In general, the major process components of vote counting at a voting station are:

• opening the ballot box,

• sorting ballots,

• reconciling the ballots,

• counting the ballots,

• transmitting the results to the local office or the headquarters of the electoral management body.

Following the closing of voting, ballot boxes are kept at the voting station for vote counting. The following procedures are executed:

• recording the number of unused ballots and spoiled ballots. (Spoiled ballots are those that a voter has inadvertently spoiled by marking it incorrectly, and then exchanged for a new blank ballot, or ballots that are improperly printed, torn, soiled, or otherwise marked in a way that could be linked to an individual voter and does not guarantee vote secrecy.)

• determining the total of number of voters who voted according to the voter’s list;

• unsealing the ballot box and counting the number of ballots;

• reconciling the number of ballots in the box with the number of voters according to the voters' list or other record of the total number of persons who cast ballots;

• sorting the ballots by candidate or party;

• counting the ballots; and

• setting aside challenged ballots and determining acceptance or rejection of challenged ballots according to established rules.

The statement of the vote, or the results sheet, is compiled, signed, and transmitted to a local office before being transmitted to the regional or national level. Representatives of political parties and national and international electoral observers can copy the results.

There is no interruption in the process until the statement of the vote of the voting station is released and sent to the local office of the electoral management body. Once the counting process is completed, electoral materials are taken to a local office for secure storage.

Interim results are also sent to the national level and publicized. Special measures and procedures need to be followed during the entire counting process in case results are challenged. As with all other aspects of conducting an election, there are administrative considerations which are directly or indirectly related to vote counting at voting stations. Each of these procedural components has particularities and subtleties associated with its respective processes.

At the closing of the voting station, voting station officers and other authorized persons such as party and candidate representatives and observers remain in the voting station and start the counting process.

In some jurisdictions the voting station layout is changed to reflect a layout more conducive to the counting process.

A first reconciliation of ballots may be done before opening the ballot box. Spoiled ballots are counted and put aside. Once the ballot box is emptied of its contents, the validity of each ballot is verified and the ballots are sorted into different piles reflecting the choice of the voter.

The votes are then counted into valid ballots (by candidate/political party) and rejected ballots (a ballot found in the ballot box is rejected because it was improperly marked, or is not marked at all when a mark is required) (see Criteria to Determine when Votes should Count as Valid). Clear rules of interpretation or guidelines regarding the basis for rejecting a ballot should be provided to the counting staff in advance, to facilitate the decision-making process regarding rejections.

Representatives of political parties and candidates should be able to examine the ballots, and if they do not agree with the decision of the counting officer, be allowed to make formal objections that can form the basis for contesting the results of the count.

Using a count sheet, all valid ballots are recorded, as well as spoiled and rejected ballots. All ballots are counted and none are destroyed. A verification of the count and a last reconciliation should be done before completing the statement of the vote. The ballot box can then be re-sealed (with the new seal number duly noted by party and candidate representatives and observers), and appropriate counting documentation can either be enclosed or attached to the ballot box in a separate sealed envelope. Party and candidate representatives should have the opportunity affix their seals or signatures to the resealed ballot boxes.

The results recorded on the statement of the vote will be communicated by the counting official to the local/national office of the electoral management body by telephone or other means. Representatives of political parties and candidates, and observers, if present, can make a copy of the statement, where the law provides for such.

The count at the voting station itself is now over, and all the electoral materials may be transported to a secure local storage room. In the event of a recount, all the prepared documents are needed, so elaborate precautions, and sealing the ballot box contents, are important.

The local/national office of the electoral management body totals the results transmitted by all voting stations of the electoral district, as well as results of any special ballots, advance voting, mobile voting stations, etc. Interim results should include all types of ballots so as to avoid discrepancy between interim results and final results. In addition, these results should be for each political party and candidate and posted on a wall, board, or spreadsheet, as they become available.

Unofficial interim results should be publicized as soon as possible. This is often done by the media or political parties, leaving the announcement of final results to the electoral management body. In the following days, the local offices of the electoral management body may perform the final count and prepare the official results. If results are challenged, additional procedures may apply.

Training

Appropriate training is essential to be able to implement such vote counting procedures at voting stations. Training requirements, as well as all other administrative considerations, need to be included in the budget for the election or referendum.

Non-partisanship

An important aspect of free and fair elections is the requirement that voting station and counting officers are non-partisan. Once a person agrees to work as a voting station or counting officer on election day, he/she also agrees to be non-partisan throughout the entire process. Most jurisdictions require that all voting station and counting officers sign an oath to ensure that they conduct their responsibilities in a non-partisan and unbiased way.

The importance of non-partisanship remains critical during the counting process. Counting staff should not make any remarks or mention any personal political affiliation or affinity, nor wear or use any partisan materials, during the counting process. Since the counting officers will have to handle disputes over any rejected ballots, he/she will be the first person to deal will representatives of political parties and candidates. This person will also have to take the final decision in validating or rejecting any ballot. Neutrality and non-partisanship are imperative in this decision-making process. The legislation may provide that voting station and counting staff can be legally prosecuted if it can be proved that their work is partisan.

Political parties and candidates should be represented at voting stations during counting and the rules must be the same for all political parties and candidates. Usually, political parties' candidates designate a representative to be present in each voting station to witness the voting and counting processes.

However, it remains the choice of each party as to whether they send a representative. Many jurisdictions consider their presence to be essential to ensure integrity, guarantee consistency, and provide witnesses to the transparency of the process. When the time comes to make an important decision during the voting and counting process, such as modifications to previously completed forms, all party and candidate representatives should sign the forms to demonstrate that they are informed, and agree with the decision. Careful application of such procedures provides tangible evidence that the rules are consistent and the process transparent.

Finally, the electoral management body needs to record the history of each ballot box and seal numbers where applicable, from initial distribution to final collection and storage. The electoral management body should be able to retrace the history of each ballot box, from the moment it leaves the local office of the electoral management body until it returns with the counted ballots.

A proper audit trail will allow the electoral management body to maintain full control, and ensure that possibilities of fraud via ballot box tampering are extremely limited, and can be detected if attempted.

Numbering each voting station, and using the same number for the corresponding ballot box, is one simple method of implementing such a control system. Additionally, the same number should appear on each form used at the voting station. The importance of recording the history of each ballot box (recording ballots book number, serial number of the seals, ballot box number, etc.) becomes clear in cases of judicial recount.