HB145 Alabama 2010 Session

Updated Feb 27, 2026

Notable

Summary

Primary Sponsor: Charles O. Newton
Republican
Session: Regular Session 2010
Title: Elections, write-in votes, counting further provided for, Sec. 17-6-28 am'd. (2010-20016)
Summary: HB145 updates Alabama's rules for counting write-in votes in non-municipal general elections.
What This Bill Does
It allows write-ins only in non-municipal general elections and requires voters to register a write-in by both writing the name and marking the designated space. It sets rules for when a write-in is counted or not counted, including how over-votes are handled and what happens if the electronic ballot counter isn’t working. It requires ballots with write-ins to be sent to a central county location for a determination on whether they can affect the outcome, and if so, they are counted; voters can request counting within two business days and pay the actual costs.

Who It Affects
Voters who cast write-in votes, who must follow registration rules and can request counting within two business days and may incur costs.
Election officials (judge of probate, Secretary of State, and poll officials), who must determine whether write-ins can affect the outcome, handle counting and over-votes, and forward tallies as required.

Key Provisions
Write-in votes are permitted only in non-municipal general elections and must be registered by writing the name and marking the designated space for that office; unregistered write-ins shall not be counted.
If a voter writes in a name but does not register the write-in vote, the ballot is treated as if no write-in occurred and the regular vote is counted.
If a properly registered write-in causes an over-vote, the over-voted office’s votes are not counted, but the remainder of the ballot is counted.
Poll officials must check for over-votes when the electronic ballot counter does not perform this function.
All write-in ballots are returned to a central county location; the judge of probate determines whether write-ins can affect the outcome for single-county elections, and the Secretary of State makes the determination for multi-county elections.
If the write-ins can affect the outcome, they are counted; if not, they are not counted except as provided by the act.
Any qualified elector may request within two business days after the election that write-in votes be counted, and the requester must pay the actual costs of counting.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.
Subjects: Elections