(1) The polling station commission shall write vote-counting minutes in two copies. The vote-counting minutes shall consist of two parts:

1)   the preliminary vote counting (hereinafter — first part of the vote-counting minutes);

2)   tallying of final results (hereinafter — second part of the vote-counting minutes).

(2) Before opening the ballot boxes, the polling station commission shall record in the first part of the vote-counting minutes the number of received, used and unused ballot envelopes and the number of voters at the polling station and at places where the voters are located. The unused stamped envelopes shall be invalidated.

(3) After the information specified in Paragraph 2 of this Article has been recorded in the first part of the vote-counting minutes and after the unused election materials and ballot envelopes have been packaged, the ballot boxes shall be opened. The ballot boxes shall be opened one at a time, and the ballot envelopes shall be counted.

(4) The unopened ballot envelopes removed from each ballot box shall be sorted as valid or invalid envelopes.

(5) The envelopes shall be deemed invalid if they are torn, if they do not bear a stamp of the relevant polling station or if they do not bear the name of the relevant election and the number of the convocation of the Saeima to be elected.

(6) The invalid envelopes shall be counted and packaged unopened, and their number shall be indicated on the package. The total number of invalid ballot envelopes shall be recorded in the journal of the voting process.

(7) The number of valid ballot envelopes removed from each ballot box must be equal to or less than the number of voters on the list of voters.

(8) If the ballot box contains ballot papers that have not been inserted into ballot envelopes, they shall be invalidated and packaged in accordance with the procedure set by the Central Election Commission.

(As amended by the 30 May 2002 Law, the 9 March 2006 Law and the 6 February 2014 Law)