§ 15-120. Absentee voting at village elections. 1. A qualified voter
of a village may vote as an absentee voter under this section if during
all the hours of voting on the day of a general or special village
election he or she will be:

(a) absent from the county of his or her residence; or

(b) unable to appear at the polling place because of illness or
physical disability, or duties related to the primary care of one or
more individuals who are ill or physically disabled, or because he or
she will be or is a patient in a hospital; or

(c) an incarcerated individual or patient of a veteran's
administration hospital; or

(d) absent from his or her voting residence because he or she is
detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting trial, or
confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense other than
a felony, provided that he or she is qualified to vote in the election
district of his or her residence.

2. Each person entitled to vote as an absentee voter pursuant to this
section and desirous of obtaining an absentee ballot shall make written
application therefor to the village clerk. Application forms for use
pursuant to this section shall be in a form prescribed by the state
board of elections. The use of any application which is on a form
prescribed by the state board of elections shall be acceptable.

3. An application for an absentee ballot must be signed by the
applicant. Such application may require that the applicant submit a
certificate in lieu of any affidavit which shall state that the
information contained in the application is true. Such certificate shall
be accepted for all purposes as the equivalent of an affidavit and shall
have the following language printed in bold face type above the
signature line:

"I UNDERSTAND THAT THIS CERTIFICATE WILL BE ACCEPTED FOR

ALL PURPOSES AS THE EQUIVALENT OF AN AFFIDAVIT AND, IF

IT CONTAINS A MATERIAL FALSE STATEMENT, SHALL SUBJECT ME

TO THE SAME PENALTIES AS IF I HAD BEEN DULY SWORN."

4. The application for an absentee ballot when filed must contain in
each instance the following information:

(a) Applicant's full name, date of birth, and residence address,
including the street and number, if any, rural delivery route, if any,
mailing address if different from the residence address and his or her
village and an address to which the ballot shall be mailed.

(b) A statement that the applicant is a qualified and registered
voter.

(c) A statement, as appropriate, that on the day of such election the
applicant expects in good faith to be in one of the following
categories:

(i) absent from the county of his or her residence; provided, however,
if the applicant expects to be absent from such county for a duration
covering more than one election and seeks an absentee ballot for each
election, he or she shall state the dates when he or she expects to
begin and end such absence; or

(ii) unable to appear at a polling place because of illness or
physical disability or duties related to the primary care of one or more
individuals who are ill or physically disabled; or

(iii) an incarcerated individual or patient of a veteran's
administration hospital; or

(iv) detained in jail awaiting action by a grand jury or awaiting
trial or confined in jail or prison after a conviction for an offense
other than a felony and stating the place where he or she is so detained
or confined.

(d) Such application shall permit the applicant to apply for an
absentee ballot for either a primary election or the general election in
any year and for those persons who will be continuously absent from
their county of residence during the period between the fall primary
election and the general election in any year to apply for ballots for
both such elections in such year. A voter who applies for an absentee
ballot shall be sent an absentee ballot for any special election or
winter primary that occurs during the period of absence specified in the
application.

5. An application must be received by the village clerk no earlier
than four months before the election for which an absentee ballot is
sought. If the application requests that the absentee ballot be mailed,
such application must be received not later than seven days before the
election. If the applicant or his or her agent delivers the application
to the village clerk in person, such application must be received not
later than the day before the election. The village clerk shall examine
each application and shall determine from the information contained
therein whether the applicant is qualified under this section to receive
an absentee ballot. The clerk in making such decision shall not
determine whether the applicant is a qualified elector, said
determination being reserved to the inspectors of election as is
hereinafter provided in subdivision nine of this section.

6. No later than six days before the election for which an application
has been received and for which the village clerk has determined the
applicant to be qualified to vote by absentee ballot the village clerk
shall mail, by regular mail, an absentee ballot to each qualified
applicant who has applied before such day and who has requested that
such absentee ballot be mailed to him or her at the address set forth in
his or her application. If the applicant or his or her agent delivers
the application to the village clerk in person after the seventh day
before the village election and not later than the day before the
election, the village clerk shall forthwith deliver such absentee
ballots for those applicants whom he or she determines are qualified to
make such applications and to receive such ballots to such applicants or
the agents named in the applications when such applicants or agents
appear in the village clerk's office.

7. The absentee ballot shall be caused to be prepared and printed by
the village clerk as provided by law for paper ballots or machine
ballots, whichever are to be used in said election and appropriate
modifications for the purposes of this section. He or she shall also
cause to be prepared and printed return envelopes addressed to him or
her, conforming so far as may be practicable to the provisions of this
chapter stating thereon that in order for the ballot contained therein
to be counted it must be received by the village clerk not later than
the close of the polls on election day. On the reverse side of each
return envelope there shall be written instructions for the voter to
insert at designated places his or her signature, his or her name
printed, his or her residence address within the village and his or her
village election district if there be more than one district within the
village.

8. The method of marking, preparing and mailing such ballot for voting
shall conform, wherever practicable, to the methods used for absentee
ballots for a general election, except that the envelope in which it is
contained shall be returned to the village clerk. On the day of the
election, the village clerk shall deliver all such ballots, which have
been returned to him or her, in the sealed envelopes to the board of
inspectors of election of the proper election district. No such ballot
shall be deemed to have been voted unless or until it shall have been
delivered to the board of inspectors of election of the election
district in which the elector casting the ballot resides and shall have
been deposited by the chairman of such board in the box provided for
receiving such ballot.

9. When such ballots shall have been delivered to the board of
inspectors of election of the proper election district and shall have
been duly determined by such board to have been lawfully cast by a
qualified elector of such district, the chairman of such board shall,
after the close of the polls, open the envelopes containing such ballots
and, without unfolding such ballots or permitting the face thereof to be
exposed to the view of anyone, shall deposit each such ballot in a box
specifically furnished for such purpose by the village clerk. If the
board of inspectors shall determine that any such ballot has been cast
by an elector who would not be qualified under the provisions of this
section, then such ballot shall not be counted.

10. After all the ballots shall have been deposited, the box shall be
opened and such ballots canvassed in the same manner as other ballots
cast at such election and shall be counted and included in the total of
all ballots cast at such election.