House File 543 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 543 BY THOMSON and DIEKEN A BILL FOR An Act requiring all ballots to be cast in secret, and making 1 penalties applicable. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 2480YH (2) 90 ss/ns

H.F. 543 Section 1. Section 49.84, subsection 1, paragraph c, Code 1 2023, is amended to read as follows: 2 c. (1) If the precinct has automatic tabulating equipment 3 that will not permit more than one ballot to be inserted at 4 a time, the voter may insert the ballot into the tabulating 5 device; otherwise, the election official shall place the ballot 6 in the ballot box. An identifying mark or symbol shall not be 7 endorsed on the voter’s ballot. 8 (2) A voter shall not insert a ballot into the tabulating 9 device or surrender a ballot to an election official to be 10 placed in the ballot box unless one person from each political 11 party who has been appointed to serve on a challenging 12 committee pursuant to section 49.104, subsection 1, paragraph 13 “b” , swears under penalty of perjury that the person has 14 personal knowledge that the ballot was cast in secret only by 15 the voter authorized to cast the ballot. 16 Sec. 2. Section 53.23, subsection 5, Code 2023, is amended 17 to read as follows: 18 5. a. The special precinct election board shall preserve 19 the secrecy of all absentee and provisional ballots. After 20 the affidavits on the envelopes have been reviewed and the 21 qualifications of the persons casting the ballots have been 22 determined, those that have been accepted for counting shall 23 be opened not been rejected pursuant to section 53.25 shall be 24 reviewed as provided in paragraph “b” . The 25 b. After the special precinct election board has reviewed a 26 ballot as provided in paragraph “a” and not rejected the ballot 27 pursuant to section 53.25, one person from each political 28 party serving as a challenger pursuant to subsection 4 shall 29 swear under penalty of perjury that the person has personal 30 knowledge that the ballot was cast in secret only by the voter 31 who completed the affidavit on the envelope. Otherwise, the 32 ballot shall be rejected. 33 c. After the ballots have been reviewed as provided in 34 paragraph “b” , the ballots that have not been rejected shall be 35 -1- LSB 2480YH (2) 90 ss/ns 1/ 3

H.F. 543 removed from the affidavit envelopes or return envelopes marked 1 with the affidavit, as applicable, without being unfolded or 2 examined, and then shall be thoroughly intermingled, after 3 which they shall be unfolded and tabulated. If secrecy folders 4 or envelopes are used with provisional paper ballots, the 5 ballots shall be removed from the secrecy folders after the 6 ballots have been intermingled. 7 Sec. 3. Section 53.25, subsection 1, paragraph a, Code 2023, 8 is amended to read as follows: 9 a. If the absentee voter’s affidavit lacks the voter’s 10 signature, if the applicant is not a duly registered voter on 11 election day in the precinct where the absentee ballot was 12 cast, if the envelope marked with the affidavit contains more 13 than one ballot of any one kind, if the ballot was not cast in 14 secret, or if the voter has voted in person, such vote shall 15 be rejected by the absentee and special voters precinct board. 16 If the affidavit envelope or return envelope marked with the 17 affidavit is open, or has been opened and resealed, or if the 18 ballot is not enclosed in such envelope, and an affidavit 19 envelope or return envelope marked with the affidavit with 20 the same serial number and marked “Replacement ballot” is not 21 attached as provided in section 53.18 , the ballot shall be 22 rejected by the absentee and special voters precinct board. 23 EXPLANATION 24 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 25 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 26 This bill relates to the secrecy of ballots. The bill 27 requires that before a voter voting at the polls on election 28 day surrenders a ballot to be tabulated, one person from 29 each political party who has been appointed to serve on a 30 challenging committee swears under penalty of perjury that 31 that person has personal knowledge that the ballot was cast in 32 secret only by the voter authorized to cast the ballot. The 33 bill also requires that, after the special precinct election 34 board has reviewed and not rejected an absentee or provisional 35 -2- LSB 2480YH (2) 90 ss/ns 2/ 3

H.F. 543 ballot, before the ballot is separated from the affidavit 1 envelope, one person from each political party serving as a 2 challenger swears under penalty of perjury that that person 3 has personal knowledge that the ballot was cast in secret only 4 by the voter who completed the affidavit on the envelope. 5 Otherwise, the bill requires the ballot to be rejected. 6 A person who commits perjury is guilty of a class “D” felony. 7 A class “D” felony is punishable by confinement for no more 8 than five years and a fine of at least $1,025 but not more than 9 $10,245. 10 -3- LSB 2480YH (2) 90 ss/ns 3/ 3