Immediately before the opening of the polls, an officer of election shall open the ballot containers in the presence of the political party or candidate representatives authorized to be present for the examination of voting equipment pursuant to § 24.2-639, if such representatives are available. The officers shall inspect the containers to ensure that they are empty, lock them, and deliver the key to one of the officers. One of the officers shall forthwith proclaim that the polls are open. The containers shall not be opened until the close of the polls and shall then be opened for the purpose of counting the ballots therein. The containers shall be kept in view of those voting within the polling place during the hours of the election.

Terms Used In Virginia Code 24.2-624

  • Election: means a general, primary, or special election. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
  • political party: means an organization of citizens of the Commonwealth which, at either of the two preceding statewide general elections, received at least 10 percent of the total vote cast for any statewide office filled in that election. See Virginia Code 24.2-101
  • Polling place: means the structure that contains the one place provided for each precinct at which the qualified voters who are residents of the precinct may vote. See Virginia Code 24.2-101

Code 1950, §§ 24-242, 24-243; 1970, c. 462, § 24.1-124; 1972, c. 620; 1993, c. 641; 2003, c. 1015.

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