Section 3-222. Preservation of ballots and records of voting machines

1.
  Except as hereinafter provided,  voting  machines  shall  remain  locked
  against  voting for a period of thirty days or until fifteen days before
  the next election, if such machines are needed  for  use  at  such  next
  election.  Provided  however  that  a  machine  may  be  unlocked  if  a
  discrepancy discovered in the recanvass of voting machines  required  by
  this  chapter  makes it necessary to examine the machine to determine if
  it has malfunctioned and provided further that a machine may  be  opened
  and  all  the  data  and  figures therein examined upon the order of any
  court or judge of competent jurisdiction or may be opened  by  direction
  of  a committee of the senate or assembly to investigate and report upon
  contested elections of members of the legislature voted for by  the  use
  of  such  machine  and  such  data  and  such  figures  examined by such
  committee in the presence of the officer  having  the  custody  of  such
  machine.
    2.  Write-in  ballots  shall  be  preserved  for  two years after such
  election and the  packages  thereof  may  be  opened  and  the  contents
  examined  only upon order of a court or judge of competent jurisdiction,
  or by direction of such committee of the  senate  and  assembly  if  the
  ballots  relate  to  the election under investigation by such committee,
  and at the expiration of such time, such ballots may be disposed  of  at
  the discretion of the officer or board having charge of them.
    3.  Except  as  hereinafter  provided, packages of protested, void and
  wholly blank ballots, packages of unused ballots and  all  absentee  and
  military,  special  federal,  special presidential and emergency ballots
  and ballot envelopes, if any, opened or unopened, shall be preserved for
  two years after the election.  Except  as  hereinafter  provided,  boxes
  containing  voted  paper  ballots  shall be preserved inviolate for four
  months after the election, or until one month before the  next  election
  occurring  within  five  months after a preceding election if such boxes
  are needed for use at such next election and if the officer or board  in
  charge  of such voted paper ballots is required by law to furnish ballot
  boxes therefor. Provided, however,  that  such  ballot  boxes  and  such
  packages  may  be  opened,  and  their  contents  and  the  absentee and
  military, special federal, special presidential  and  emergency  ballots
  and  ballot  envelopes  may  be examined, upon the order of any court or
  justice  of  competent  jurisdiction.  Boxes  and  envelopes  containing
  absentee,  military  and emergency ballots voted at a general or special
  election, for the office of member of the senate or  assembly,  packages
  of  void,  protested  and  wholly  blank  ballots, unopened absentee and
  military ballot  envelopes  and  the  packages  of  unused  ballots,  in
  connection  with  such  election, also may be opened, and their contents
  and such envelopes also may be examined, by direction of a committee  of
  the  senate or assembly to investigate and report on contested elections
  of members of the legislature. Unless otherwise ordered or  directed  by
  such a court, justice or committee, such boxes shall be opened and their
  contents  and  such  packages and the envelopes containing voted ballots
  and ballot envelopes shall be destroyed, at the expiration of the period
  during which they are required by the provisions of this section  to  be
  preserved,  except that instead of being destroyed, they may be sold and
  the proceeds paid over in the manner provided with respect to  the  sale
  of books, records and papers pertaining to an election.
    4.  The  results  of  the annual test of each voting machine of a type
  approved after September first, nineteen hundred  eighty-six,  which  is
  required by this chapter, shall be preserved for two years.
    5.  All  records  and documents pertaining to ballot label programming
  and ballot label programming  data  for  any  election  for  any  voting
  machine  of  a  type  approved  after  September first, nineteen hundred

  eighty-six and all  records  pertaining  to  the  testing  of  any  such
  programming  and  programming data or the testing of any such machine in
  connection with any such election shall be preserved for two years after
  such election.