Request By:
Mr. L. Michael Chaney
P.O. Box 101
Pine Knot, Kentucky 42635
Opinion
Opinion By: David L. Armstrong, Attorney General; Walter C. Herdman, Asst. Deputy Attorney General
This is in response to your letter of September 26 in which you raise the following questions:
"When a voter requires or requests assistance in voting, is he/she allowed to specify anyone other than one of the election officers for this assistance? In other words, is it legal for a relative or friend to assist a person to vote, at the voter's request?
Our response to both questions would be in the affirmative provided certain circumstances and conditions exist as detailed in KRS 117.255. Referring to subsection (2) of this statute, we quote the following excerpt:
"(2) No voter shall be permitted to receive any assistance in voting at the polls unless he makes and signs an oath that, by reason of inability to read English, or by reason of blindness or other physical disability he is unable to vote without assistance. . . . The disabled person applying to vote may, if he prefers, be assisted by a person of his own choice who is not an election officer. The clerk shall swear the person accompanying the disabled or blind voter to operate the voting machine in accordance with the directions of the disabled or blind voter, and the disabled or blind voter and the person sworn shall then enter the voting booth and the one so sworn shall operate the machine for the disabled or blind voter as he directs." (Emphasis added.)
Under the above statute any voter who executes an oath to the effect that he is physically disabled which includes the inability to read English, may at his option be assisted by a person of his own choice which would include a relative or a friend to assist him in casting his vote. Such individual must, however, execute an oath to the effect that he will operate the voting machine in accordance with the directions of the disabled voter.