SECTIONS 15620-15634 - California Statutes

ELECTIONS CODE

SECTION 15620-15634

15620. Following completion of the official canvass and again
following completion of any postcanvass risk-limiting audit conducted
pursuant to Section 15560, any voter may, within five days
thereafter, file with the elections official responsible for
conducting an election in the county wherein the recount is sought a
written request for a recount of the votes cast for candidates for
any office, for slates of presidential electors, or for or against
any measure, provided the office, slate, or measure is not voted on
statewide. The request shall specify on behalf of which candidate,
slate of electors, or position on a measure (affirmative or negative)
it is filed.
If an election is conducted in more than one county, the request
for the recount may be filed by any voter within five days, beginning
on the 29th day after the election, with the elections official of,
and the recount may be conducted within, any or all of the affected
counties.
For the purposes of this section, "completion of the canvass"
shall be presumed to be that time when the elections official signs
the certified statement of the results of the election except that,
in the case of a city election, if a city council canvasses the
returns itself and does not order the elections official to conduct
the canvass, "completion of the canvass" shall be presumed to be that
time when the governing body declares the persons elected or the
measures approved or defeated.

15621. Following completion of the official canvass any voter may,
within five days beginning on the 29th day after a statewide
election, file with the Secretary of State a written request for a
recount of the votes cast for candidates for any statewide office or
for or against any measure voted on statewide. Additionally, any
voter may file with the Secretary of State a written request for a
recount of the votes cast for candidates for any statewide office or
for or against any measure voted on statewide within five days
following completion of any postcanvass risk-limiting audit conducted
pursuant to Section 15560. A request filed pursuant to this section
shall specify in which county or counties the recount is sought and
shall specify on behalf of which candidate, slate of electors, or
position on a measure (affirmative or negative) it is filed.
The Secretary of State shall forthwith send by registered mail one
copy of the request to the elections official of each county in
which a recount of the votes is sought.
All the other provisions of this article shall apply to recounts
conducted under this section.

15622. The request may specify the order in which the precincts
shall be recounted.

15623. Any time during the conduct of a recount and for 24 hours
thereafter, any other voter may request the recount of any precincts
in an election for the same office, slate of presidential electors,
or measure not recounted as a result of the original request.

15624. The voter filing the request seeking the recount shall,
before the recount is commenced and at the beginning of each day
following, deposit with the elections official a sum as required by
the elections official to cover the cost of the recount for that day.
The money deposited shall be returned to the depositor if, upon
completion of the recount, the candidate, slate of presidential
electors, or the position on the measure (affirmative or negative)
for which the declaration is filed is found to have received the
plurality of votes cast which it had not received according to the
official canvass or, in an election where there are two or more
candidates, the recount results in the candidate for whom the recount
was requested appearing on the ballot in a subsequent runoff
election or general election who would not have so appeared in the
absence of the recount. The depositor shall be entitled to the return
of any money deposited in excess of the cost of the recount if the
candidate, slate, or position on the measure has not received the
plurality of the votes cast or, in an election where there are two or
more candidates, the recount does not result in the candidate for
whom the recount was requested appearing on the ballot in a
subsequent runoff or general election as a result of the recount.
Money not required to be refunded shall be deposited in the
appropriate public treasury.

15625. The recount shall be conducted under the supervision of the
elections official by special recount boards consisting of four
voters of the county appointed by the elections official. Each member
of a recount board shall receive the same compensation per day as is
paid in the jurisdiction within which the recount is being conducted
to members of precinct boards, other than inspectors, to be paid out
of the appropriate public treasury.
If the office of the elections official is the subject of the
recount, the governing body shall appoint an officer, other than the
elections official, to appoint and supervise the special recount
boards.

15626. The recount shall be commenced not more than seven days
following the receipt by the elections official of the request for
the recount under Section 15620 or 15621, and shall be continued
daily, Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays excepted, for not less than
six hours each day until completed. The recount shall not be
commenced until the first day following notification of the
individuals specified in Section 15628.

15627. (a) If in the election which is to be recounted the votes
were recorded by means of a punchcard voting system or by electronic
or electromechanical vote tabulating devices, the voter who files the
declaration requesting the recount may select whether the recount
shall be conducted manually, or by means of the voting system used
originally, or both.
(b) For purposes of direct recording electronic voting systems,
"conducted manually" means that either the paper record copies or the
voter verified paper audit trail of the electronically recorded vote
are counted manually, as selected by the voter who requests the
recount.

15628. Not less than one day prior to commencement of the recount,
the elections official shall post a notice as to the date and place
of the recount and shall notify the following persons of it in person
or by any federally regulated overnight mail service:
(a) All candidates for any office the votes for which are to be
recounted.
(b) Authorized representatives of presidential candidates to whom
electors are pledged if the votes to be recounted were cast for
presidential electors.
(c) Proponents of any initiative or referendum or persons filing
ballot arguments for or against any initiative, referendum, or
measure placed on the ballot by the governing body the votes for
which are to be recounted.
(d) The Secretary of State in the case of a recount of the votes
cast for candidates for any state office, presidential electors, the
House of Representatives of the United States, the Senate of the
United States, or delegates to a national convention or on any state
measure.

15629. The recount shall be conducted publicly.

15630. All ballots, whether voted or not, and any other relevant
material, may be examined as part of any recount if the voter filing
the declaration requesting the recount so requests.
No examination of any ballot shall include touching or handling
the ballot without the express consent of the elections official or
the election officer supervising the special recount board. No ballot
may be touched or handled during the examination unless the
elections official or the elections officer supervising the special
recount is present to observe the examination.
Except as provided in this section no ballot shall be touched or
handled by any person during the recount unless that person is the
elections official, a person acting at the direction of the elections
official, a member of the special recount board, or by order of the
superior court.

15631. On recount, ballots may be challenged for incompleteness,
ambiguity, or other defects, in accordance with the following
procedure:
(a) The person challenging the ballot shall state the reason for
the challenge.
(b) The official counting the ballot shall count it as he or she
believes proper and then set it aside with a notation as to how it
was counted.
(c) The elections official shall, before the recount is completed,
determine whether the challenge is to be allowed. The decision of
the elections official is final.

15632. In lieu of the returns as reported in the official canvass,
upon completion of the recount showing that a different candidate was
nominated or elected, that a different presidential slate of
electors received a plurality of the votes, or that a measure was
defeated instead of approved or approved instead of defeated, there
shall be entered the result of the recount in each precinct affected,
which result shall, for all purposes thereafter, be the official
returns of those precincts for the office, slates of presidential
electors, or measure involved in the recount. If the office, slates
of presidential electors, or measure are not voted on statewide, the
results of any recount which is not completed by counting the votes
in each and every precinct in the jurisdiction within which votes
were cast on the candidates for the office, on the slates of
electors, or on the measure in question shall be declared null and
void. If the office, slates of presidential electors, or measure are
voted on statewide, the results of any recount will be declared null
and void where there is not recounted each vote cast for the office,
slates, or measure in any county specified in the request for recount
filed with the Secretary of State.

15633. A copy of the results of any recount conducted pursuant to
this chapter shall be posted conspicuously in the office of the
elections official.

15634. This chapter does not:
(a) Authorize the opening or recounting of ballots for any
precinct except for the purposes specified in this chapter.
(b) Limit other provisions of law regarding an election contest or
recount.