Right of soldiers and sailors to

vote.

Absent elector to designate

certain voter to act for

him.

Form of affidavit.

Of Elections by Soldiers and Sailors Absent from the
State in Time of War.

220. Whenever in time of war any of the qualified electors of this state shall be in the actual military service of this state, or of the United States, in the army or navy thereof, by the authority of this state, or under a requisition from the president of the United States, and as such shall be absent from the election districts in which they reside, on the days appointed by law for holding any general, special or local election within this state, or within any congressional district, county, city, borough, town, township or municipality therein, such electors shall be entitled, at such times, to exercise the right of suffrage in their several districts in the manner and form hereinafter prescribed.

221. Such absent elector shall by an instrument in writing, executed by him not more than sixty days previous to any general or special election to be held in this state, authorize and empower any elector of the election district in which the said absent elector shall reside, on the day of said election, to cast for him his vote or ballot, in the manner prescribed in this act, for all officers for whom he would have a right to vote if he were present at such election; said instrument shall be signed by such absent elector, attested by two subscribing witnesses, and sworn (or affirmed) to before any field officer, captain, adjutant or commander of any regiment, company, battalion or detachment, or of any vessel or naval station to which the said absent elector may belong or be attached, and such officers are hereby duly authorized to administer oaths and affirmations for the purposes specified in this act, and they shall attach to their signatures their official designations.

222. The said absent elector shall make and subscribe an affidavit in the form or of the effect following:

"I, A. B., do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I am a citizen of the United States, that I am now of the age of twenty-one years, that I have been (or will have been) a resident of the state of New Jersey for one year, and of the county of for five months next preceding the election to be held on the

eighteen hundred and resident of the

day of

and that I am now a ward of the city (or town) of and that I am (or will be) in all respects qualified to vote in said city (or town) at said election, and until said election intend to be a resident thereof; and I do further swear that I am in the actual military service of the state of New Jersey (or of the United States), in the army (or navy) thereof, and that I am a member of company regiment (describing the organization or vessel to which he belongs), now at or in the state (or territory or country) of Sworn to and subscribed before me this

near

of the

anno domini eighteen hundred and

223. The said absent elector in the service as aforesaid shall prepare and fold the ballot he designs to cast at such election, and inclose the same, together with the instrument hereinbefore described, in an envelope, duly sealed, having on the outside thereof, either written or printed, the affidavit prescribed in the last preceding section of this act, sworn to and subscribed as therein required; the said envelope, prepared as aforesaid, shall be inclosed by him in another envelope, marked "soldier's (or sailor's) vote," sealed and directed to the elector empowered by the aforesaid instrument to cast the ballot of said absent elector, and the said absent elector may then transmit the same to the person to whom it is directed by mail or otherwise.

Ballot prepared and sent to designated voter.

instrument.

224. The aforesaid instrument shall be in the words Contents of or of the effect following, namely:

Opening of envelope and casting of ballot.

"I, A. B., a resident and elector of the (————————— ward of the city (or township), or as the case may be) of in the county of in the state of New

Jersey, but absent from my election district in the military service of the state of New Jersey (or of the United States) and now at

in the state of

regiment of

do hereby au

thorize, empower and direct C. D., of the election district
above mentioned, to cast for me the ballot herewith in-
closed at the election, to be held in said election district,
on the
dred

day of

anno domini eighteen hun

in the manner provided by the laws of the

state of New Jersey,"

225. The elector to whom such letter shall be directed may open the outer envelope thereof, but he shall not open the inner envelope; on the day of such election, and between the opening and the closing of the polls thereof he shall deliver such inner envelope to the board of election of the proper election district, and at the polls thereof, and if the person whose name shall be signed to the affidavit on the outside of said envelope shall be determined by the said board of election to be a dulyqualified voter in such election district, said envelope shall be by the said board publicly opened, and the vote or ballot therein contained shall be duly deposited in the ballot-box prepared to receive the ballots of voters, and the name of such absent elector shall be entered upon the poll-list, together, with the name of the person delivering the ballot at the polls; no envelope containing a soldier's or sailor's ballot shall be opened by the board of election unless the name of the person signing the affidavit on the outside of said envelope shall be found upon the registry list of the district where such person claims to reside, or unless an affidavit be made and subscribed by a voter of the district, to the effect that he knows that said person whose vote is so offered is a resi

dent of said district; the ballots contained in any such envelope which shall have been opened or unsealed before the same shall have been delivered to the board of election, shall not be deposited in the ballot-box, but shall be rejected.

226. The affidavits and instruments hereinbefore described, and all envelopes marked, "soldier's or sailor's" votes, not opened at such elections, shall be kept and filed by the clerk of the election in the same manner and place as poll-lists of such elections are required by law to be filed and kept.

All affidavits, etc.,

preserved.

to take

receipt.

227. Any person who shall be entitled to receive any Postmas letter or envelope marked as herein provided, before he shall take away the same, shall sign and deliver to the postmaster or his deputy or clerk, a receipt therefor, which receipt shall specify how many such letters or envelopes he has received, and otherwise, as far as may be specify the particulars of the description thereof; and any willful omission to comply with the provisions of this section shall be adjudged a misdemeanor, and any person convicted thereof shall be punished accordingly.

228. The person to whom any soldier's or sailor's ballot shall be sent as herein provided, shall at the time of delivering the same to the board of election to be deposited in the ballot-box, also present his oath or affirmation, in writing, setting forth that the ballot or ballots therewith presented have been received by him to deliver to said board of election, and that he has not in any manner changed, altered or opened the said ballot or ballots, or the inner envelopes thereof, and that he believes the same have not been changed, altered or opened by any other person.

229. Any member of any board of election, and any elector to whom said ballot shall be sent, who shall willfully neglect or refuse to perform any of the duties required of him as aforesaid, or who shall in any manner willfully violate or abuse any trust or duty hereby im

when

Oath made presenting

ballot.

Penalty for comply with required.

failure to

duties

Penalty for presentation of false ballot.

Penalty for influencing enlisted voter by threat, etc.

Secretary of state to prepare necessary blanks, etc.

posed, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail for a period not exceeding six months, or both.

230. Every person who shall deliver or present to the board of election under this act, any false, forged, altered or changed ballot, envelope or instrument of any such enlisted elector, provided for by this act, knowing the same to be so altered, forged or changed, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment at hard labor for any period not exceeding two years, or both.

231. Any officer of this state, or of the United States, or any other person, who shall directly or indirectly control, or attempt to control, any such enlisted elector as aforesaid in the exercise of any of his rights under this act, by menace, bribery, fear of punishment, hope of reward, or any other corrupt or arbitrary measure or resort whatever, or to annoy, injure or otherwise. punish any such absent elector for the manner in which he may have exercised any such right, shall be deemed guilty of an offense against the government and dignity of this state, which shall be punished as a misdemeanor, and for which he may be indicted and tried at any future time when he may be found within the limits of this state, and upon conviction he shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment at hard labor not exceeding two years, or both.

232. The secretary of state is hereby authorized and required to prepare and have printed, at the cost of this state, the necessary blank forms and envelopes required to carry out the provisions of this act relative to the voting of enlisted electors; and shall cause the affidavits required by this act to be printed in blank upon the proper envelopes to contain the instrument required by