Election type

Palau, Voting Rights Act (1981), accessed 19 November 2020

§ 1001. When general elections held.

General elections for the President and Vice President of the Republic of Palau and the members of the Olbiil Era Kelulau shall be held quadrennially in every other even-numbered year on the first Tuesday in November in Palau and on the Saturday prior to the first Tuesday in November for all polling places outside Palau; provided, that if a natural disaster or other Act of God precludes holding the election on either of the foregoing dates, the President may proclaim a later election date.

§ 1521. "Voter" and "ballot" defined.

(a) Any registered voter qualified to vote at any election shall be entitled and enabled to vote by absentee ballot if:

(1) he is confined to his home or hospital by reason of such illness or physical disability as will prevent him from attending the polls; or

(2) he is prevented from voting by reason of being at sea or absent from the administrative district in which he is registered; or

(3) he is physically present in the states of Sonsorol or Tobi 20 days before, or on the day of, the election.

(b) An absentee ballot is an official ballot which is authorized by this title to be voted outside of any designated polling place or prior to the date of the election.

§ 1524. Marking and return of ballot; voting at polls.

(a) The Election Commission shall, prior to an election, provide to any person who may be entitled to vote by absentee ballot, and who requests the same, an official ballot, a ballot envelope, an affidavit, and a covering reply envelope. The absentee voter shall mark the ballot in the usual manner provided by law and in such manner that no person can see or know how the ballot is marked except as provided in section 1522 of this chapter. The absentee voter shall then deposit the ballot in the ballot envelope and securely seal the same. The absentee voter shall then complete and execute the affidavit. The ballot envelope and the affidavit shall then be enclosed and sealed in the covering reply envelope and in order to be valid must be postmarked no later than the day of the election and reach the Election Commission not later than the established closing hour of business on the seventh day after the election, except as provided in section 1522 of this chapter.

(b) It shall be unlawful for any person having voted an absentee ballot to cast a ballot at the polls on election day.

§ 1526. Voting at another polling place within the Republic; polling places outside the Republic.

In accordance with the rules and regulations promulgated by the Election Commission, a voter shall have the right to vote on election day at a polling place other than the polling place in the political jurisdiction of which he is a resident; provided, that the rules and regulations shall require no more than three calendar days' notice immediately preceding the day of the election. The Election Commission shall specifically provide for voting at polling places elsewhere in the Republic. The Election Commission may not establish polling places outside of the Republic except in Guam, Saipan, and Honolulu on the date of the general election pursuant to 23 PNC § 1001 for the general election to be held on the first Tuesday in November.