Del. Code tit. 15, § 4501 Single ballot for all candidates.
There shall be a single ballot for Presidential, Vice-Presidential, state, county and district candidates.
Ballots, Election Supplies and Polling Places
Del. Code tit. 15, ch. 45
in effectDel. Code tit. 15, § 4502 Form and designation of ballots [For application of this section, see 83 Del. Laws, c. 353, § 6].
(a) (1) For each election, the party emblem adopted by each political party and its name shall appear on the ballot with the names of its candidates, arranged in line with the titles of the offices for which they are contesting, along with space for the voter to write in the name of any candidate of that voter’s choice, as prescribed under § 5005A [repealed] of this title.
(2) In those years in which a President and Vice President of the United States are to be elected, the ballot must be designated “Presidential, Vice Presidential, State, County, and District Ballot”; in other years, the ballot must be designated “State, County, and District Ballot”.
(3) The names of all candidates of any party must be placed under the title and device of such party as designated in the certificate filed with the Department by the party’s authorized agent or, if none is designated, under some suitable title or device to be selected by the Department.
(4) When a President and Vice President are to be elected, the names of the candidates for those offices must be placed at the top of the list of candidates for all offices to be voted upon.
(5) The device named and chosen and the lists of candidates of the Democratic Party must be placed in the first column on the left-hand side of the ballot, of the Republican Party in the second column, and of any other party, and the space for the voter to write in the name of any candidate of that voter’s choice for any office, in such order as the Department decides.
(6) The names of unaffiliated candidates must appear in alphabetical order, under the heading “Unaffiliated Candidates”, after the listing of various political parties.
(b) All ballots for the same election shall be of uniform size, of the same quality and color of paper and sufficiently thick that the printing cannot be distinguished from the back. The arrangement of the ballots shall in general conform, as nearly as possible, to the sample ballot set forth in this section.
(c) The ballots prepared in accordance with this chapter shall conform as far as possible to the following design except that the write-in column may be placed on either side of the ballot.
OFFICIAL BALLOT Presidential, Vice Presidential, State, County and District Ballot WRITE IN PARTY EMBLEM Name of Party PARTY EMBLEM Name of Party PARTY EMBLEM Name of Party For President JOHN DOE JOHN DOE JOHN DOE For Vice President JOHN DOE JOHN DOE JOHN DOE For United States Senator JOHN DOE JOHN DOE JOHN DOE For Representative in Congress JOHN DOE JOHN DOE JOHN DOE For Governor JOHN DOE JOHN DOE JOHN DOE For Lieutenant Governor JOHN DOE JOHN DOE JOHN DOE
(d) Absentee or mail ballots may be laid out with candidate names under an office title. If this form is used, party logos are not to be used and the political party of each candidate shall be listed beside or below the name of each candidate. The candidates shall be listed in the order specified in subsection (a) of this section. Except, that in a primary election the candidates shall be listed in alphabetic order and the political party shall be listed for each office.
(e) If the number of candidates, offices and/or parties to be listed on the ballot preclude the layout of a ballot as specified in this section, the Department of Elections shall obtain approval of the State Election Commissioner to lay out the ballot in a manner best suited to the number of candidates, offices and/or parties eligible to be placed on the ballot.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4503 Creating ballots [For application of this section, see 83 Del. Laws, c. 353, § 6].
The Department shall create the ballots to be used in the voting devices and print or cause to have printed sufficient mail and absentee ballots for any election conducted by the Department under the provisions of this title.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4504 Envelopes for ballots and other election supplies; obtaining and packaging.
Repealed by 77 Del. Laws, c. 227, § 50, effective Feb. 1, 2010.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4505 Substitution of candidate’s name after creation of ballots [For application of this section, see 83 Del. Laws, c. 353, § 6].
Whenever a supplemental certificate of nomination is filed naming a substitute candidate, as elsewhere provided in this title, the Department shall promptly notify electors using absentee or mail ballots of the substitution and do either of the following:
(1) Provide new ballots, if there is sufficient time before the election.
(2) Take other appropriate measures if there is insufficient time before the election to provide new ballots.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4506 Tally sheets [Repealed].
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4507 Sheet containing oaths of election officers, certificate of qualification, laws.
Repealed by 77 Del. Laws, c. 227, § 52, effective Feb. 1, 2010.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4508 Certificates of the vote cast in each election district [Transferred].
Transferred to § 5010 of this title by 85 Del. Laws, c. 313, § 6, effective June 24, 2026.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4509 Materials and supplies necessary to conduct the election.
