| | 2-A. Used ballots placed in tamper-proof containers. The | election clerks shall place the used state ballots, envelopes | containing challenge certificates, including spoiled ballots, | defective ballots, void ballots, used absentee ballots, used | absentee envelopes with the applicable applications attached, | envelopes containing challenge certificates, and the official | tally tape from the electronic tabulating system in one or more | tamper-proof ballot containers. The ballot containers must be | furnished by the Secretary of State. Ballots and election | materials for municipal elections conducted at the same time as a | state election must be sealed separately from state ballots and | other state election materials.__If municipalities wish to use | tamper-proof containers to seal municipal election materials, | they must obtain the containers and locks at their own expense. |
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| If a state-supplied tamper-proof container or lock becomes | defective, lost or destroyed, the clerk must apply in writing to | the Secretary of State for another. The Secretary of State shall | supply or approve a replacement at the expense of the | municipality. |
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| A tamper-proof ballot container must be locked and sealed with a | numbered seal before leaving the precinct. The lock and seal | numbers must correlate with a certificate identifying the person | sealing the container and the time of the sealing. The locks, | seals and identifying certificates must be furnished by the | Secretary of State. |
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| A. Transfer and resealing of the ballots to other | containers for permanent storage must be done 60 or more | days following the election. The municipal clerk shall make | the transfer in the presence of one or more witnesses. The | containers must be securely sealed. |
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| | Sec. 19. 21-A MRSA §698, sub-§6, as enacted by PL 1985, c. 161, §6, is | amended to read: |
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| | 6. Ballot security. The municipal clerk shall take | appropriate security measures to ensure the safety and protection | security of all ballots before, during and after the election. | Ballots and voting equipment must be secured in an area that is | accessible only by the clerk or the clerk's designee. |
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| | Sec. 20. 21-A MRSA §737-A, sub-§1, as amended by PL 1995, c. 459, §68, | is further amended to read: |
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| | 1. Deposit for recount. All deposits required by this | section must be made with the Secretary of State when a recount | is requested by a losing candidate. Once the State Police have | taken custody of the ballots and other election materials from |
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