North Dakota Code 16.1-11-27 – Arrangement of names on ballots
Sample ballots used for publication purposes must be arranged using the rotation of the ballot in the precinct in the county which cast the highest total vote for governor at the last general election at which the office of governor was filled. In the event that this determination is no longer possible due to changes in precinct boundaries, the precincts are to be ordered according to the precincts with the greatest voting age population to the least. This information is to be provided by the North Dakota state data center or based on the best available data as determined by the county auditor. On the official ballot used at the election, including electronic voting system ballots, the names of candidates beside or under headings designating each office to be voted for must be alternated in the following manner:
Terms Used In North Dakota Code 16.1-11-27
- Ballot: means a paper ballot from which the votes for candidates and questions are tabulated by hand or by a voting system. See North Dakota Code 16.1-06-12
- following: when used by way of reference to a chapter or other part of a statute means the next preceding or next following chapter or other part. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- population: means the number of inhabitants as determined by the last preceding state or federal census. See North Dakota Code 1-01-47
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See North Dakota Code 1-01-49
- Voting system: means the system and devices authorized under this chapter which may employ a ballot marking device with use of a touchscreen or other data entry device to record and count votes in an election. See North Dakota Code 16.1-06-12
1. The ballot must first be arranged with all the names for each office on the ballot in an order determined by lot by the county auditor and prepared by the county auditor for all state, district, and county offices. The position of names that require alternating under the provisions of this section must be alternated by an algorithm approved by the secretary of state designed to ensure to the extent possible that each name on the ballot for an office is listed in each position order on an equal number of precinct ballots spread across the county. There must be a different alternation sequence for each of the following, based on the geographical area by which the office is filled:
a. Offices to be filled by the electors of the state, the entire county, or any district which includes the entire county.
b. Offices to be filled by the electors of districts smaller than the county, with a different rotation for each of those districts.
2. Although the names are to be alternated within the offices on the ballot, the name order for an office is to be the same for all ballots within a precinct.