For instructing the voters on any election day there shall, so far as practicable, be provided by the county board of elections or the superintendent of elections or the municipal clerk, as the case may be, having custody of voting machines, for each polling place a mechanically operated model of a portion of the face of the machine. Such model, if furnished, shall, during the election, be located on the district election officers’ table or in some other place which the voters must pass to reach the machine, and each voter shall, before entering the voting machine booth, be instructed regarding the operation of the machine and such instruction illustrated on the model, and the voter given opportunity to personally operate the modeL. The voter’s attention shall also be called to the diagram of the face of the machine so that the voter can become familiar with the location of the questions and the names of the officers and candidates. If any voter, before entering the voting machine booth, declares under oath, and establishes to the satisfaction of a majority of all the members of the district board that by reason of an inability to read or write, blindness or other physical disability he is unable to cast his vote without assistance, he shall have the assistance of two members of the board of opposite political faith, to be assigned by the board. Such members shall retire with such voter to the booth and assist him. The member acting as clerk of the district board shall make an entry on a disability certificate for assistance, which entry shall be on the form of an oath inserted in the front of the duplicate registry binders at each election.

In every instance when such oath is administered to a voter as herein provided, it shall state briefly what facts were sworn to and the names of the members of the board who aided such voter shall be signed on the form. Any members of the district board shall be eligible to assist any such voter, but no other person except as hereinafter provided shall be allowed to assist him. No member of the board shall reveal the name of any person for whom such voter has voted or anything that took place while he was being assisted.

Such voter, if blind, disabled or unable to read or write, may, in lieu of the assistance of the board as above provided, have assistance of some person of his own selection. Such person shall retire with such voter to the booth and assist him in voting. The name and address of such person shall be recorded as above. In such case, no other person than the one so selected by the voter shall be allowed to assist such voter. No person so selected shall reveal the name of any person for whom such voter has voted or anything that took place while he was being assisted.

The disability certificates shall be numbered serially 1 to 20. The commissioner of registration shall furnish sufficient disability certificates for assistance for each election district in his county which shall be inserted in the front of the duplicate registry binders.

Amended by L. 1944, c. 128, p. 353, s. 1; L. 1945, c. 56, p. 327, s. 7; L. 1957, c. 15, p. 33, s. 1; L. 1977, c. 304, s. 1, eff. Dec. 27, 1977; L. 1985, c. 20, s. 2, eff. Jan. 25, 1985.