§ Art. III-175Procedure for Vote Counting at an Election Precinct

1. The final meeting of a precinct election commission shall take place immediately after the end
of voting at the election precinct, and shall be held in the same premises where the voting was held.
The final meeting of a precinct election commission shall continue without interruption and shall end
when the vote counting protocols of the election precinct have been drawn up and signed.
 2. When the election of the MPs occurs simultaneously with local elections or a referendum,
the counting of votes cast in local elections or a referendum shall take place after the vote counting
protocols for the election of MPs at the election precinct have been drafted and signed pursuant to the
established procedure at the same meeting of the precinct election commission.
 The packages with the protocols and other election documents relating to the election of MPs shall
remain in the premises where the meeting is being held, within plain view of the precinct election
commission members and other persons present at the commission meeting. Packages with the election
documents shall be transported to the district election commission, pursuant to the procedure
established by Article 178 of this Code, immediately after the respective protocols on all other elections
have been signed.
 3. At its final meeting, a precinct election commission shall, by its decision, assign the keeping of
the minutes to the deputy chair of the precinct election commission or to some other member of the
precinct election commission. At that meeting, the secretary of the precinct election commission shall
enter data in the protocol on vote counting at the election precinct.
 4. In the event if during the conduct of the voting, a precinct election commission received
addresses relating to violations that occurred during the conduct of the voting at an election
precinct, a precinct election commission shall consider them at the beginning of its meeting, prior
to the vote counting at the election precinct.

 

 5. Vote counting at an election precinct shall be conducted openly and transparently,
exclusively by members of the precinct election commission. Vote counting at the election precinct
shall be performed in accordance with the sequence specified in the provisions of this Article and
in the manner prescribed by the Central Election Commission.
 6. A precinct election commission shall pack the processed election documents in paper
packages. A package with election documents shall be sealed, and an inscription shall be made on
a package, with indication of the number and type of the packaged documents, as well as the
number of the territorial district, or indication that the election district is an out-of-country election
district, the number of an election precinct, the number of packaged election documents, the date
and time of packaging, as well as signed by the precinct election commission members present and
affixed with the commission’s seal.
 7. Each member of the precinct election commission, responsible for the work with the voter
lists, shall count and put on each sheet of the voter lists received by him or her the following
information (separately for each sheet of the voter lists):
 1) the number of voters included in the voter list at the election precinct (as of the end of
 voting);
 2) the number of voters who received ballot papers (based on the voters’ signatures and marks
 "voted at the place of residence" in the voter list).
 8. A voter list at the election precinct, after the end of voting, in the event if any additions
have been made thereto, shall be closed by crossing out empty fields in the voter lists so as to make
the addition of additional voters to the voter list impossible, and shall be signed by the chair and
secretary of the precinct election commission and affixed with the commission’s seal.
 9. A precinct election commission shall, on the basis of a voter list (comparing the voter list
and an excerpt from the voter list), establish the number of voters at the election precinct. This number
shall be announced and entered by the secretary of the election commission (the secretary of the
meeting) in the protocol on vote counting at an election precinct.
 10. A precinct election commission shall count unused ballot papers. A number of such ballot
papers shall be announced and entered by the secretary of the commission in the protocol on the
vote counting at the election precinct. The unused ballot papers shall be invalidated by cutting off the
bottom right corner of the ballot papers. The invalidated unused ballot papers, together with the ballot
papers spoilt, while the voters were filling them out, and returned to the precinct election commission
members who issued them, shall be packed. The inscription “Unused ballot papers” shall be made on
the packages, with indication of the number of the territorial district, or indication that the election
district is an out-of-country election district, as well as the number of election precinct, number of
packaged ballots, date and time of packaging; the package shall be signed by the precinct election
commission members present and affixed with the precinct election commission’s seal.
 11. A precinct election commission shall count the number of voters who received ballot papers,
based on the voters’ signatures in the voter list and marks “voted at the place of stay” in the voter list.
That number shall be announced.
 12. A precinct election commission shall sum up the number of the counterfoils of the ballot
papers with signatures of voters and election commission members who issued them. The number
of such counterfoils shall be announced.
 13. If there is no mismatch between the number of counterfoils specified in Part twelve of this
Article, and the number indicated in Part eleven of this Article, the secretary of the election
commission shall announce this number and enter this number in the protocol on vote counting at
the election precinct as the number of voters who received ballot papers at the election precinct.
 If there is a discrepancy between the number of counterfoils specified in Part twelve of this Article,
and the number specified in Part eleven of this Article, the precinct election commission shall write an
act thereon, stating the reason for such discrepancy established by the commission’s decision, which

