Sec 16-580. Manner of voting; assistance for certain electors

A. Except as prescribed by subsection G of this section, only one person per voting booth shall be permitted at any one time to sign for the receipt of a ballot and to wait for an opportunity to vote.

B. On receiving a ballot the voter shall promptly and without leaving the voting area retire alone, except as provided in subsection G of this section, to one of the voting booths that is not occupied, prepare the ballot in secret and vote in the manner and substantial form as required by the instruction to voters.

C. In order that the rights of other voters shall not be interfered with, a voter shall not be allowed to occupy a voting booth for more than five minutes when other voters are waiting to occupy the booth. If the voter refuses to leave after the lapse of five minutes, the voter may be removed by the judges. If a voter has not completed a ballot after the allotted five minutes, the voter may request the marshal to hold the ballot and when another booth is empty and all voters present have had an opportunity to vote the removed person may be allowed an additional five minutes in the booth.

D. Before leaving the voting booth the voter shall fold the ballot lengthwise and crosswise, or place the voter's card in the ballot envelope, but in such a way that the contents of the ballot shall be concealed and the stub, if any, can be removed without exposing the contents of the ballot and shall keep the ballot folded until the voter has delivered it to the inspector, or judge acting as such.

E. The election board official shall receive the ballot from the voter and in the presence of the election board and if the ballot includes a stub, remove the stub without opening the ballot, deposit the ballot in the ballot box, or if the voter so requests, hand the ballot to the voter and permit the voter to deposit the ballot in the ballot box, and string the stub, if any, on a string provided. If the ballot is of the type that includes a stub and the stub has been removed from the ballot before receipt by the election official, it shall not be deposited in the ballot box, but it shall be marked "spoiled" and placed with the spoiled ballots.

F. After delivery of the ballot to the election board official, or if the voter has asked to deposit the ballot in the ballot box, after the ballot is deposited, the voter shall then proceed outside the voting area and shall not again enter the voting area unless the voter is an authorized election official.

G. Any registered voter, at the voter's option, may be accompanied by a minor who is permitted in the voting booth pursuant to section 16-515, subsection E, be accompanied and assisted by a person of the voter's own choice or be assisted by two election officials, one from each major political party, during any process relating to voting or during the actual process of voting on a paper ballot, machine or electronic voting system. A person who is a candidate for an office in that election other than the office of precinct committeeman is not eligible to assist any voter.