§ 4-309 Counting ballots.
A. After the voting for an election is officially closed by the Election Commission, the Election Commission shall tally the official ballots.
B. The official tallying of the votes shall be open for public observation by members of the Tribe in person and through a live-stream video communication, which shall be accessible on the tribal members-only website. In-person attendees must remain quiet and in no way interfere with the orderly tallying of the ballots.
C. Prior to the official tallying of the votes, the Election Commission shall include in the ballot box all sealed envelopes timely received that contain absentee ballots. Absentee ballots will be retrieved and transported by at least two (2) members of the Election Commission from the secure location to the Tribal Office, where it will remain constantly under video surveillance until after the votes are tallied and the election results are announced. The Election Commission will create a process for tallying the ballots that includes at least two (2) witnesses to verify the authenticity and accuracy of each vote throughout the tallying process. The final vote count will be established by the Election Commission after all votes have been tallied, and the Election Commission has verified that there are no duplicate votes.
D. The following election day activities will occur within camera view for tribal members to observe: all persons opening the ballots, all persons marking the official tally list(s), and all persons tallying the votes on a white board or by another method.
E. General Election, Runoff Election and Special Election.
1. Based on the final vote count, the Election Commission will determine whether (a) there are any tied votes; or (b) a candidate for Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson received a majority of the votes as required by Article IX, Section 2 of the Constitution.
2. If there is a tied vote, or if no Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson candidate received a majority of the votes, then a runoff election must occur.
F. Amendment Election.
1. Based on the final vote count, the Election Commission will determine whether (a) quorum is present; (b) there are any tied votes; or (c) the proposed amendment received two-thirds (⅔) of the votes as required by Article XIV, Section 1 of the Constitution.
2. If there is a tied vote, or if the proposed amendment did not receive at least two-thirds (⅔) of the votes, then the proposed amendment fails.
G. Announcing Election Results. After the final vote count, the Election Commission will immediately announce the election results on the live-stream video communication, and facilitate posting the results on the tribal members-only website. (Res. 2021-54; Res. 2020-14; Res. 2015-24; Res. 2014-41; Res. 2013-60; Res. 2013-57)