§ 15213 Emergency Precinct Ballot Counting

Elections Code·California

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This law lets election officials count ballots at the polling place instead of moving them to a central location when an emergency makes transport impossible, and it requires the count to follow the rules in Article 5.

Key Takeaways

•Emergency can force counting to stay at the precinct.
•The count must follow Article 5 procedures.
•The rule only applies when moving ballots is impossible.

Example

A sudden storm floods the road to the central counting center, so the election official decides to count the votes right at the precinct.

Because the ballots can't be moved safely, the official uses the emergency rule to count them on site, following the same steps described in Article 5.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source

View on CA.gov

§ 15213 Emergency Precinct Ballot Counting

In case of an emergency in which it becomes impossible to transport the ballots from the precinct to a central counting place, the elections official may direct that the ballots be counted at the precinct. In those cases, counting shall be conducted substantially in accordance with Article 5 (commencing with Section 15270). (Added by Stats. 1998, Ch. 1073, Sec. 27. Effective January 1, 1999.)

Last verified: January 10, 2026

Key Terms

emergency ballots precinct central counting place Article 5 Section 15270

References

Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
California Legislature. Elections Code. Section 15213.

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Key Takeaways

Example

Key Terms

Related Statutes

References