Organization and Procedure of Voting
1. Voting shall be conducted on the day of elections from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
2. The polling station election commission shall inform voters about the time and place of voting no later than ten days prior to election day, and in the exceptional cases of polling station forming, on the eve of the election day, as provided for in Part seven of Article 17 of this Law.
3. The polling station commission shall be responsible for organizing voting, for equipping premises for voting and maintaining order on them, and for ensuring the secrecy of the voters' will.
4. No earlier than thirty minutes before the voting commences, the polling station election commission shall hold a meeting during which the safe (metal cabinet) containing election ballots shall be opened. On the grounds of the excerpt from the minutes of the constituency election commission on the handing over of election ballots to polling station election commission, the chairperson of the polling station election commission shall announce the number of election ballots received by the polling station election commission. This information shall be entered to the minutes of the polling station election commission on tabulation of votes at the polling station in the multi-mandate election constituency and the single-mandate election constituency, respectively.
5. In the event of any damage to the tape sealing the safe (metal cabinet), the polling station election commission shall immediately inform the internal affairs organs and the constituency election commission about that and shall undertake the recount of election ballots on which a report shall be drawn up signed by all members of the polling station election commission present at the recount and certified by the polling station election commission stamp.
6. Before the voting commences, the chairperson of the polling station election commission shall provide access for inspection of all ballot boxes to members of the polling station election commission, to the attending authorized persons of political parties (electoral blocs), to candidates for people’s deputies and authorized persons thereof, to official observers, and to representatives of mass media. Following the inspection, ballot boxes shall be sealed or stamped with the polling station election commission stamp. A control sheet shall be inserted in every ballot box used for voting at the polling station inscribed with the number of the single-mandate election constituency, the number of the polling station, the time of insertion in ballot box, and with surnames of the chairperson, deputy chairperson, secretary and other members of the polling station election commission, of the authorized persons of political parties (electoral blocs), of the candidates for people’s deputies and authorized persons thereof, of the official observers from political parties (electoral blocs), and of the candidates for people’s deputies registered in the single-mandate election constituency present. All these persons shall sign the control sheet and their signatures shall be certified by the polling station election commission stamp.
7. Based on the list of voters for the respective polling station, when a voter produces a document to establish his/her identity as provided for by Part two of Article 2 of this Law, a member of the polling station election commission shall issue to the voter one election ballot for voting in multi-mandate election constituency and one election ballot for voting in single-mandate election constituency. The voter signs for receiving the aforesaid in the determined places on the control checks of each election ballot and in the list of voters. The member of the polling station commission who issued the ballot shall inscribe his/her surname and initials and put his/her signature in the determined places on the election ballots and the controlling checks. It is prohibited to make any indication on the election ballots.
8. Voter who on election day arrives for voting at a polling station producing a certificate of the removal from the list of voters, shall be included in the list of voters in accordance with the procedure established by part seven of Article 31 of this Law. Election ballots shall be issued to such voter in accordance with the procedure established by part seven of this Article.
9. A voter may stay in the premises for voting during such time as is needed for casting vote.
10. Election ballots shall be completed by the voter personally in a booth (room) for secret voting. The presence of other persons during the completing of election ballots is prohibited. . A voter who cannot complete election ballot on his/her own because of physical incapacity, has the right upon giving notice of this to the chairperson or other member of the polling station election commission, to resort to the help of another person except for the members of the electoral commission, candidates for people’s deputy, authorized persons thereof, authorized persons of political parties (electoral blocs), or official observers.
11. Voter shall have no right to transfer his/her election ballot to other persons. Receiving blank election ballots from other persons, inducing or compelling voters to transfer election ballots to other persons by way of bribery, threats or in any other way, is forbidden.
12. On the ballot for voting in a multi-mandate all-state election constituency the voter shall make a mark "plus" (+) or other mark which shall reveal the voter's intentions, in the square beside the name of the political party (electoral bloc) whose candidates for people’s deputy he/she votes for. A voter may vote for the candidates for people’s deputy of only one political party (electoral bloc), or refuse to support candidates for people’s deputy from any of the political parties (electoral blocs). If a voter does not support candidates for people’s deputy from any of the political parties (electoral blocs), such voter shall make a mark "plus" (+) or other mark, which shall reveal the voter's intentions, in the square beside the words: "Do not support candidates for people’s deputies of Ukraine from any political party (electoral bloc)".
13. On election ballot for voting in a single-mandate election constituency the voter shall make a mark "plus" (+) or other mark, which shall reveal the voter's intentions, in the square beside the name of the candidate for deputy for whom he/she votes. A voter may vote for only one candidate for deputy or refuse to support any of the candidates for people’s deputy. If a voter does not support any of the candidates for people’s deputy in a single-mandate election constituency, such voter shall make a mark "plus" (+) or other mark which shall reveal the voter's intentions, in the square beside the words: "Do not support any of the candidates for people’s deputy of Ukraine".
14. A voter shall insert completed election ballots into a ballot box. A voter who cannot insert election ballots into a ballot box on his/her own because of physical incapacity, has the right upon giving notice of this to the chairperson or other member of the polling station election commission, to resort to the help of another person for doing this, except for the members of the electoral commission, candidates for people’s deputy, authorized persons thereof, authorized persons of any political parties (electoral blocs), or official observers.
15. In the event of any damage to a ballot box during voting, such ballot box shall be sealed by the chairperson together with at least three members of the polling station election commission who shall be representatives of different political parties (electoral blocs) in such a way as to make insertion of any election ballots impossible. Such ballot box may not be used until the completion of voting.
16. In the event where a voter will have made any error while completing election ballot, such voter may without delay address a written application to the member of the polling station election commission who issued the election ballot to him/her with the request to be issued with a replacement election ballot. The member of the polling station election commission shall issue another election ballot to such voter in accordance with the procedure established by Part eight of this Article, but only in return for the spoilt election ballot, and shall put the appropriate sign and his/her signature in the list of voters beside the surname of the voter. The spoilt election ballot shall be cancelled forthwith as unused, and an appropriate report shall be drawn out. In tabulation of votes, such spoilt and cancelled election ballot with the control check shall be counted as unused and shall be put in the package of unused election ballots.
17. At eight p.m. the chairperson of the polling station election commission shall announce the completion of voting following this announcement, only those voters who are in the premises for voting shall have the right to cast their votes. When the last voter leaves the premises for voting, the premises shall be closed, and only members of the polling station election commission and such persons as are entitled by this Law to attend the meeting of the polling station election commission, shall stay there.
18. At a polling station formed on a ship which is at sea on the day of elections under the National flag of Ukraine or on a polar station of Ukraine, the polling station election commission may declare voting as completed before the time defined in Part one of this Article on provision that all voters on the list of voters have already took part in voting.
