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Pennsylvania Statutes § 3263 Correction of returns; decision not to be final; evidence for prosecution

⤴ Up to Recounts

Statute Text

(a)
(1) Any petition to open a ballot box or to recanvass the votes on a voting machine or an electronic voting system pursuant to sections 1701 and 1702 shall be filed no later than five (5) days after the completion of the computational canvassing of all returns of the county by the county board. If any error or fraud is found the court shall grant the interested parties an additional five (5) days to file petitions requesting additional ballot boxes to be opened or voting machines or electronic voting systems to be recanvassed.
(i) Except as set forth in subclause (ii):
(A) a recount or recanvass shall include all election districts in which ballots were cast for the office in question; and
(B) petitions, accompanied by the appropriate money or bond, must be filed in each election district in accordance with this act.
(ii) Subclause (i) shall not apply if a petitioner under section 1701 or 1702 pleads that a particular act of fraud or error occurred and offers prima facie evidence supporting the allegation.
(2) If any petition to open a ballot box or to recanvass the votes on a voting machine or an electronic voting system shall have been presented, under the provisions of sections 1701 and 1702 of this act and the court shall discover therein any fraud or error, the court shall correct, compute and certify to the county board the votes justly, regardless of any fraudulent or erroneous entries made by the election officers thereof, and the county board shall correct accordingly any entries previously made in the returns of the county being prepared by it, or which have been prepared and not yet certified.
(b) No order or decision of the court under the provisions of sections 1701 and 1702 of this act, shall be deemed a final adjudication regarding the results of any primary or election, so as to preclude any contest thereof under the provisions of this article, and no such order or decision shall affect the official returns of any election district, unless a petition to open the ballot boxes or to recanvass the votes on a voting machine or an electronic voting system shall have been presented before the certification of the returns of the county by the county board, or unless a contest shall have been instituted in the manner provided by this article.
(c) If upon the opening of any ballot box or recanvass of any voting machine or electronic voting system under the provisions of this article, it shall be found that fraud was committed in the computation of the votes cast on the ballots or voting machine, or in the marking of the ballots contained therein or otherwise in connection with such ballots, the county board shall take such steps as shall be appropriate to enable the ballot box and contents thereof or voting machine or electronic voting system to be available as evidence in any prosecution which may be begun against any person or persons alleged to be guilty of such fraud.

History

1937, June 3, P.L. 1333, art. XVII, § 1703. Amended 1982 , May 5, P.L. 374, No. 108 , § 5, imd. effective; 2004, Oct. 8, P.L. 807, No. 97, § 13, imd. effective.

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