Tips for Registrars

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• Tips for Registrars

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• BE PREPARED

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If a District in Your Town is Selected
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IF A DISTRICT IN YOUR TOWN IS SELECTED cont.
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• Security of ballots and verification of seals
• Do you have ALL your machine-counted ballots?
• Swear in workers.
• Set-up your audit siteadequate space, light.
• Use 4-person teams, balanced by party affiliation
  or with unaffiliated workers1 reader, 1
  observer, 2 hash-markers.
• Brief your workers on their jobs. Answer
  questions

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Audit Daycont.
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• Transfer each teams totals, by candidate, onto
  master worksheet.
• Registrars add other teams results and compare
  with the tabulator tape.
• Registrars record describe any candidate votes
  that are questionable on the SOTS Audit Report
  in Column E.

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Handling DiscrepanciesGeneral concepts

• Re-check most recent tabulation.
• Math errors
• Hashmark totals
• Questionable votes
• Recount if necessary.
• Switch readers
• Use fresh worksheets.

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Questionable Ballots

• Machine reads many votes correctly if bubble
  partially filled, circled, or Xed.
• When in doubt, add to Column E and describe.
  These votes may explain your discrepancies.
• Count 1 voteParty Unknownfor Cross-endorsed
  candidates if both ovals filled.
• True overvotes are not counted by machine.

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• Use blind counting when you count or recount
  any race.
• Smaller batches of ballots are easier to count
  and reconcile.
• Do not make any marks on the ballot.
• Dont move on to next step in tabulating totals
  until previous calculations are reconciled.
• Your role is to supervise and solve problems, not
  to count.

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Wethersfield Procedures

• Registrars pick up the ballots for selected
  District(s) . Make sure you have all the ballots
  that went through the machine. Keep ballots under
  supervision at all times.
• Compare seal numbers on the ballot bag to the
  Moderators returnshould be in ballot bag.
• Teams of three one reader, one hash marker, and
  one to check on both.

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Wethersfield cont.

• The ballots are viewed one by one and placed in
  two piles one that the machine could read and
  second that the machine maybe didnt read.
• Count and batch ballots into piles of 25.
• Verify total against the tape from election
  night.
• Then the hand count of each pile begins. Sticky
  note on each pile for number 1 etc. and the
  breakdown is placed on top of each pile secured
  with a paper clip.
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Wethersfield cont.

• Each table does its count. If there are any
  discrepancies, a different table does the second
  count. Continue until all ballots are accounted
  for against the tape.
• Complete the SOTS form totally and attach a
  duplicate tape from election night. If it does
  not balance with the protocol, you count again
  until there is a correct count. If you cannot
  explain differences you must report to SOTS.

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Wethersfield cont.

• All ballots are resealed into the containers and
  returned to the locked storage, by both
  registrars.
• Reminder Observers are allowed and encouraged to
  see the whole process but not to interfere.

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Party Line Ballots

• Many medium size to large cities will have voters
  that tend to vote party lines
• 2 people working together
• Put all ballots in same direction

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• look at each ballot to see if it is
• a straight line voting ballot
• able to be counted by the
• Tabulator
• Put top line straight
• voted ballots in one pile
• (Republicans)
• Put next line straight
• voted ballots in one pile
• (Democrats)

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• Put all other ballots that do not fit any
  straight line voting in the last pile
• Take each pile and count ballots in groups of
  10
• crises crossing ballots in
• each pile

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• Record number on sticky
• on top of ballot piles
• Verify number of ballots
• Record numbers for each
• candidate on the Republican
• line from the sticky on that
• pile

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• Record number for each
• candidate on the Democratic
• line from the sticky on that
• pile
• Now the two of you must
• do the third pile together
• One reads one records

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• By counting by the 10s we
• find it easier to find ones
• counting errors
• By separating the ballots by
• voting lines - you save time in
• reading each ballot
• Many counters eyes get very
• tired errors occur when
• counting large numbers of
• ballots

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• If you can use observers to
• watch the process they
• sometimes will see errors that
• counters or recorders make
• when getting tired
• Try not to go over 4 hours
• the adult learning ability is at
• its maximum at 4 hours

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• If you are doing multiple
• counting groups in the same
• room it is nice when everyone is
• doing the same procedure.
• But remember that not all
• people can do every procedure
• they may have a style themselves they should
  try it.