Effective 28 Aug 1993

115.585. Recounts, how conducted. — 1. Whenever a recount is ordered pursuant to section 115.583 or 115.601, the court or legislative body trying the contest shall issue a writ to each election authority responsible for conducting the election in any area in which an alleged irregularity occurred, commanding the election authority to prepare its office and all records and materials relating to the contested election for the recount. Such writ shall be served immediately on the election authority by the sheriff of the county. Upon receipt of a writ, each election authority shall set a day, not more than twenty days after receiving the writ, on which it will have its office and all records and materials relating to the contested election prepared. Immediately upon setting the day, the election authority shall send by certified or registered mail a notice to the court or legislative body issuing the writ. The notice shall set forth the day selected by the election authority for the recount.

2. Whenever a recount is ordered pursuant to section 115.583, the court or legislative body shall have authority to pass upon the form and determine the legality of the votes brought into question and to determine the qualifications of any voter whose vote is brought into question, provided that the name of a voter upon a precinct register for the polling place shall be prima facie evidence of the proper qualifications of the voter. A comparison may be made between the signatures on the identification certificates and those which appear in the precinct registers, and no votes shall be counted except the votes of registered voters and those entitled to vote as provided in subsection 2 of section 115.137 and section 115.277 without being registered. No votes of any person found by the court to be unqualified to vote at the election shall be counted.

3. Whenever a recount of votes cast on paper ballots is ordered pursuant to section 115.583 or 115.601, the court or legislative body shall proceed to open and count the votes and, after the count has been completed, shall tabulate by voting district the votes cast for the contestant and the contestee.

4. Whenever a recount of votes cast on any voting machine is ordered pursuant to section 115.583 or 115.601, the court or legislative body shall make visible the registering counters of the machine and, without unlocking the machine against voting, shall record the votes cast on the machine.

5. Whenever a recount of votes cast on ballot cards is ordered pursuant to section 115.583 or 115.601, the court or legislative body shall supervise a test of the automatic tabulating equipment conducted in the manner provided in section 115.233 and shall cause the votes to be recounted automatically, or may order a hand count of the votes. In its discretion, the court or legislative body may order a new computer program to be made, which shall be tested in the manner provided in section 115.233 before the votes in question are recounted automatically.

­­--------

(L. 1977 H.B. 101 § 13.410, A.L. 1993 S.B. 31)