(a) The county director or deputy county director of each county office shall furnish the necessary materials, voter information, and supplies expected to enable conduct of the election to each election district. This shall include all of the following:
(1) A map of the representative district in which the election district is located of sufficient size to clearly show the boundaries of the election districts.
(2) A sufficient number of ballots and other supplies expected to enable the efficient administration of the election.
(b) The Commissioner shall prepare a report within 30 days after the certification of each election detailing the number of ballots supplied to each election district, the number of ballots used, and the number of remaining blank ballots. The report shall be delivered to the Governor, the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives, the Secretary of the Senate, and the Attorney General and posted on the Department of Elections website.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4510 §§ 4510, 4511. Supplies for election officers; custody of records and supplies; maps and lists of election districts; reuse of election supplies.
Repealed by 77 Del. Laws, c. 227, § 55, effective Feb. 1, 2010.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4512 Polling places; designation and preparation.
(a) The Department shall designate and procure for each election district in its county a polling place.
(b) The Department shall designate only conveniently located and readily accessible polling places for each election district. Such polling places, whenever possible, shall be located in public buildings which shall include suitable government buildings, schools, firehouses, community buildings, churches, financial institutions, lobbies or other gathering places at least 350 square feet in size or apartment buildings or complexes consisting of 50 or more units or other such similar structures; however, in the event that no such public building is available in a conveniently located and readily accessible place, then and in that event, the State Board of Elections, by unanimous consent, may with the concurrence of the Election Commissioner, designate a suitable, conveniently located and readily accessible private business establishment, but in no event shall the Department designate a private residence as a polling place. If the Department is uncertain of the accessibility of a proposed or existing polling place, or receives written notice of a deficiency from the State Council for Persons with Disabilities or a registered voter, it shall request a site assessment from the Architectural Accessibility Board and defer to the findings of the Board. The Department shall not issue more than 5 such requests on an annual basis without the consent of the Board.
(c) The same public building may be designated as housing the polling place for 1, 2, or 3 election districts, in the discretion of the Department, if suitable precautions are taken to separate and identify the specific polling place within the building to be used for each election district.
(d) The election officers of each election district shall fit out the room in the polling place in which the election will be conducted for their election district with the necessary number of voting machines and shall do everything else required to be done in order to prepare and furnish such election room. The room shall have a door or entrance of easy access and, if practical, a separate means of exit. The table shall occupy such a position in the room as to enable the election officers and the challengers to easily communicate with each other.
(e) Whenever the Department has designated as polling places facilities owned or leased by:
(1) Agencies or subdivisions of this State; or
(2) Recipients of state funding in excess of $10,000 in the 2 years preceding such designation,
it shall be the duty of the officials of such agencies or subdivisions or said recipients of state funding to make these facilities available and to provide a suitable and acceptable location, heat, lighting and other services necessary for the conduct of the election, so long as such use is not incompatible with the primary function of the agency or subdivision or said recipient of state funding.
(f) The Department shall publish in a newspaper of general circulation, either as an advertisement or as a separate insert, a listing of all polling places by district, at least once during the week preceding the election.
(g) The Department may indemnify and hold harmless any U.S. Government entity for claims of damages arising from the State contracting with said entity for the purposes of using its facility as a polling place to conduct elections. Furthermore, the State shall purchase insurance against claims of damage to protect against such claims and indemnify the U.S. Government.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4513 Substitute polling places.
If at any time it becomes impracticable to hold an election in the public building designated by the Department for any election district or districts, the Department may designate another public building as near as can be conveniently obtained to the place previously selected. In such event, sufficient public notice thereof shall be given by suitable news media.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4514 Expenses of general election.
Except where otherwise provided by statute, all necessary costs and expenses incurred in carrying into effect Part IV of this title shall be paid by the State.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4515 Payment procedures.
The Department following an election conducted under this title shall ascertain the amount due to each election officer for that election officer’s service and promptly pay them. The Department may combine the pay for a primary and a general election. Election officers shall be paid no later than December 15 in the year of a general election.
Del. Code tit. 15, § 4516 Use of prerecorded or automated voice message.
[Transferred to 15 Del. C. § 8045A of this title by 82 Del. Laws, c. 170, § 18, effective July 30, 2019.]
Source: DE Code (Official Site)URL: https://delcode.delaware.gov/title15/c045/index.htmlFetched: 10/4/2026