Title 16.1, Elections

On the thirteenth day following each election, the county canvassing board shall meet and, after taking the oath of office, shall proceed to open and publicly canvass the returns. After the initial meeting of the board as provided in this section, any two or more members may call…

Each member of the county canvassing board who is not a paid official of the county, while serving as a member of the county canvassing board, shall receive compensation in accordance with section 16.1-05-05. The compensation and mileage must be audited, allowed, and paid by the …

In canvassing the election returns, the county canvassing board shall disregard technicalities, misspelling, and the use of initial letters or abbreviations of the name of any candidate for office if it can be ascertained for whom the vote was intended. Under section 16.1-01-04.1…

When the returns of the election board officers are made to the county canvassing board, if any provision of law relative to the duties of the election board officers has not been complied with by the officers and the provision of law is capable of correction by the election boar…

The county canvassing board, upon canvassing the returns of a primary election, shall prepare an abstract signed by the members of the board and filed in the office of the county auditor. A separate abstract of the votes cast must be transmitted to the secretary of state accordin…

The county auditor of each county shall provide to the secretary of state the certified abstract detailed in section 16.1-15-21, under separate political designation or principle, or no-party designation, as the case may be, of the total number of votes cast in the auditor's coun…

Upon the completion of the canvass of the returns of a primary election by the county canvassing board, the county auditor shall mail or deliver in person to each candidate nominated for any county office a certificate of the candidate's nomination and notice that the candidate's…

The county canvassing board, when canvassing the returns of a general election, shall make abstracts of votes from the certified reports of the inspectors of elections according to the reporting instructions specified by the secretary of state.

Before four p.m. on the thirteenth day following any general election, the county auditor of each county shall provide to the secretary of state a certified abstract of the votes cast in the county at the election according to the reporting instructions specified by the secretary…

An electronic notification of the date of reception of all returns of votes in the secretary of state's office must be made to each county auditor.

Upon receipt of the certified abstract of votes from the county auditors as provided in section 16.1-15-25, the secretary of state shall record the result of the election by counties and shall file and carefully preserve the certified abstracts received from the county auditors. …

Immediately after the canvass of the general election returns by the county canvassing board, the county auditor shall prepare a certificate of election for each of the persons having the highest number of votes for county offices and shall deliver the certificate to the person e…

If the requisite number of county officers are not elected because two or more persons have equal and the highest number of votes for one and the same office, a recount must be done pursuant to section 16.1-16-01. If a recount results in a tie vote, the county auditor shall give …

If the requisite number of individuals is not elected to the state senate or house of representatives because two or more individuals have equal and the highest number of votes for one and the same office, a recount must be done pursuant to section 16.1-16-01. If a recount result…

Upon receipt of the returns of any election, the county auditor shall prepare the county auditor's certificate stating the compensation to which the inspectors, judges, and clerks of election are entitled for their services. The county auditor shall deliver the certificate to the…

The county auditor shall cause to be published in tabular form in the official county newspaper the vote by precincts for each officer and each proposition voted for at any primary, special, or general election. The publication must be paid for at a rate not to exceed the rate pa…

The clerk of the supreme court, the secretary of state, the state treasurer, and the chairman, or chairman's designee, of the state committee of the two political parties which cast the highest vote for governor at the last general election at which a governor was elected shall c…

A member of the state canvassing board who has anything of value bet or wagered on the result of the election may not serve on the board. When a member of the state canvassing board is a candidate or husband, wife, father, mother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son, daughter, son-…

Not later than seventeen days next following a primary, general, or special election, the state canvassing board shall meet at the office of the secretary of state for the purpose of canvassing and ascertaining the result of the election. The secretary of state shall notify the m…

The state canvassing board, in canvassing to ascertain the result of any election, shall canvass only the regular returns made by the county canvassing board as provided in this chapter.

After the state canvassing board is formed, the board shall examine the certified abstracts of the county canvassing boards and verify the computed final results as provided in section 16.1-15-33. If it appears that any material mistake has been made in the computation of votes c…

The state canvassing board may adjourn from day to day, not exceeding three days in all, except that the board may adjourn for the time necessary to await the return of a messenger dispatched as provided in section 16.1-15-37.

