§17-7-21. Requirements for approval of system.

(a) The governing body of any county or municipality or other political subdivision of the state by adoption of an appropriate resolution, may authorize, adopt, and direct the use of electronic vote counting systems for use in all elections held in such county or municipality or other political subdivision or any portion thereof; and such resolution, a copy of which shall be filed with the Secretary of State, shall specify the particular type of equipment to be used and a procedure for implementation.

(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), no electronic vote counting system shall be used unless it has been constructed so that it:

(1) Permits and requires voting in secrecy.

(2) Permits each elector to vote at any election for all persons and offices for whom and for which he or she is lawfully entitled to vote; to vote for as many persons for an office as he or she is entitled to vote for; and to vote for or against any question upon which he or she is entitled to vote.

(3) Permits the voter at other than primary elections to vote a straight political party ticket in one operation.

(4) Permits such automatic tabulating equipment to be set to reject all votes for any office or question when the number of votes therefor exceeds the number which the voter is entitled to cast or when the voter is not entitled to cast a vote for the office or question.

(5) Is capable of correctly counting votes.

(6) When used in primary elections, counts only votes for the candidates of one party, rejects all votes for an office when the number of votes therefor exceeds the number which the voter is entitled to cast, and rejects all votes of a voter cast for candidates of more than one party.

(7) At presidential elections, permits each elector, by one operation, to vote for all presidential electors of a party or independent candidates for president or vice president.

(8) Provides a method for write-in voting.

(9) Is capable of accumulating a count of the specific number of ballots tallied for a precinct; accumulating total votes by candidate for each office; and accumulating total votes for and against each question for such precinct.

(10) Is capable of tallying votes from ballots of different political parties from the same precinct, in the case of a primary election.

(11) Is capable of automatically producing precinct vote totals in printed, marked, or punched form, or a combination thereof.

(12) Is capable of accurately and correctly tabulating each vote and having the same so certified.

(Acts 1983, 2nd Ex. Sess., No. 83-200, p. 374, §3; §17-24-3; amended and renumbered by Act 2006-570, p. 1331, §39.)