There are few who play that role and many more who would like to do so. They are the presidents of an electoral table. It is a scheduled work, full of rules that are included in the manual that is delivered to everyone who receives the notification. … holder or substitute. That someone can always fail.
If when you received the notification you had no excuse, they ignored you and you have no choice but to go, this will be your election day.
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8.00 hours
The table is made up
It’s time to get up early to get to the polling station early. The regulations say that you must be present before eight in the morning to form the table. If you don’t go, you may have legal problems. Even if you are a substitute, you must show up and sign the minutes to prove that you have attended.
If you have to stay, your day will be long. Although they are going to pay you 70 euros to sit all day and monitor the vote. In addition, the next day you have the right to a reduction of five hours of work.
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8.30
Organize the ‘place of operations’
Once the table is formed the ‘hard work’ begins. The first thing is the arrival of the interveners, between eight and eight thirty. Their identity and appointments must be verified.
At the same time, you must verify that everything is in its place: the booths, the ballots, the well-sealed ballot boxes… It seems silly, but it is included in the president’s guide and it is better to do it to avoid later disappointments.
One of the most important things that the president must control before starting the day is a material made up of three envelopes that are essential for work at the end of the day.
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9.00
Voting begins
The instruction manual specifies that the president, at nine in the morning, has to solemnly pronounce ‘Voting begins’, so that everything starts rolling.
How do you vote? The process is known although there are a series of recommendations to avoid surprises such as double voting or someone making a mistake when inserting the ballot.
There must always be two people present at the table. So it is possible to go out to rest, smoke or go to the bathroom. Of course, in moderation so that there are no problems or complaints from the auditors or anyone else.
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9.00 to 20.00
What if there is a problem during the day?
During the day there may be several incidents that must be resolved. Among the most notable are:
It can be interrupted:
- 1
When there are no ballots.
- 2
When the urn is full and no other arrives.
- 3
If the ballot box is opened or manipulated voluntarily or involuntarily.
It can be suspended:
- 1
When more than an hour has passed without being able to vote. If this happens, what has happened is reasonably reflected in writing and the presidency orders the destruction of all ballots deposited so far, sending the letter to the Provincial Electoral Board. Once voting is suspended at a table, the Zone Electoral Board will call new elections at that table within two days.
People who can vote even if they are not on the census:
- 1
Accredited auditors at the table.
- 2
People who, even if they are not on the census, have a judicial document that allows it.
And with a little luck and good work, the electoral process enters its final stretch.
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20.00
There are still votes left
The president must announce out loud that the vote is ending. This is required by the instruction manual, which also explains that the schedule can be extended if any interruption occurs during the day.
And when there is no one left to vote, voting by mail is introduced, which must be checked one by one.
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20.15
The first are the last to vote
When all the votes have been mailed, it is the turn of those who arrived first to vote, which are the members of the table themselves. The three members exercise or do not exercise their right to vote together with the interveners who had been approved early in the morning.
Once this process is completed, the numbered list of voters that has been completed by one of the members of the table is signed on the margin of each of the sheets and also immediately below the last written.
At this time the most tedious and complicated work of the day begins. Count the votes and make the results add up. In these elections there is only one ballot box and the recount will be simple. In other calls it costs more.
We must differentiate between blank votes and null votes.
Blank votes:
- 1
Envelopes that do not contain a ballot.
- 2
The vote cast in favor of a legally withdrawn candidacy.
Null votes:
- 1
Those that are issued in envelopes or ballots different from the official model.
- 2
Ballots without envelopes.
- 3
Envelopes containing more than one ballot of different candidates.
- 4
Those issued in altered envelopes.
- 5
Ballots with modifications, erasures or written texts.
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21.00
Results announcement
The presidency asks if there is any protest or claim to be made against the scrutiny. If there is, they are resolved by a majority of its members and the results of the vote are announced.
Ballots must be destroyed with the exception of null votes and those that have been the subject of a claim. The latter must be kept signed by each member of the table and are included in the session minutes inside envelope 1.
Once the writing has been resolved, the president of the table will announce out loud the result of the vote giving data on the number of people who could vote, those who have voted, the null votes, blank votes and finally the number of votes for each candidate. .
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Completion of the minutes
The end of the exhausting day is approaching with the completion of the minutes and forms that must be delivered later.
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23.00
End of the day. Delivery of results to the Electoral Board
The day ends with the delivery of the three envelopes that were received in the morning. The schedule will depend on the time spent on the scrutiny and whether any problems have arisen. At that moment, the members of the table will finish their work, depending on the time it takes them to deliver the envelopes with results.
