{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-120.205","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 120.205","heading":"Board for determining contest of election of Governor and Lieutenant","body":"Governor.\nWhen the election of a Governor and Lieutenant Governor is contested, a board for\ndetermining the contest shall be formed and shall proceed in the following manner:\n(1) On the third day after the organization of the General Assembly that meets next\nafter the election, the Senate shall select three (3) of its members as provided in\nsubsection (2) of this section, and the House of Representatives shall select eight (8)\nof its members as provided in subsection (2) of this section, and the eleven (11) so\nselected shall constitute a board to try the contest, seven (7) of whom shall\nconstitute a quorum;\n(2) In making the selection, the name of each member present shall be written on a\nseparate piece of paper, every piece being as nearly similar to the other as possible.\nEach piece shall be rolled up so that the names thereon cannot be seen, nor any\nparticular piece ascertained or selected by feeling. The whole, so prepared,  shall be\nplaced by the clerk in a box on the clerk's table, and after it has been well shaken,\nand the papers therein well intermixed, the clerk shall draw out one (1) paper, which\nshall be opened and read aloud by the presiding officer, and so on until t he required\nnumber is obtained;\n(3) If any member selected swears that he or she cannot, without great personal\ninconvenience, serve on the board, or that he or she feels an undue bias for or\nagainst either of the parties, that member may be excused by the  house from which\nthat member was chosen from serving on the board. If it appears that a selected\nmember is related to either party, or is liable to any other proper objection on the\nscore of his or her partiality, that member shall be excused. Any deficie ncy in the\nproper number created by excuse shall be supplied by another draw from the box;\n(4) The selected members of the board shall be sworn by the Speaker of the House of\nRepresentatives to try the contested election, and shall give true judgment according\nto the evidence, unless dissolved before rendering judgment;\n(5) The board shall, within twenty -four (24) hours after its selection, meet, appoint its\nchair, and assign a day for hearing the contest. It may adjourn from day to day as its\nbusiness requires. If any member of the board willfully fails to attend its sessions,\nthat member shall be reported to the house to which he or she belongs, and that\nhouse shall then, in its discretion, punish that member by fine or imprisonment, or\nboth;\n(6) The board  may, upon a majority of vote, send for persons, papers, and records,\nincluding all voting equipment, ballots, boxes, and precinct rosters. The board may\nissue subpoenas signed by its chair or the Speaker of the House of Representatives;\n(7) The board may use the services of any law enforcement agency to transport all\nrecords relating to the election contest, including voting equipment, ballots, boxes,\nand precinct rosters. All voting equipment, ballots, boxes, precinct rosters, and\nother voting records sent for by the board shall be sealed, to the extent possible, and\ntransmitted in a tamper -resistant manner. The chain of custody for the records shall\nbe recorded, in writing, on a form prescribed by the State Board of Elections in\nadministrative regulations  promulgated under KRS Chapter 13A to include the\nidentity of the person or persons transferring and receiving the records, and the date,\ntime, and location of the transfer. The clerk of the House of Representatives shall be\ndesignated by the board as the custodian of the records while the records are in the\npossession of the board;\n(8) If it appears that the slates of candidates receiving the highest number of votes cast\nhave received an equal number, the right to the offices shall be determined by lot, in\nthe manner prescribed by the board, and under the direction of the board;\n(9) If the person returned for the Office of Governor is found not legally qualified to\nreceive the office at the time of his or her election, a new election shall be ordered\nto fill the vacancy under subsection (13) of this section;\n(10) If a slate of candidates other than the one returned is found to have received the\nhighest number of legal votes cast, that slate shall be adjudged by the General\nAssembly to be the persons elected and entitled to the offices;\n(11) No decision shall be made but by the vote of at least six (6) members of the board.\nThe decision of the board shall not be final or conclusive, but shall be reported to\nthe two (2) houses of the General Assembly, in joint session, for the further action\nof the General Assembly. The Speaker of the House shall preside at the joint\nsession, and the General Assembly shall then determine the contest;\n(12) If no decision of the board is given during the then session of the Genera l\nAssembly, the board shall be dissolved, unless by joint resolution of the two (2)\nhouses it is empowered to continue longer;\n(13) If a new election is required, it shall be immediately ordered by proclamation of the\nSpeaker of the House, who shall issue a writ of election. The writ shall be signed by\nthe Speaker, shall designate the day for holding the election, and shall be directed to\nthe proper sheriff or sheriffs as provided in KRS 118.740; and\n(14) When a new election is ordered, or the incumbent is adjudged not to be entitled to\nthe office, his or her power shall immediately cease, and if the office is not\nadjudged to another, it shall be deemed vacant.","path":["KRS Chapter 120"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=51721","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:50:18Z","sha256":"5ade88a2f27ef710a5327e79024736faa75fcb1a6be9c664d2d4429952109bc3","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-120.200","next":"us-ky/krs-120.210"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}