This bill amends existing election laws to allow election moderators and other officials to access the area designated for counting votes while performing their duties. Specifically, it modifies RSA 659:58 to clarify that any election official who is also a candidate for office must disqualify themselves from duties related to the tabulation of votes for the office they are running for. However, the bill allows these officials, including moderators, to remain within the guardrails and perform other assigned duties that are not related to vote counting.

The bill also introduces several insertions to enhance clarity and inclusivity in the language. It specifies that disqualified officials must disqualify "himself or herself" and allows for the appointment of an assistant with the same powers as the disqualified official. Additionally, it removes the phrase "to other duties" from the previous law, streamlining the language to indicate that disqualified officials may perform other duties as assigned by the moderator. The act is set to take effect 60 days after its passage.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 659:58
HB1266 text: 659:58