In canvassing the returns and verifying the computed final results received from the various counties, a majority of the members of the state canvassing board shall decide all matters of disagreement. The board shall disregard all technicalities, misspelling, the use of initial l…

The state canvassing board shall prepare the certified abstract required by subsections 1, 2, and 3 of section 16.1-15-21 for primary elections. The certificate must be signed by the members of the board and filed in the office of the secretary of state. Upon completion of the ca…

Upon receiving the certified abstracts on file with the secretary of state, the state canvassing board shall proceed publicly to examine and make statements of the whole number of votes cast at any general or special election for all state or district offices. The statements must…

The statements provided for in section 16.1-15-41 must be certified by the members of the state canvassing board who shall subscribe their names to the statements. The board then shall determine what individuals have been duly elected to the offices, shall prepare and subscribe o…

If a certificate of election cannot be issued for a judicial district office or a state office because any two or more individuals have equal and the highest number of votes, the governor, by proclamation, shall order a new election.

After receiving each certified statement and determination made by the state canvassing board, the secretary of state shall record the same in the secretary of state's office and shall prepare, and transmit to each of the individuals declared to be elected, a certificate of elect…

A certificate of election must be prepared by the secretary of state for each individual elected to a state or a district office. The certificate must be signed by the governor and the secretary of state, have the great seal of the state affixed, and be attested by at least one o…

At the time election certificates are issued to state and district officers, the secretary of state shall issue certificates of election to all members of the legislative assembly.

The certificate of election to a member of Congress must be signed by the governor with the great seal affixed and must be countersigned by the secretary of state. The governor shall cause the certificate to be delivered to the individual elected.

For the purpose of canvassing and ascertaining the result of the votes cast at any election upon any proposed amendment to the constitution, or any other proposition submitted to a vote of the people, the state canvassing board shall proceed to examine the abstracts received by t…

The certified statement and determination provided for in section 16.1-15-48 must be recorded by the secretary of state. If it appears that a constitutional amendment or other proposition has been approved, ratified, or adopted, the secretary of state shall arrange for the text o…

A recount of any primary, special, or general election for nomination or election to a presidential, congressional, state, judicial district, multicounty district, legislative, county, or city office, or for the approval or disapproval of any measure, question, or bond issue subm…

A defeated candidate or ten qualified electors may contest the nomination or election of any person or the approval or rejection of any question or proposition submitted to a vote of the electorate, pursuant to this title. In a county election to change the county seat or to chan…

An action to contest an election must be commenced by service of a summons and verified complaint. The party instituting the action must be known as the contestant, and the party against whom the action is instituted must be known as the contestee. In a contest of an election, th…

1. Except as provided in subsection 2, an action to contest an election must be commenced and the complaint must be filed in the district court of the contestee's county of residence within five days after final certification of a recount by the appropriate canvassing board or wi…

An election contest may be commenced for any of the following causes: 1. The contestee does not or cannot meet the qualifications to hold the office as required by law. 2. The existence of illegal votes or erroneous or fraudulent voting, count, canvass, or recount of votes. 3. Th…

Election contest actions must be tried as civil actions to the court without a jury. The district court shall set the hearing on the contest action not more than ten days after the filing of the contest answer. Election contests must take precedence over regular court business so…

Either the contestant or the contestee, within the time provided by this title for the preservation of ballots, may give notice by certified mail to the county recorder of any county where the contestant or the contestee desires the ballots preserved, that an election contest is …

1. The judge in an election contest action shall pronounce judgment on which candidate was elected or nominated and whether any question or proposition was approved or rejected. 2. The appropriate officer shall issue a certificate to the person declared elected or nominated in ac…

An appeal to the supreme court of the judgment in an election contest action may be had by filing a notice of appeal with the clerk of the supreme court within ten days of the date of the service of notice of entry of the judgment. Appeals of election contest actions must be cond…

Legislative election contests must be determined in court as provided in this chapter for other contests. No legislative election may be contested before either house of the legislative assembly.

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires: 1. "Affiliate" means an organization that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with another organization. For purposes of this definition, control means the possession, direct or indirect, of the po…

1. State political parties shall establish separate and segregated accounts for the management of state nominating conventions. All revenue obtained and expenditures made for the planning and running of a state convention must be accounted for in these accounts. 2. A postconventi…

A state political party or nonprofit entity affiliated with or under the control of a state political party which receives a donation for purchasing, maintaining, or renovating a building shall file a statement with the secretary of state before February first of each calendar ye…