2026 -- H 7979

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LC005590

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026

____________

A N   A C T

RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- MAIL BALLOTS

     Introduced By: Representatives Messier, Edwards, and Furtado

     Date Introduced: February 27, 2026

     Referred To: House State Government & Elections

     (Board of Elections)

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 17-20-23 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-20 entitled "Mail

Ballots" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     17-20-23. Marking and certification of ballot.

     (a) A voter may vote for the candidates of the voter’s choice by making a mark in the space

provided opposite their respective names.

     (b) In case a voter desires to vote upon a question submitted to the vote of the electors of

the state, the voter shall mark in the appropriate space associated with the answer that the voter

desires to give.

     (c) The voter shall enclose and seal the ballot in the envelope provided for it. The voter

shall then enclose and seal the certified envelope with the ballot in the envelope addressed to the

state board and cause the envelope to be deposited into any official drop box or delivered to the

state board on or before no later than eight o'clock (8:00) pm on election day.

     (d) These ballots shall be counted only if received within the time limited by this chapter.

     (e) A voter who receives the ballot by mail may return it via the United States Postal

Service, deposit into an official elections drop box, or deliver to the state board of elections no later

than eight o'clock (8:00) pm on election day by the voter or immediately by a person deemed

authorized by the voter that is not affiliated with a candidate for office or a political campaign.

     (f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (e) of this section, a ballot may be returned

by an immediate family member or member of a voter's household, even if that immediate family

member or member of the household is a candidate for office or someone affiliated with a political

campaign.

     (g) No person affiliated with a candidate for office or a political campaign shall possess a

voter's mail ballot other than their own, except if the person is an immediate family member,

caregiver of the voter, or lives in the same household as the voter, the staff of the state board of

elections, staff of the canvassing authority of the city or town in which the voter is registered, the

staff of the secretary of state, any official printer of mail ballot forms and its designated carriers,

the United States Postal Service, any other carrier, courier or messenger service recognized and

approved by the state board of elections, or any person authorized by the state board of elections to

receive and process official mail ballot forms and envelopes, including members of the state board

of elections and local board of canvassers members.

     (h) No person affiliated with a candidate for office or a political campaign shall be

knowingly present when a voter executes their mail ballot, unless the person is an immediate family

member or lives in the same household as the voter, or is authorized by law to be present, when the

mail ballot is executed in the office of the canvassing authority of the city or town in which the

voter is registered or the state board of elections or those appointed as provided in § 17-20-14.

     (i) For purposes of this subsection, immediate family member means a parent, grandparent,

sibling, spouse, partner, child, or grandchild by blood, marriage, or adoption.

     (j) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, nothing set forth herein shall limit or

restrict any voter who requires assistance to vote by reason of blindness, disability, or inability to

read or write, to receive assistance by a person of the voter's choice, other than the voter's employer,

or agent of that employer, or officer or agent of the voter's union, in accordance with § 17-19-26.1.

     (k) Any reference to "mail ballot" or "ballot by mail'' in in this section shall be construed

to also apply to an emergency mail ballot as provided for in § 17-20-2.2.

     (e)(l) There shall be a space provided on the general election ballot to allow the voter to

write in the names of persons not in nomination by any party as provided for in §§ 17-19-31 and

17-20- 24.

     (m) A person who knowingly and willfully violates the provisions of this section shall be

guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be subject to the penalties provided for in § 17-26-2.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO ELECTIONS -- MAIL BALLOTS

***

     This act would amend the procedures for the marking and certification of mail ballots by

prohibiting anyone but the voter or certain persons close to the voter from handling the mail ballot.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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LC005590

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