§574. Compilation and promulgation of returns

A.(1) The parish board of election supervisors or the members of the board selected by the board as its representatives shall meet at the time and place designated by the clerk of court for the voting machines to be opened. The board or its representatives shall observe the verification of the votes by the clerk of court.

(2) Immediately after the completion of the verification by the clerk of court and the counting and tabulation of provisional ballots for federal office, if applicable, the board shall publicly prepare two compiled statements of the election returns as shown by the record of the votes made by the clerk of court. The compiled statements shall separately show the machine votes for each candidate and for and against each proposition in each precinct, the total absentee by mail and early voting votes for each candidate and for and against each proposition in the parish, the total provisional votes for each candidate for federal office, and the total of all votes for each candidate and for and against each proposition in the parish.

(3) The board shall complete the compilation of the election returns and file one copy of the compiled statement with the clerk of court no later than 4:00 p.m. on the fifth day after the election. One copy of the compiled statement shall be postmarked no later than 12:00 noon on the sixth day after the election and mailed to the secretary of state. The clerk of court shall transmit the election returns as shown by the compiled statement from the parish board of election supervisors to the secretary of state no later than 12:00 noon on the sixth day after the election. In a parish containing a municipality with a population of three hundred thousand or more, the parish board of election supervisors shall transmit the election returns as shown by their compiled statement to the secretary of state no later than 12:00 noon on the sixth day after the election. Failure to comply with these time limits shall not void the election.

B. By a majority vote of the members, the parish board of election supervisors may complete in triplicate and attach to the compiled statements a notation of irregularities form prepared by the secretary of state to document irregularities observed by the board with respect to:

(1) The security of the place in which the voting machines are located.

(2) The security of the voting machines.

(3) The physical condition of the voting machines.

(4) The physical condition of the election materials in the voting machines.

(5) The substantive contents of the election materials in the voting machines.

(6) Any other matter affecting the verification of the vote totals by the clerk of court.

C. The compiled statements made by the parish board of election supervisors shall be admissible in court in an action contesting a primary or general election as prima facie proof of the number of votes received by the candidates in the election.

D.(1) The secretary of state shall verify and compile the results of the election for all candidates, proposed constitutional amendments, and recall elections based upon the compilation of the votes transmitted to him by the clerks of court from the compiled statements by the parish boards of election supervisors. In a parish containing a municipality with a population of three hundred thousand or more, the secretary of state shall verify and compile the results of the election for all candidates, proposed constitutional amendments, and recall elections based upon the compilation of the votes transmitted to him by the parish board of election supervisors. The compilation and verification shall be completed and the results thereof shall be announced on the secretary of state's website not later than 12:00 noon on the seventh day after the election.

(2) The secretary of state shall announce the results for state candidates, proposed constitutional amendments, and recall elections and that the results of elections for candidates other than state candidates are available in his office. The results thus announced shall be deemed to be the tentative results of the election and shall not be deemed to be the official results of the election.

E.(1) On or before the fourteenth day after the primary or general election, if no action has been timely filed contesting the election to the office of a state candidate, the secretary of state shall promulgate the returns for state candidates, proposed constitutional amendments, and recall elections by publishing in the official journal of the state the names of the state candidates for each office in the election, the text of the proposed constitutional amendment, and recall elections and the number of votes received by each such candidate, proposed constitutional amendment, and recall elections as shown by the returns transmitted by the clerks of court from the compiled statements by the parish boards of election supervisors. In a parish containing a municipality with a population of three hundred thousand or more, the promulgation shall be from the returns transmitted by the parish board of election supervisors. On or before the fourteenth day after the primary or general election, if no action has been timely filed contesting the election to office of a candidate other than a state candidate, the secretary of state shall promulgate the returns for the election for candidates other than state candidates by transmitting to the clerk of court for the parish wherein the state capital is located a notice containing the results of the elections for candidates other than state candidates. The clerk of court shall post this notice in a prominent place in his office.

(2) However, if the fourteenth day after the primary or general election falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or other legal holiday, and the secretary of state does not promulgate said returns prior to the fourteenth day after the primary or general election, he shall promulgate the returns on the next day which is not a Saturday, Sunday, or other legal holiday.

F. Computation of all time intervals in this Section shall include Saturdays, Sundays, and other legal holidays. However, if the final day in a time interval falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or other legal holiday, then the next day which is not a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday shall be deemed to be the final day of the time interval. If one or more of the duties in this Section required to be performed on the fifth, sixth, seventh, or fourteenth day after an election are delayed because of a Saturday, Sunday, or other legal holiday, the duties which follow will be delayed a like amount of time.

Acts 1989, No. 179, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1990; Acts 1990, No. 107, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1991; Acts 1991, 1st E.S., No. 1, §1, eff. Sept. 1, 1991; Acts 1997, No. 1420, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1998; Acts 2001, No. 451, §1, eff. Jan. 12, 2004; Acts 2002, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 130, §1, eff. April 23, 2002; Acts 2003, No. 423, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2004; Acts 2003, No. 1220, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2004; Acts 2004, No. 526, §2, eff. June 25, 2004; Acts 2005, No. 220, §4, eff. Jan. 1, 2006; Acts 2011, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 32, §1; Acts 2017, No. 176, §1, eff. June 14, 2017; Acts 2018, No. 584, §2; Acts 2018, No. 584, §3, eff. Jan. 1, 2019.