Chapter 2 decided that the trial judge acted correctly, saying, “the trial court properly advised the voters that this protection does not extend to voters who have cast illegal ballots.” At 205. In other words, the principle of secrecy of the ballot applies to legally cast ballots, but not to illegally cast ballots; if a ballot is not legally cast it is just a piece of paper that does not have the status of a ballot and deserves no protection from the law when a court is attempting to determine the legal results of an election. The appeals court affirmed the trial court’s decision voiding the election and ordering a new election. F. Summary: The election results stand unless materially affected by violations. • In election challenges, the plaintiff has the burden of proof and must prove his or her case by a preponderance of the evidence. • The plaintiff must prove that the actions complained of constituted irregularities under the applicable election laws. • A successful election challenge must offer direct proof of the irregularities alleged and can not substantiate its claims by building inference upon inference. • To win an election challenge, the plaintiff usually must prove that the number of votes affected by irregularities was sufficient to change the result of the election. • • Threats, violence or disturbances that do not materially affect the election results do not invali- date an election. The law’s strong presumption of regularity on the part of officials and official actions must be overcome if the contestant is to get a court to adopt his or her position about the facts. o o The contestant can overcome the presumption most readily by proving that the irregularities that occurred changed the result of the election. An election challenge also can succeed if the contestant presents facts showing that serious fraud and irregularities deprived the voters of the free expression of their will. • The principle of secrecy of the ballot applies to legally cast ballots but not to illegally cast bal- lots. An illegally cast ballot is just a piece of paper that deserves no protection from the law. 47