53.31 Challenges.
1. Any person qualified to vote at the election in progress may challenge the qualifications of a person casting an absentee ballot by submitting a written challenge to the commissioner no later than 5:00 p.m. on the Friday before the election. It is the duty of the special precinct officials to challenge the absentee ballot of any person whom the official knows or suspects is not duly qualified. Challenges by members of the special precinct election board or observers present pursuant to section 53.23 may be made at any time before the close of the polls on election day. The challenge shall state the reasons for which the challenge is being submitted and shall be signed by the challenger. When a challenge is received the absentee ballot shall be set aside for consideration by the special precinct election board when it meets as required by section 50.22.
2. The commissioner shall immediately send a written notice to the elector whose qualifications have been challenged. The notice shall be sent to the address at which the challenged elector is registered to vote. If the ballot was mailed to the challenged elector, the notice shall also be sent to the address to which the ballot was mailed if it is different from the elector’s registration address. The notice shall advise the elector of the reason for the challenge, the date and time that the special precinct election board will reconvene to determine challenges, and that the elector has the right to submit written evidence of the elector’s qualifications. The notice shall include the telephone number of the commissioner’s office. If the commissioner has access to a facsimile machine, the notice shall include the telephone number of the facsimile machine. As far as possible, other procedures for considering provisional ballots shall be followed.
[SS15, §1137-k; C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, §957; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, §53.31]
93 Acts, ch 143, §35; 2005 Acts, ch 19, §25; 2007 Acts, ch 59, §30, 38
Referred to in §9E.6, 48A.8, 53.49
Challenges, §49.79
Structure Iowa Code
Title II - ELECTIONS AND OFFICIAL DUTIES
Section 53.1 - Right to vote — conditions.
Section 53.2 - Application for ballot.
Section 53.3 - Requirements for certain absentee ballot applications — prescribed form — receipt.
Section 53.4 - Absentee ballots — reports.
Section 53.7 - Solicitation by public employees.
Section 53.9 - Prohibited persons.
Section 53.10 - Absentee voting at the commissioner’s office.
Section 53.11 - Satellite absentee voting stations.
Section 53.12 - Duty of commissioner.
Section 53.13 - Voter’s affidavit on envelope.
Section 53.14 - Party affiliation.
Section 53.15 - Marking ballot.
Section 53.16 - Subscribing to affidavit.
Section 53.17 - Mailing or delivering ballot.
Section 53.17A - Absentee ballot tracking.
Section 53.19 - Listing absentee ballots.
Section 53.20 - Special precinct established.
Section 53.21 - Replacement of lost or spoiled absentee ballots.
Section 53.22 - Balloting by confined persons.
Section 53.23 - Special precinct election board.
Section 53.24 - Counties using voting machines.
Section 53.25 - Rejecting ballot.
Section 53.26 - Rejected ballots — how handled.
Section 53.27 - Rejection of ballot — return of envelope.
Section 53.30 - Ballots, ballot envelopes, and other information preserved.
Section 53.32 - Ballot of deceased voter.
Section 53.33 - Unlawful return of ballot.
Section 53.34 - False affidavit.
Section 53.35 - Refusal to return ballot.
Section 53.35A - Failure to return ballot.
Section 53.36 - Offenses by officers.
Section 53.37A - State commissioner duties.
Section 53.38 - What constitutes registration.
Section 53.39 - Request for ballot — when available.
Section 53.40 - Request requirements — transmission of ballot.
Section 53.41 - Records by commissioner — excess requests or ballots.
Section 53.42 - Voting in person in commissioner’s office.
Section 53.43 - Identification on envelope.
Section 53.44 - Affidavit to be signed and returned.
Section 53.45 - Special absentee ballot.
Section 53.46 - Powers and duties of state commissioner.
Section 53.47 - Materials furnished by department of administrative services.
Section 53.48 - Postage on ballots.
Section 53.49 - Applicable to armed forces and other citizens.
Section 53.50 - Appropriation.
Section 53.51 - Rule of construction.