 

shall be signed by the precinct election commission members present. The signatures shall be affixed
with the election commission’s seal. The aforementioned act may be signed by the candidates present,
party’s authorized representatives, and official observers. After that, the election commission shall take
a decision establishing the number of voters who received the ballot papers. That number shall be
announced and entered in the vote counting protocols of the election precinct.
 14. The voter list, along with the excerpt from the voter list created pursuant to Parts two and three
of Article 174 of this Code; the applications of voters based on which the excerpt was compiled; court
decisions on making changes to the voter list; notifications from the State Voter Register maintenance
body shall be packed in one package. The inscription “Voter List” shall be made on the package, with
indication of the number of the territorial district, or indication that the election district is an out-of-
country election district, as well as the number of election precinct, date and time of packaging;
the package shall be signed by the precinct election commission members present and affixed with the
precinct election commission’s seal.
 15. The counterfoils of the issued ballot papers shall be packed. The inscription “Counterfoils
of ballot papers” shall be made on the packages, with indication of the number of the territorial district
or indication that the election district is an out-of-country election district, as well as the number of the
election precinct, the number of packed counterfoils, the date and time of packaging; the package shall
be signed by the precinct election commission members present and affixed with the commission’s seal.
 16. The precinct election commission shall check if the number of unused ballots and the number
of voters that received ballot papers are equal to the number of ballot papers received by the precinct
election commission. In the event of a discrepancy between those numbers, the precinct election
commission shall draw up an act thereon, stating the reason for such discrepancy established by the
commission’s decision, which shall be signed by the precinct election commission members present.
The aforementioned act may be signed by MP candidates, party’s authorized persons, or official
observers present. The signatures shall be affixed with the commission’s seal.
 17. The precinct election commission shall check the integrity of the sealing tape or seal on each
ballot box.
 18. If the precinct election commission discovers damage to the tape or seal, or any other damage
that indicates that the integrity of ballot box has been violated, the precinct election commission shall
write an act thereon, stating the nature of the discovered damage, which shall be signed by the precinct
election commission members present. The signatures shall be affixed with the commission’s seal.
The aforementioned act may be signed by MP candidates, party’s authorized persons, or official
observers present.
 19. The precinct election commission shall open the ballot boxes one by one. The first ballot boxes
to be opened shall be the mobile ones that were used for voting outside the voting premises; and the
last ballot boxes to be opened shall be the ones with damaged seals or sealing tape or with other damage
revealed during the voting (if there are any such boxes).
 20. When an undamaged ballot box is opened, its contents shall be emptied on the table at which
the precinct election commission members are sitting. The presence of a control sheet in the ballot box
(or, in case of a mobile ballot box, of the control sheets) shall also be checked.
 21. The ballot papers from a damaged ballot box shall be taken out one by one without mixing
them. The precinct election commission shall count the numbers of ballot papers contained in such
ballot box, and check the presence of a control sheet, which shall be taken out of the ballot box last.
 22. If there is no control sheet in the ballot box, the precinct election commission shall draw up an
act on the absence of the control sheet in the ballot box in accordance with the procedure specified
by Part six of Article 37 of this Code, in which the number of ballot papers contained in the ballot
box shall be indicated. The aforementioned ballot papers shall not be subject to counting during the
establishment of the total number of voters who took part in the voting and in the vote counting.
 23. If there are more ballot papers in the mobile ballot box than the number of voters included
in the excerpt from the voter list in the election precinct, the precinct election commission shall

 

draw up an act in accordance with the procedure specified by Part six of Article 37 of this Code
on such a discrepancy, in which the number of ballot papers contained in this ballot box shall be
indicated. The aforementioned ballot papers shall not be subject to counting during the establishment
of the total number of voters who took part in the voting and in the vote counting.
 24. If the members of the commission have doubts as to the authenticity of a control sheet, or in
other doubtful situations, the precinct election commission shall adopt, by voting, a decision
recognizing the ballot papers contained in the ballot box as ones that shall not be subject to counting
during the establishment of the total number of voters who took part in the voting and in the vote
counting.
 25. If the numbers of the territorial district or the election precinct indicated on the ballot paper
do not c