Maryland Statutes § 2-303.1 Polling place plan
Statute Text
(a)
At least 6 months before each statewide primary election, each local board shall submit a polling place plan to the State Board for approval.
(b)
A polling place plan shall include:
(1)
evidence that the plan complies with §
10-101
(a)(2)
of this article;
(2)
an analysis of how to maximize voter participation in each precinct; and
(3)
if the polling place plan proposes to reduce the total number of separate buildings used as polling places below the total number of separate buildings used as polling places in the 2018 general election:
(i)
the address and a description of the location of each affected polling place;
(ii)
an analysis of available suitable buildings within the precinct boundary, including the availability of parking and a determination regarding building compliance with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act;
(iii)
of the voters who cast ballots in each affected precinct in the three most recent statewide elections:
1.
the percentage who voted in person on election day;
2.
the percentage who voted by mail;
3.
the number who registered to vote on election day; and
4.
the number who voted at an early voting center;
(iv)
the proximity of the proposed polling place to a dense concentration of voters in the affected precinct;
(v)
the change in the number of registered voters in the affected precinct from the last statewide election;
(vi)
the public transportation options that voters in each affected precinct could use to access the polling place that would serve the precinct under the plan; and
(vii)
an analysis of the impact on the ability of historically disenfranchised communities to cast a ballot, including demographic information of the voters in the affected precinct from the most recent report published by the Maryland Vital Statistics Administration.
(c)
The State Board shall approve a polling place plan if the polling place plan:
(1)
complies with the requirements of this section and §
10-101
(a)(2)
of this article; and
(2)
will not negatively affect access to voting for historically disenfranchised communities.
(d)
(1)
The State Board shall reject a polling place plan that does not meet the requirements of subsection (c) of this section.
(2)
If the State Board rejects a polling place plan, the local board shall submit a revised polling place plan to the State Board within 15 days after the date on which the State Board rejected the previous plan.
History
Added by 2023 Md. Laws, Ch. 221 , Sec. 1 , eff. 6/1/2023 .