For the election of delegates to an elective general chapter, brothers from houses under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order are to be grouped by the general council into two or three electoral colleges, depending on the number of delegates to be elected. Each college must have at least twenty-five voters. The general council will also lay down how this election is to be conducted.

The following assemble and have votes in a general elective chapter: 

1. In the election of a Master of the Order:
   1. ex-Masters of the Order;
   2. all priors provincial;
   3. from each province, the diffinitor of the general chap­ter; 
   4. vice-provincials;
   5. a socius of the diffinitor of a general chapter from each province which has at least one hundred professed religious, excluding, however, those who are assigned in vicariates and those directly assigned to houses under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order;
   6. a socius of the prior provincial attending a general chapter from each province which has at least four hundred professed religious, excluding, however, those who are assigned in vicariates, and those directly assigned to houses under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order;
      7. a delegate from each province which has between twenty-five and one hundred brothers assigned in vicariates or houses of the province outside the boundaries of the province, the del­egate shall be elected from among the brothers and by them according to the provincial statute; furthermore, from each province which has between 101 and 200 brothers assigned in vicariates, a second delegate shall be elected, and so on.
      8. from among brothers directly assigned to houses un­der the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order, two delegates if they total fewer than one hundred, three delegates if they total one hundred or more, chosen as laid down in n. 407-bis.
2. In matters to be dealt with after the election of the Master:
   1. the newly elected Master of the Order;
   2. ex-Masters of the Order;
   3. all those mentioned in § I, 2-68;

1. It is the task of the provincial council or the re­gional council to determine for each electoral college whether the voters must come together specially to hold the election or vote by post.
2. If the election is to be held in a special assembly:
   1.  the president and place of the election shall be deter­mined by the provincial or regional council;
   2.  in the actual election, nn. 452 and 494, § III shall be observed;
   3.  after the election of a delegate, provision shall be made in the same manner for electing a substitute in case of neces­sity.
3.   If, however, the voters cannot gather together con­veniently, it is held according to the following norms:
   1. each voter shall write his vote on a ballot-paper and send it in a double envelope to the prior provincial or regional prior in accordance with n. 480, § III;
   2. when the time fixed for receiving ballot-papers has elapsed, the prior provincial or the regional prior with his council shall carry out the count according to the norm n. 480 § IV, 1-4;
   3. if the majority required for election is obtained, all voters shall be informed by letter of the result of the election;
   4. if, however, an absolute majority is not obtained in the first ballot, the provincial or regional prior with his council shall proceed according to n. 480, § IV, 6, and 7. In the final ballot, whether it is the second (n. 6), third or fourth (n.7), only those two may be presented who achieved the greater number of votes in the preceding ballot, and n. 450, § III must be observed.
   5. in the event of a delegate being incapacitated, the substitute shall be the one who in the final ballot obtained the second highest number of votes, and n. 450, § III, must be observed.

When a vicar provincial is to be appointed by the prior provincial, the brothers, who, in accordance with n. 478, would have active voice in the election, shall first be consulted (see Appendix n. 25).

What has been set out in nn. 477-481 for the election of a regional prior applies also, mutatis mutandis, for the election of a vicar provincial (see n. 389).

1. For the confirmation or cassation of the election of a regional prior and its acceptance, nn. 465-473 shall be observed.
2. The right of appointing a regional prior devolves upon the prior provincial without prejudice to n. 373, 1:
   1. when at the time of the vacancy in the office of regional prior, the vicariate does not have the conditions described in n. 384; then, however, nn. 483 and 484 must be observed in the appointment of a vicar;
   2. when all the voters have renounced their voice and have not been reinstated by the prior provincial; 
   3. when for any reason whatsoever a regional prior has not been elected or postulated within six months of the vacancy becoming known;
   4. when in the course of the election there have been seven inconclusive ballots (see n. 480, § II, 2),
   5. when the brothers elect the same brother again after the first election has been cassated, unless the sole reason for the cassation of that election was defect of form and not the person elected;
   6. when there have been two or, at most, three elections confirmed by the prior provincial but not accepted by those elected, then after the second election the prior provincial may and after a third, must, appoint a regional prior.
       

The following is the procedure for the election of superiors:

1. the electors shall meet at the appointed time and place and invoke the Holy Spirit; the president, tellers and secretary shall take the oath to fulfil their duty faithfully and, even after the election is over, to observe secrecy about the transactions in the sessions;
2. the secretary shall call the names of the individuals who by law must be present as electors; if they are present, they shall answer;
3. objections, if there are any, against the admission or exclusion of any voter must then be raised;
4. the president shall remind the voters that no one may validly vote for himself;
5. the ballot papers are distributed by the secretary, and voters write their vote in this manner: I elect or I postulate N.N., indicating both the given name and surname. In every case the complete formula, I elect or I postulate, shall be used;
6. if any voter present in the convent is confined to his room by illness, the tellers shall then go to him together, and obtain his written vote. If the sick person is unable to write, he may authorize someone else to write his vote, or he may even by word of mouth declare his vote to the tellers: they should immediately write it down;
7. the tellers and then the voters, one by one, beginning with the seniors, place their folded ballot-papers in an open container;
8. the ballots are counted by the tellers. If their number does not exceed the number of voters, they are then opened; otherwise, they shall be destroyed immediately, and the electors shall fill in a new ballot-paper;
9. the tellers read the ballot-papers and tabulate the votes;
10. the tellers compare their tabulations and after they have found them in agreement, the ballot-papers are destroyed;
11. then the president reads out in a clear voice the names of each one who has received a vote;
12. objections, if there are any, against the process of the election itself must then be raised;
13. with the consent of the majority, the election process may be interrupted between ballots, but the last ballot must be held on that same day;
14. if the required majority is obtained, the president shall declare brother N.N., to have been canonically elected or postulated for such and such office. If the president himself has been elected, the declaration shall be made by the first teller;
15. objections, if there are any, against the character of the one elected must then be raised;
16. the document of election is drawn up and signed by the president, the tellers, and the secretary.

Every brother who has business with the Holy See, whether for himself or for his house or province, shall conduct it through the mediation of the procurator of the Order whose duty it is to provide this service, without prejudice to the right everyone has to manifest his desires to the Roman Pontiff with full liberty (see Lumen Gentium, n. 37), and without prejudice to nn. 426, 3; 427, 5; and 434,1.

For the election of delegates attending a general chapter of diffinitors or priors provincial, all the brothers of the houses under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order are to be grouped together by the general council to constitute elective colleges (according to whether one or two delegates for each chapter have to be elected). Each of these colleges should have at least twenty-five voters. The general council shall lay down how this election is to be conducted.

For the election of delegates attending a general chapter of diffinitors or priors provincial, all the brothers of the houses convents under the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Order are to be grouped together by the general council to constitute elective colleges (according to whether one or two delegates for each chapter have to be elected). Each of these colleges should have at least twenty-five voters. The general council shall lay down how this election is to be conducted.