§ Ark. Code § 7-5-701Declaration of results — Certification, delivery, and custody of returns

(a)(1) No earlier than forty-eight (48) hours after the election and no later than the fifteenth
calendar day after the election, the county board of election commissioners, from the certificates
and ballots received from the several precincts, shall proceed to ascertain, declare, and certify the
result of the election to the Secretary of State.
(2) Unopposed candidates, other than candidates for mayor, Governor, and circuit clerk, shall
be separately declared and certified to the Secretary of State as elected in the same manner as
if the candidate had been voted upon at the election.
(3)(A) As results are received and tabulated on election night for all state and federal elections,
the county board of election commissioners shall declare preliminary and unofficial results of
the election as soon as early voting, absentee, or individual precinct results are tabulated but
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ELECTION PROCEDURE GENERALLY
7-5-701
no later than twenty-four (24) hours after polls close on election night and immediately shall
transmit the results by precinct to the Secretary of State through the election night reporting
interface provided by the Secretary of State.
(B) The county board of election commissioners may, by agreement with the county clerk,
transmit the results to the county clerk who immediately shall transmit the results by precinct
to the Secretary of State under subdivision (a)(3)(A) of this section.
(C) On election night for all state and federal elections, immediately after the count of the
vote is complete but no later than twenty-four (24) hours after polls close on election night, the
county board of election commissioners shall:
(i) Declare preliminary and unofficial results of the election, including a statement of the
number of:
(a) Outstanding ballots of voters who requested ballots under the Uniformed and Overseas
Citizens Absentee Voting Act, 52 U.S.C. § 20301 et seq.;
(b) Outstanding provisional ballots; and
(c) Ballots required to be duplicated under § 7-5-615; and
(ii) Immediately transmit the results by precinct to the Secretary of State through the
election night reporting interface provided by the Secretary of State.
(D) The county board of election commissioners may, by agreement with the county clerk,
transmit the results to the county clerk who shall immediately transmit the results by precinct
to the Secretary of State as described in subdivision (a)(3)(C) of this section.
(E) The Secretary of State may establish policies and procedures to accomplish the
objectives set forth under this section.
(4) Within nineteen (19) calendar days after any general, special, or school election, the county
board of election commissioners shall deliver a certificate of election to the person having the
highest number of legal votes for any county office.
(b) The county board of election commissioners shall also file in the office of the clerk of the
county court a certificate setting forth in detail the result of the election in each precinct.
(c)(1) No earlier than forty-eight (48) hours after the election and no later than the fifteenth
calendar day after the election, the county board of election commissioners shall deposit certified
copies of the abstracts of the returns of the election for members of the United States Congress
and for all executive, legislative, and judicial officers in the nearest post office on the most direct
route to the seat of government and directed to the Secretary of State.
(2) Separate from an abstract, the county board of election commissioners shall certify all
unopposed candidates for these offices as elected in the same manner as if the candidate had been
voted upon at the election.
(3) The county board of election commissioners shall not receive compensation for election
duties after the election until the election results have been certified and delivered to the
Secretary of State.
(4) The Secretary of State shall file a complaint with the State Board of Election Commissioners under § 7-4-120 if the county board of election commissioners does not comply with
subdivision (c)(1) of this section.
(d)(1) It shall at the same time enclose in a separate envelope and direct to the Speaker of the
House of Representatives, in care of the Secretary of State, at the seat of government, a certified
copy of the abstract of votes given for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State,
Treasurer of State, Auditor of State, and Attorney General.
(2) It is the duty of the Secretary of State to safely keep the returns addressed to the Speaker
of the House of Representatives until they shall be required for the purpose of ascertaining and
declaring the result of the election as prescribed in Arkansas Constitution, Article 6, § 3.