Section 3-177-450 - Ballot definition(a) The term "ballot" shall be broadly defined, so as to permit voters to vote, to mean the following: (1) A written or printed, or partly written and partly printed paper or papers containing the names of persons to be voted for, the office to be filled, and the questions or issues to be voted on;(2) A ballot used in an election by mail, including a ballot approved for electronic transmission. "Electronic transmission". refers the transmission of a blank or voted ballot by facsimile or electronic mail delivery, or the use of an online ballot delivery and return system, which may include the ability to mark the ballot. (A) HTML or similar technology may be used to represent a ballot including all contests and questions that the voter may vote on that is used in electronic transmission. Any such representation will be considered a ballot for purposes of these rules;(B) HTML or similar technology may be used to represent how a voter voted. The manner of the representation of how the voter voted shall be considered a ballot. This may be in the form of an electronic image, which, may be in a PDF or similar format, that contains the names of persons to be voted for, the office to be filled, and the questions or issues to be voted on, along with marks indicating how the voter vote. Additionally, the electronic system may generate a ballot summary, to represent how the voter voted, which may be considered a ballot for purposes, of these rules. The ballot summary, similar to a voter verifiable paper audit trail, is a complete record of the ballot selections that is verified by the voter, which may be in a PDF or similar format, before being transmitted back through the electronic transmission system;.(C) To the extent an electronic image associated with the electronic transmission system is printed and not electronically returned, but instead is returned by mail or in-person, it shall be considered a ballot for purposes of these rules; or(D) A facsimile of a ballot which is sent as an attachment to an electronic mail message or as part of a facsimile transmission shall be considered a ballot. In either case, the return of a voted facsimile of the ballot shall also be considered a ballot for purposes of these rules.(3) A ballot may consist of one or more cards or pieces of paper, or one face of a card or piece of paper, or a portion of the face of a card or piece of paper, depending on the number of offices, candidates to be elected thereto, questions or issues to be voted on, and the voting system in use.(b) A "voter verifiable paper audit trail" means the paper record that constitutes a complete record of ballot selections that is verified by the voter. To the extent, the vote of a voter cannot be determined, in relation to an electronic voting system due to technical issues, the voter verifiable paper audit trail may be considered the equivalent of a ballot.(c) A "defective ballot" means any ballot delivered to the counting center in accordance with HRS § 11-152 that cannot be read by the vote counting system. This includes, but is. not limited to, any ballot summary associated with electronic transmission, any voter verifiable paper audit trail associated with an underlying electronic voting system that cannot report how the voter voted, and any other damaged ballot that cannot be read by the ballot reading device.(d) "Duplicate ballot" means a ballot used solely for the purpose of reproducing a defective ballot for counting and tabulation. [Eff JUL 26 2020] (Auth: HRS § 11-4) (Imp: HRS §§ 11-112, 11-119, 11-152)