on the day before the election. The clerk shall provide an absentee ballot to any voter requesting an absentee ballot in person at the clerk's office up until 5:00 p.m. on the day before the election or as may be provided elsewhere in Title LXIII. The clerk may not designate as an assistant any person who is a candidate for nomination or office or who is working for such a candidate. Any ballots sent pursuant to the provisions of this section shall be mailed or delivered only by officials from the city or town clerk's office and delivered only to the applicant. If the address to which the absent voter's ballot is sent is outside the United States or Canada, such papers shall be sent by air mail. Said clerks shall keep lists of the names and addresses, arranged by voting places, of all applicants to whom official absentee ballots have been sent, and shall identify those official absentee ballots which have been returned to the clerk and shall record the absentee voter applicant information in the statewide centralized voter registration database. The lists shall not be available for public inspection at any time without a court order.

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II.

Candidates whose names appear on the ballot and persons bearing notarized requests or copies of notarized requests from candidates whose names appear on the ballot may obtain a list of absentee voter applicants from the clerk, excluding voters who have presented to the supervisors of the checklist valid protective orders pursuant to RSA 173-B. If requested this list shall be supplied electronically from the information in the statewide centralized voter registration database. If an electronic copy exists, it shall be provided without charge in accordance with RSA 91-A.

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III.

Candidates whose names appear on the ballot for statewide office and persons bearing a notarized request from candidates whose names appear on the ballot for statewide office may obtain a statewide list of absentee voter applicants, excluding voters who have presented to the supervisors of the checklist valid protective orders pursuant to RSA 173-B from the secretary of state. Information on the statewide absentee voter list shall be limited to voter name and address where registered, voter ID number, voter's party, the type of election the absentee ballot was requested in, the date the absentee ballot was requested, the date the absentee ballot was sent or handed to the voter, and the date that the absentee ballot envelope was returned. III-a. Political parties and persons bearing notarized requests from political parties may obtain a statewide list of absentee voter applicants, excluding voters who have presented to the supervisors of the checklist valid protective orders pursuant to RSA 173-B from the secretary of state. Information on the statewide absentee voter list shall be limited to voter name, voter ID number, the date the absentee ballot was requested, and the date that the ballot was returned.

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IV.

The subscription fee for providing a statewide list of absentee voters by the secretary of state under this section shall be $2,000 per election, all of which shall be deposited in the election fund under RSA 5:6-d. The secretary of state shall update the original list of absentee voters on a regular basis. The secretary of state shall provide the list requested pursuant to paragraphs III and III-a at least once per week and at least twice per week for the 4 weeks prior to the election. Source. 1979, 436:1. 1986, 126:8. 1990, 119:11. 1996, 36:9. 1998, 246:3. 2003, 12:1. 2010, 182:4; 317:73. 2011, 72:2, eff. July 15, 2011. 2016, 317:3, eff. Aug. 23, 2016. 2021, 132:1, eff. Sept. 21, 2021; 187:1, eff. Oct. 9, 2021. 2023, 184:1, eff. Oct. 3, 2023. 2024, 221:1, eff. Sept. 17, 2024.

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