So, you've heard about them. Maybe you know what they are. Maybe you don't. Here's all you need to know about provisional ballots and when they're used in Virginia.
First off, a provisional ballot is a paper or optical scan ballot. They're sealed in a green envelope, and they're not counted on Election Day. In fact, issues at the polls are often what lead to the use of a provisional ballot.
Virginia Department of Elections' website lists these reasons for using provisional ballots:
- When the voter’s name is not on the pollbook, the voter believes he is registered in that precinct, and the registrar’s office cannot be contacted to verify that the voter is registered.
- If a voter chooses to vote a Provisional Ballot because they are at the wrong polling place and are unable or unwilling to go to the correct polling place, their vote will not be counted.
- When a voter at the polling place fails to present one of the forms of identification required in Virginia.
- When a voter fails to show one of the required forms of photo ID when voting in person.
- When a voter who registered by mail on or after January 1, 2003, and did not mail in a copy of their ID at that time, fails to show one of the federally required forms of ID when voting for the first time in a federal election.
- When a voter who was sent an absentee ballot has not received or has lost the ballot, or had previously returned the ballot spoiled or damaged and appears at his regular polling place on Election Day.
- When the normal voting hours are extended by court order.
- When the pollbook indicates that the voter has already cast a ballot in the current election.
Your local electoral board gets together the day after elections and starts looking at the ballots. If you didn't present a photo ID when you cast your ballot, you have until noon on Friday after the election to present it. The votes of qualified voters will then be counted and included in the results for your locality.
If you're a provisional voter, you're allowed to be present when the electoral board meets to determine if your vote was valid or if your ID was submitted, and can ask for a one day extension to gather evidence.
Election officials will tell each provisional voter when and where the electoral board will meet, and provide a phone number to call to find out if the provisional ballot was counted. Voters who cast provisional ballots because of lack of photo IDs also will get information necessary to submit copies of the required documents or to request a Virginia Voter Photo ID from the general registrar’s office in which their provisional ballot was cast.