RCW 87.03.033
Absentee or mail-in voting—Statement of qualifications—Form of ballot.
Redline — January 1, 2023 → current.View current text →
Current — January 1, 2026
As of January 1, 2023
(1) To be counted in a given election, an absentee ballot must conform to these requirements: (a) It must be sealed in an unmarked envelope and delivered to the district's principal office prior to the close of the polls on the day of that election; or be sealed in an unmarked envelope and mailed to the district's secretary, postmarked not later than midnight of that election day and received by the secretary within five days of that date. (b) The sealed envelope containing the ballot shall be accompanied by a certificate of qualifications stating, with respect to the voter, his or her name, age, citizenship, residence, that he or she holds title or evidence of title to lands within the district which, under RCW 87.03.045 entitles him or her to vote in the election, and that he or she cannot conveniently be present to cast his or her ballot at his or her proper election precinct on election day. (c) The statements in the certificate of qualifications shall be certified as correct by the voter by the affixing of his or her signature thereto in the presence of a witness who is acquainted with the voter, and the voter shall enclose and seal his or her ballot in the unmarked envelope in the presence of this witness but without disclosing his or her vote. The witness, by affixing his or her signature to the certificate of qualifications, shall certify that he or she is acquainted with the voter, that in his or her presence the voter's signature was affixed and the ballot enclosed as required in this paragraph.
(1) To be counted in a given election, an absentee ballot or ballots in a mail-in election must conform to these requirements: (a) It must be sealed in a security envelope, which may provide instructions for completing the ballot and which position is being contested, but have no other marks that would identify the elector, and then be placed in an additional outer envelope and delivered to the district's principal office prior to the close of the polls on the day of that election; or be mailed to the district's secretary, postmarked not later than midnight of that election day and received by the secretary within seven days of that date. (b) To ensure secrecy of the vote, the security envelope must be sealed within an additional outer envelope, requiring the ballot to be provided with two envelopes for ballot return. (c) The sealed envelope containing the ballot shall be accompanied by a certificate of qualifications stating, with respect to the voter, his or her name, age, citizenship, residence, that he or she holds title or evidence of title to lands within the district which, under this chapter entitles him or her to vote in the election. (d) The statements in the certificate of qualifications shall be certified as correct by the voter by the affixing of his or her signature thereto, certifying under penalty of perjury that he or she meets the qualifications to vote.
(2) The form of statement of qualifications and its certification shall be substantially as prescribed by the district's board of directors. This form may also provide that the voter shall describe all or some part of his or her lands within the district which, under RCW 87.03.045 entitles him or her to vote in the election, but a voter otherwise qualified shall not be disqualified because of the absence or inaccuracy of the description so given. The regular form of irrigation district ballot shall be used by absentee voters.
(2) The form of statement of qualifications and its certification shall be substantially as prescribed by the district's board of directors. The district may print the statement of qualifications on the outer envelope in lieu of including a separate statement of qualifications form. This form may also provide that the voter shall describe all or some part of his or her lands within the district which, under this chapter entitles him or her to vote in the election, but a voter otherwise qualified shall not be disqualified because of the absence or inaccuracy of the description so given. The regular form of irrigation district ballot shall be used by absentee voters.
Official source: Washington State Legislature. Reproduced from public-domain Washington statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.