SEARCH SITE
VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL
- Code of Virginia
- Virginia Administrative Code
- Constitution of Virginia
- Charters
- Authorities
- Compacts
- Uncodified Acts
- RIS Users (account required)
SEARCHABLE DATABASES
- Bills & Resolutions
session legislation - Bill Summaries
session summaries - Reports to the General Assembly
House and Senate documents - Legislative Liaisons
State agency contacts
ACROSS SESSIONS
- Subject Index: Since 1995
- Bills & Resolutions: Since 1994
- Summaries: Since 1994
Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
1996 SESSION
965357396Patrons-- Parrish, Brickley, Dudley, Marshall and Rollison; Senators: Barry and Colgan
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That § 24.2-705 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 24.2-705. Emergency applications and absentee ballots for persons incapacitated or hospitalized.
Any person registered and otherwise qualified to vote who becomes
hospitalized incapacitated on or after the fifth day
preceding an election may request at any time prior to noon on the day
preceding the election that an emergency absentee ballot application be
delivered to him in the hospital. A voter who becomes hospitalized
on or after the fourteenth day preceding the election and who is unable,
because of his condition, to request an absentee ballot earlier than the fifth
day preceding the election may request at any time prior to noon on the day
before an election that an emergency absentee ballot be delivered to him in the
hospital. For purposes of this section, "incapacitated" means
hospitalized, ill and confined to his residence, bereaved by the death of a
spouse, child, or parent, or otherwise incapacitated by an emergency
which is found by the electoral board to justify
providing an emergency ballot application; and "hospital"
means a hospital as defined in § 32.1-123 and any comparable hospital in
the District of Columbia or any state contiguous to Virginia.
On receipt of the request, the electoral board shall provide an emergency
absentee ballot application to the hospitalized incapacitated
voter's designated representative who shall deliver the application to
the voter. If the voter is hospitalized, the
delivery shall be made to him at the hospital; and if the voter is
otherwise incapacitated, the delivery shall be made to him at his
current residence address as shown on the registration
records. The representative shall be age eighteen or older and shall not
be an elected official, a candidate for elected office, or the deputy, spouse,
parent, or child of an elected official or candidate.
The application shall be on a form prescribed by the State Board and shall
require the applicant (i) to state the cause of his incapacity, (ii)
to state that he is unable to be present at the polls on election day,
and that he was either hospitalized incapacitated on or
after the fifth day preceding the election or hospitalized on or after the
fourteenth day preceding the election and unable to request the application
earlier than the fifth day preceding the election, (ii) (iii)
to designate a representative to receive, deliver and return the ballot,
and (iii) (iv) to provide other information required by
law for an absentee ballot application.
A If the voter is hospitalized, a hospital administrative
official or a licensed physician attending the applicant shall certify on the
form to the hospitalization of the applicant and the applicant's inability to
be present at the polls on election day. If the voter is ill
and confined to his residence, a licensed physician or an accredited
religious practitioner (as defined in §
24.2-421) attending the applicant shall certify on the form to the
incapacity of the applicant and the applicant's inability to be present at the
polls on election day. If the voter is bereaved, a licensed
physician, an accredited religious
practitioner (as defined in § 24.2-421),
or a funeral service licensee (as defined in
§ 54.1-2800) shall certify on the form to the
incapacity of the applicant and the applicant's inability to be present at the
polls on election day. If the voter is otherwise incapacitated as
determined by the electoral board, the secretary of the electoral board
shall certify on the form to the incapacity of the applicant and the
applicant's inability to be present at the polls on election day. The
applicant shall sign the application and state, subject to felony penalties for
making false statements pursuant to § 24.2-1016, that to the best of his
knowledge and belief the facts contained in the application are true and
correct. His signature shall be witnessed by the designated representative who
shall sign and return the completed application to the office of the general
registrar no later than 5:00 p.m. on the day preceding the election.
On receipt of the completed application and a determination of the
qualification of the applicant to vote, the general registrar or secretary of
the electoral board shall provide, in accordance with the applicable provisions
of this chapter, an absentee ballot to the designated representative for
delivery to the hospitalized incapacitated voter.
The hospitalized incapacitated voter shall vote the
absentee ballot as provided by law and mark it in the presence of the
designated representative. The representative shall complete a statement,
subject to felony penalties for making false statements pursuant to §
24.2-1016, that (i) he is the representative of the
hospitalized incapacitated voter; (ii) he personally
delivered the ballot to the voter who applied for it; (iii) in his presence,
the voter marked the ballot, the ballot was placed in the envelope provided,
the envelope was sealed, and the statement on its reverse side was signed by
the hospitalized incapacitated voter; and (iv) the
ballot was returned, under seal, to the electoral board at the registrar's
office.
The ballot shall be counted only if the ballot is received by the electoral board (i) prior to noon on the day of the election in any county, city, or town which does not have a central absentee voter election district or (ii) prior to the closing of the polls in any county, city, or town which has a central absentee voter precinct.