BALLOON-PAYMENT MORTGAGE
balloon-payment mortgage.See MORTGAGE. BALLOT
ballot,n.1. An instrument, usu. a paper or ball, used for casting a vote. [Cases: Elections 126(5), 215. C.J.S. Elections § 118(1).] 2. The system of choosing officers by a recorded vote, usu. by marking a paper.
absentee ballot.A ballot that a voter submits, sometimes by mail, before an election. — Also termed absentee vote. See absentee voting under VOTING. [Cases: Elections 126(6), 216.1.
C.J.S. Elections §§ 114, 118(1).] bullet ballot.See bullet vote under VOTE(1). exhausted ballot.See exhausted vote under VOTE(1).
joint ballot.A vote by legislators of both houses sitting together as one body. preferential ballot.See preferential vote under VOTE(1).
secret ballot.A vote cast in such a way that the person voting cannot be identified. Cf Australian ballot. [Cases: Elections 126(6), 215. C.J.S. Elections §§ 114, 118(1).]
“The secret ballot, when used to protect citizens when choosing their representatives, is a hallmark of a democratic system of government; but, when it is used to conceal a public official’s vote, it violates the fundamental tenet of an elected or appointed official’s ultimate accountability to the electorate.” Op. Tex. Att’y Gen. H–1163 (1978).
spoiled ballot.A ballot reflecting a vote that cannot be counted because it was cast in a form
or manner that does not comply with the applicable rules. See illegal vote under VOTE(1).
- A vote in a series of one or more votes that is not conclusive until one candidate attains the necessary majority or supermajority <the candidate was nominated on the 21st ballot>.4. A list of candidates running for office <four candidates are on the ballot>. — ballot,vb.
Australian ballot.A uniform ballot printed by the government, listing all eligible candidates, and marked in secret. • Before Australian ballots became standard, candidates often printed their own ballots with only their names, and watchers at polling places could see whose ballot a voter was casting. — Loosely termed secret ballot. [Cases: Elections 126(5), 164. C.J.S. Elections §
118(1).]
Massachusetts ballot.A ballot in which, under each office, the names of candidates and party designations are printed in alphabetical order. • This is a type of Australian ballot.
office-block ballot.A ballot that lists the candidates’ names under the title of the office sought without mentioning the candidates’ party affiliations. [Cases: Elections 126(5), 168(1), 173.
C.J.S. Elections §§ 118(1), 158.]
party-column ballot.A ballot that lists the candidates’ names in separate columns by political party regardless of the offices sought by the candidates. [Cases: Elections 126(5), 168(1), 173. C.J.S. Elections §§ 118(1), 158.]
Texas ballot.A ballot that the voter marks for the candidates that he or she does not want elected. • The Texas ballot is particularly useful when the number of candidates only slightly exceeds a large number of representatives being elected.[Blacks Law 8th]