812

LAWS OF MARYLAND.

Challengers.

political party whoso candidate are voted for at each election,
to be designated, in writing, by such candidates, and in case of
his necessary absence, a substitute similarly selected shall be
entitled to be admitted into and remain in the polling room
from the opening until the close of the election, and until the
vote has been counted and the result ascertained; and a refusal
to permit any such representative shall be a misdemeanor,
punishable by a tine not exceeding five hundred dollars, or by
imprisonment not exceeding six months, or by both fine and
imprisonment, in the discretion of the courts; but no such
accredited representative or challenger can demand admittance
for any political party which cast less than one-fifth of all the

Position of
challengers

votes in the State at the last preceding general election; the
position to be held by any challenger or representative shall
be outside of the guard rail; the ballot box shall not be more
than six feet from the rail, inside the same; it shall be unlaw-
ful for said representative to inquire or ascertain for what
candidate or candidates any voter may intend to vote or has
voted, or to confer in the polling room with any voter, or to
aid or assist him in the preparation of his ballot; other chal-
lengers may, at the instance of the candidates, be admitted, in
the discretion of the judges of election.

False
returns

270 J. Every judge or clerk of election who shall mak'e,
sign, publish or deliver any false tally or return of election, or
any false certificate or statement of the result of an election,
knowing the same to be false, and every judge or clerk of
election, or other officer or person who shall wilfully deface,
destroy or conceal any statement, tally or certificate intrusted

Penalty.

to his care and custody, shall, on conviction thereof, be ad-
judged guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by
imprisonment in jail for not less than one nor more than five
years, or by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, or by
both tine and imprisonment, in the discretion of the court.

Oath to
voters.

270 K. The judges of election may administer an oath in
. any inquiry they may deem necessary to be made touching the
right of any person offering to vote, and if any person shall
swear falsely in relation thereto, he shall, upon conviction
thereof, suffer the pains and penalties of perjury.

Ballot-boxes.

270 L. The board of supervisors of election shall, under a
penalty of five hundred dollars, provide, or cause to be pro-
vided and delivered to the judges of election in each alder-
manic district, previous to or at the commencement of each
election, a box for receiving the ballots, and two separate books