Voting procedure; standards to define a vote; rights of a voter in casting ballot

Sec. 23. (a) This section is enacted to comply with 52 U.S.C. 21081 by establishing uniform and nondiscriminatory standards to define what constitutes a vote on an electronic voting system. (b) If a voter is not challenged by a member of the precinct election board, the voter may pass the railing to the side where an electronic voting system is and into the voting booth. There the voter shall register the voter's vote in secret by indicating: (1) the candidates for whom the voter desires to vote by touching a device on or in the squares immediately above the candidates' names; (2) if the voter intends to cast a write-in vote, a write-in vote by touching a device on or in the square immediately below the candidates' names and printing the name of the candidate in the window provided for write-in voting; and (3) the voter's preference on each public question by touching a device above the word "yes" or "no" under the question. (c) If an election is a general or municipal election and a voter desires to vote for all the candidates of one (1) political party or group of petitioners, the voter may cast a straight party ticket by touching that party's device. Except as provided in IC 3-11-7.5-10(b), the voter's vote shall then be counted for all the candidates under that name. However, if the voter casts a vote by touching the circle of an independent ticket comprised of two (2) candidates, the vote shall not be counted for any other independent candidate on the ballot. (d) As provided by 52 U.S.C. 21081, a voter casting a ballot on an electronic voting system must be: (1) permitted to verify in a private and independent manner the votes selected by the voter before the ballot is cast and counted; (2) provided the opportunity to change the ballot or correct any error in a private and independent manner before the ballot is cast and counted, including the opportunity to receive a replacement ballot if the voter is otherwise unable to change or correct the ballot; and (3) notified before the ballot is cast regarding the effect of casting multiple votes for the office and provided an opportunity to correct the ballot before the ballot is cast and counted.