# COMAR Title 33 — State Board of Elections

## Subtitle 16 — Provisional Voting

### Chapter 05 — Canvass of Ballots — Procedures

**Authority:** Election Law Article, §§2-102(b)(4), 2-202(b), 3-305(e), 3-306, 9-402, 9-403, 9-404, 9-406, and 11-303(c) and (e), Annotated Code of Maryland

**Administrative History:** Effective date:

**Administrative History:** Regulations .01—.06 adopted as an emergency provision effective July 3, 2002 (29:18 Md. R. 1441); adopted permanently effective October 14, 2002 (29:20 Md. R. 1596)

**Administrative History:** Regulation .01 amended effective November 24, 2003 (30:23 Md. R. 1655)

**Administrative History:** Regulation .03 amended as an emergency provision effective June 2, 2006 (33:13 Md. R. 1062); amended permanently effective August 14, 2006 (33:16 Md. R. 1366)

**Administrative History:** Regulation .06 repealed and new Regulation .06 adopted effective November 24, 2003 (30:23 Md. R. 1655)

**Administrative History:** Regulation .07 adopted effective November 24, 2003 (30:23 Md. R. 1655)

**Administrative History:** Regulations .05—.07 recodified to Regulations .06—.08 and new Regulation .05 adopted as an emergency provision effective August 25, 2006 (33:19 Md. R. 1556)

**Administrative History:** Regulations .05—.07 recodified to Regulations .06—.08 and new Regulation .05 adopted as an emergency provision effective August 25, 2006 (33:19 Md. R. 1556); superseded effective September 13, 2006 (33:21 Md. R. 1672); emergency status expired January 31, 2007

**Administrative History:** Regulations .05—.07 recodified to Regulations .06—.08 and new Regulation .05 adopted effective November 19, 2007 (34:23 Md. R. 2027)

**Administrative History:** Chapter revised and recodified from COMAR 33.16.04 effective October 19, 2009 (36:21 Md. R. 1595)

**Administrative History:** Regulation .02A amended effective August 19, 2013 (40:16 Md. R. 1347)

**Administrative History:** Regulation .03C amended effective June 25, 2012 (39:12 Md. R. 746); February 29, 2016 (43:4 Md. R. 338); November 23, 2017 (44:23 Md. R. 1079); December 2, 2019 (46:24 Md. R. 1104); March 2, 2026 (53:4 Md. R. 186)

**Administrative History:** Regulation .03D amended effective March 2, 2026 (53:4 Md. R. 186)

**Administrative History:** Regulation .04A amended effective November 23, 2017 (44:23 Md. R. 1079); July 10, 2023 (50:13 Md. R. 514)

**Administrative History:** Regulation .05B amended effective June 25, 2012 (39:12 Md. R. 746)

#### Regulation .01 Conduct Generally.

*COMAR 33.16.05.01*

The local board's review, inspection, and tabulation of provisional ballots shall:

A. Begin as provided in Regulation .03 of this chapter;

B. Be conducted separately from the review, inspection, and tabulation of polling place ballots;

C. Be conducted in a public session; and

D. Otherwise be conducted in the same manner as for polling place ballots, insofar as those procedures are appropriate.

#### Regulation .02 Start of Canvass.

*COMAR 33.16.05.02*

A. When Required.

  (1) Except as provided in §A(2) of this regulation, the local board shall start to canvass the provisional ballots at 10 a.m. on the second Wednesday after an election.

  (2) If the start of a provisional canvass falls on a legal holiday, the board shall convene the provisional canvass on the next regular business day.

B. Opening Ballots. The provisional ballot application envelopes and any absentee ballots being canvassed as provisional ballots may not be opened until the start of the canvass.

#### Regulation .03 Disposition of Provisional Ballot Application.

*COMAR 33.16.05.03*

A. Election Director Recommendation. The election director shall:

  (1) Present the provisional ballot applications to the local board; and

  (2) Based on the pre-canvass review of the applications, make recommendations to the local board as to whether the provisional ballot applications should be accepted or rejected.

B. Votes Required. The local board shall reject a provisional ballot application only by unanimous vote and as provided in this chapter.

C. Acceptance of Provisional Ballot Application. The local board shall accept a provisional ballot application only if:

  (1) The voter is registered to vote, including a voter whose registration status was pending in the precinct register but who satisfied the verification requirement before the start of the provisional canvass;

  (2) The voter signed the provisional ballot application;

  (3) A voter who was required under COMAR 33.07.06 to provide personal identification information satisfied the identification requirement before the start of the provisional canvass;

  (4) In a primary election:

    (a) The party affiliation indicated by the voter on the provisional ballot application is the party affiliation of the voter’s record; or

    (b) The party affiliation indicated by the voter on the provisional ballot application is not the party affiliation of the voter’s record and the ballot has a nonpartisan Board of Education contest.

  (5) The voter voted a provisional ballot because the precinct register indicated that the voter had been issued an absentee ballot or already voted and the voter did not return a voted absentee ballot or voted again in the election;

  (6) The voter voted a provisional ballot during extended voting hours and the local board has received confirmation from the State Administrator that the order extending voting hours has not been invalidated;

  (7) The voter voted a provisional ballot because the voter’s identity was challenged and the local board, after reviewing the affidavits and any other relevant information, has denied the challenge; and

  (8) An individual who was not a pre-qualified voter during early voting or on election day was determined to be eligible to vote and satisfied the proof of residency requirement under COMAR 33.16.04.02E.

D. Full or Partial Count of Provisional Ballot. If the local board accepts the provisional ballot application, the local board shall count:

  (1) The entire provisional ballot if the ballot is the correct ballot style for the voter based on the address and party on the provisional ballot application; or

  (2) Only votes for the specific contests for which the voter is entitled to vote based on the address and party on the provisional ballot application, if the ballot is not the correct ballot style for the voter based on the address on the provisional ballot application.

E. Rejection of Provisional Ballot Application. If the local board does not accept the provisional ballot application as provided in §§B and C of this regulation, the local board shall reject the provisional ballot application.

#### Regulation .04 Record of Disposition.

*COMAR 33.16.05.04*

A. The local board or the election director shall record on the provisional ballot application whether the provisional ballot application was accepted, either in full or in part, or rejected and, if rejected, the reason why the application was rejected.

B. This record shall furnish the basis for the information provided through the free access system required by COMAR 33.16.07.04.

#### Regulation .05 Opening and Ballot Tabulation.

*COMAR 33.16.05.05*

A. If the local board rejects a provisional ballot application, the provisional ballot application envelope shall remain sealed.

B. If the local board accepts a provisional ballot application or an absentee ballot being canvassed as a provisional ballot, the ballot shall be removed from the envelope consistent with COMAR 33.11.04.05 with special consideration given to the fact that the voter's personal identification information may be contained inside the envelope with the ballot.

C. If the local board has determined under Regulation .03D of this chapter that, based on the address the voter provided on the provisional ballot application, only votes for specific contests should be counted, the local board shall form a bipartisan team and use the voter's provisional ballot to duplicate the votes for those contests for which the voter is entitled to vote.

D. Absentee Ballots. An absentee ballot being canvassed as a provisional ballot may not be opened until the start of the provisional ballot canvass.

E. The provisional ballots shall be tabulated after they are removed from the ballot envelopes, without unreasonable delay.

#### Regulation .06 Reporting Results.

*COMAR 33.16.05.06*

The unofficial results of the provisional ballot canvass shall be released when the tabulation is completed.