SB 3 — AN ACT PROPOSING AN AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE V OF THE DELAWARE CONSTITUTION RELATING TO VOTING.

Rep.Sen.

Brown & Sen.

Hansen & Sen.

Sturgeon & Rep.

Moore HOUSE& OFRep. REPRESENTATIVES 152nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE AMENDMENT NO.

2Baumbach TO& SENATERep. BILL NO.

3Dorsey AMENDWalker Senate& BillRep. No.

3Minor-Brown by& deletingRep. lines 10 through 13 and inserting in lieu thereof the following:

“beBush countedSens. in such election district.

(a)Gay, AHoffner, qualifiedHuxtable, voterLockman, ofMantzavinos, thisParadee, StatePinkney, whoSokola, isTownsend, dulyWalsh; registered has the right to vote by absentee ballot without an excuse.

(b)Reps. When voting by absentee ballot, the following must occur:

(1)a.Bolden, Harris, Heffernan, Morrison, Romer, K.

ExceptWilliams asDELAWARE providedSTATE inSENATE subsection152nd (c)GENERAL ofASSEMBLY thisSENATE section,BILL anNO. absentee ballot must be requested once for each election cycle.

b.3 AN ACT PROPOSING AN AMENDMENT TO ARTICLE V OF THE DELAWARE CONSTITUTION RELATING TO VOTING.

ForBE purposesIT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE (Two-thirds of paragraphall (b)(1)a.members elected to each house thereof concurring therein):

ofSection this1. Section, “election cycle” means the day after the date of the most recent general election through the date of the next general election.

(2)Amend Each§ absentee4A, ballotArticle mustV containof anthe oathDelaware orConstitution affirmationby thatmaking thedeletions qualifiedas voter’sshown voteby isstrike freethrough fromand improperinsertions influence.as shown by underline as follows:

(c)(1)§ A4A. qualified voter may be granted permanent absentee status if any of the following apply to the qualified voter:

a.General laws for absentee voting.

BecauseSection the4A. qualified voter is in the public service of the United States or of this State, or is a citizen of the United States temporarily residing outside the territorial limits of the United States and the District of Columbia, or is the spouse or dependent of the qualified voter who is residing with or accompanying the qualified voter, or is absent from this State because of illness or injury received while serving in the armed forces of the United States.

b.The General Assembly shall enact general laws providing that any qualified elector of this State, duly registered, who shall be unable to appear to cast his or her ballot at any general election at the regular polling place of the election district in which he or she is registered, either because of being in the public service of the United States or of this State, or his or her spouse or dependents when residing with or accompanying him or her because of the nature of his or her business or occupation, because of his or her sickness or physical disability, because of his or her absence from the district while on vacation, or because of the tenets or teachings of his or her religion, may cast a ballot at such general election to be counted in such election district.

Because(a) theThe qualifiedGeneral voterAssembly ismay inenact thegeneral armedlaws forcesproviding of the Unitedcircumstances, Statesrules, or the merchant marine of the United States, or attached to and servingprocedures withby thewhich armeda forcesqualified ofvoter themay Unitedvote Statesby inabsentee theballot. American Red Cross or United Service Organizations.

c.(b) A general law enacted under subsection (a) of this Section must include an oath or affirmation that the qualified voter’s vote is free from improper influence.

BecauseSection the2. qualified voter is sick or physically disabled.

d.Amend § 3, Article V of the Delaware Constitution by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:

Because§ the3. qualified voter is otherwise authorized under the federal Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA), 52 U.S.C.

§Influencing 20301voter; et seq., as amended, to vote by absentee ballot.

e.loss of vote;

Becausechallenge; the qualified voter is otherwise authorized by federal law to vote by absentee ballot.

LCoath :and affirmation;

perjury.

Section 3.

(a) No person who shall receive or accept, or offer to receive or accept, or shall pay, transfer, or deliver, or offer or promise to pay, transfer or deliver, or shall contribute, or offer or promise to contribute to another, to be paid or used, any money or other valuable thing as a compensation, inducement or reward for the registering or abstaining from registering of any one qualified to register, or for the giving or withholding, or in any manner influencing the giving or LC :

04/23/202403/09/2023 09:3504:09 AMPM f.withholding, a vote at any general or special or municipal election in this State, shall vote at such election;

Becauseand upon challenge for any of said causes the qualifiedperson voterso ischallenged providingbefore carethe officers authorized for that purpose shall receive his or her vote, shall swear or affirm before such officers that he or she has not received or accepted, or offered to thereceive qualifiedor voter’saccept, parent,or spouse,paid, transferred or childdelivered, whoor isoffered livingor atpromised hometo andpay, requirestransfer constantor caredeliver, dueor contributed, or offered or promised to illness,contribute disability,to another, to be paid or injury.used, any money or other valuable thing as a compensation, inducement or reward for the registering or abstaining from registering of any one qualified to register, or for the giving or withholding, or in any manner influencing the giving or withholding, a vote at such election.

(2)Such Foroath eachor electionaffirmation inshall whichbe aconclusive qualifiedevidence voterto votesthe byelection absenteeofficers ballotof under a permanent absentee status, the qualifiedtruth voterof shallsuch take an oath or affirmationaffirmation; that the qualified voter remains eligible for permanent absentee status.

FURTHERbut AMENDif Senateany Billsuch No.oath or affirmation shall be false, the person making the same shall be guilty of perjury, and no conviction thereof shall bar any prosecution under Section 8 of this Article.

3(b) The oath or affirmation required under Section 4A of this Article for voting by insertingabsentee ballot is in lieu of the followingoath afteror lineaffirmation 32:required under this Section.

SectionSYNOPSIS 3.This Act is the first leg of a constitutional amendment to eliminate the limitations on when an individual may vote absentee and authorizes the General Assembly to enact general laws providing the circumstances, rules, and procedures for absentee voting in this State.

AmendThis §Act 1,is Articlein Vresponse ofto the DelawareSupreme ConstitutionCourt’s bydecision makingin deletionsAlbence asv. shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows: