Section 191. Preliminaries to the voting. —
The board of election inspectors shall meet at the polling place at six-thirty o'clock in the morning of election day and shall have the book of voters containing all the approved applications of registration of voters pertaining to the polling place, the certified list of voters, the certified list of candidates, the ballot box, the official ballots, sufficient indelible pencils or ball pens for the use of the voters, the forms to be used, and all other materials which may be necessary.
Immediately thereafter, the chairman of the board of election inspectors shall open the ballot box, empty both of its compartments, exhibit them to all those present and being empty, lock its interior covers with three padlocks.
The chairman shall forthwith show to the public and the watchers present the package of official ballots received from the city, or municipal treasurer duly wrapped and sealed and the number of pads, the serial numbers and the type forms of the ballots in each pad appearing on the cover, and the book of voters duly sealed. The board of election inspectors shall then break the seals of the package of official ballots and the book of voters. The board of election inspectors shall enter in the minutes the fact that the package of ballots, and the book of voters were shown to the public with their wrapping and corresponding seals intact and/or if they find that the wrapping and seals are broken, such fact must be stated in the minutes as well as the number of pads and the serial numbers of ballots that they find in the package.
Ballots with separately printed serial numbers shall be deemed spurious and shall not be utilized by the board of election inspectors unless the Commission representative shall order their use in writing, stating the reasons therefor.
The chairman and the two party members of the board of election inspectors shall retain in their possession their respective keys to the padlocks during the voting.
The box shall remain locked until the voting is finished and the counting begins. However, if it should become necessary to make room for more ballots, the board of election inspectors may open the box in the presence of the whole board of election inspectors and the watchers, and the chairman shall press down with his hands the ballots contained therein without removing any of them, after which the board of election inspectors shall close the box and lock it with three padlocks as hereinbefore provided. (Sec. 136, 1978 EC)