S.I. No. 255/1942 - Local Elections Order, 1942.

1. In an election held according to the principle of proportional representation the Presiding Officer shall ask the voter—" For which candidates do you desire to express a preference, and in what order ? " and shall mark the ballot paper accordingly : Provided that where an elector fails to understand the import of such question, or does not give definite directions as to the marking of the ballot paper, the Presiding Officer—

( a ) shall read out the names of all the candidates in the order in which they appear on the ballot paper, and then ask the voter—" To which of the candidates do you wish to give your voice ? "

And shall accordingly place the figure 1 on the ballot paper opposite the name of the candidate to whom the voter gives his vote ;

( b ) shall then ask the voter—" Do you wish to express a second preference ? " and if the answer is in the affirmative, shall read out the names of all the remaining candidates in the order in which they appear on the ballot paper, and then ask the voter—" For which of these candidates do you wish to express a second preference ? "

And shall accordingly place the figure 2 on the ballot paper opposite the name of the candidate for whom the voter expresses a second preference ;

( c ) shall repeat the operation if and so often as may be required in reference to a third or any subsequent preference as long as the voter wishes to express any such preference.

2. The Presiding Officer shall not accept, consider or act upon any paper or document purporting to show the manner, in which the voter desires to give his vote, or express a preference, and shall not mark the ballot paper of the voter otherwise than after compliance, and in accordance with the provisions of the preceding article hereof.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Local Government and Public Health this Fifteenth day of July, One Thousand Nine Hundred and Forty-two.

(Signed) SEÁN MAC ENTEE,

Minister for Local Government and Public Health.

3. No objection to a nomination paper on the ground of any description of the candidate therein not being sufficient or not being in compliance with the rules shall be allowed or deemed valid unless such objection is made by the returning officer himself or to the returning officer by some other person during nomination time.

4. The returning officer shall attend for the purpose of supplying forms of nomination papers at such place and during such two consecutive hours between the hours of ten in the forenoon and two in the afternoon as he shall fix in manner aforesaid on each day intervening between the publication of the notice of election and the day appointed as the last day for receiving nominations and shall supply one or more forms of nomination paper to any registered elector who shall apply for same either during the time and at the place aforesaid or during the nomination time but nothing in this Order shall render obligatory the use of a nomination paper supplied by the returning officer so long as the nomination paper used be in the prescribed form.

5. All nomination papers not delivered to the returning officer before nomination time shall be delivered to the returning officer, during nomination time and at the place appointed for that purpose by the returning officer under Rule 1 hereof.

6. The candidate nominated by each nomination paper and his proposer and seconder, and one other person selected by him, and no other person whatsoever except persons employed by the returning officer for the purpose of assisting him shall be entilled to attend the proceedings during the nomination time.

7. If the election is contested the returning officer shall, as soon as practicable after adjourning the election, give public notice (Form L. E. 5) of the day on which the poll will be taken and of the names and other particulars of the candidates as described in their respective nomination papers, and of the names of the persons who subscribe the nomination paper of each candidate and of the order in which the names of the candidate will be printed in the ballot paper.

8. If any duly nominated candidate is duly withdrawn in accordance with the provisions of the rules, the returning officer shall give public notice of the name of such candidate, and the names of the persons who subscribed the nomination paper of such candidate at the same time and in the same manner as he gives notice of the candidates who stood nominated or were elected.

9. The returning officer shall, on any nomination paper being delivered to him, forthwith publish notice of the name of the person nominated therein as a candidate, and of the names of his proposer and seconder, by placarding or causing to be placarded the names of such candidate and his proposer and seconder in a conspicuous position outside the building in which the returning officer is receiving nominations.

10. A person shall not be entitled to have his name inserted in any ballot paper as a candidate unless he has been nominated in manner provided by the rules, and every person whose nomination paper has been, or is by the rules deemed to have been, delivered to the returning officer during nomination time shall be deemed to have been nominated in manner provided by this Act, unless objection be made to his nomination paper by the returning officer or some other person before the expiration of nomination time or within one hour afterwards.

11. The returning officer shall decide on the validity of every objection made to a nomination paper, and his decision, if disallowing the objection, shall be final ; and if allowing the same, shall be subject to reversal on petition questioning the election or return.

12. At every polling place the returning officer shall provide a sufficient number of polling stations for the accommodation of the electors entitled to vote at such polling place, and shall distribute the polling stations amongst those electors in such manner as he thinks most convenient.

13. Each polling station shall be furnished with such number of compartments, in which the voters can mark their votes screened from observation as the returning officer thinks necessary, but at least one compartment shall be provided for every one hundred and fifty electors entitled to vote at such polling station.

14. A separate room or separate booth may contain a separate polling station or several polling stations may be constructed in the same room or booth.

15. No person shall be admitted to vote at any polling station, except the one allotted to him.

16. The returning officer shall give public notice (Form L. E. 5) of the situation of polling stations, and the description of electors entitled to vote at each station.

17. The returning officer shall provide each polling station with materials for voters to mark the ballot papers, with instruments for stamping thereon the official mark, and with copies of the register of electors or such part thereof as contains the names of the electors allotted to vote at such station. He shall keep the official mark secret.

18. The returning officer shall appoint a presiding officer to preside at each polling station, and the officer so appointed shall keep order at his station, shall regulate the number of electors to be admitted at a time, and shall exclude all other persons except the clerks, the agents of the candidates, and the members of the Garda Siochana on duty.

19. Every ballot paper shall contain a list of the candidates described as in their respective nomination papers and arranged alphabetically in the order of their surnames, and (if there are two or more candidates with the same surname) of their other names ; it shall be in the prescribed form (Form L E 7), or as near thereto as circumstances admit, and shall be capable of being folded up.

20. Every ballot box shall be so constructed that, without the box being unlocked, the ballot papers can be introduced therein, but cannot be withdrawn therefrom. The presiding officer at each polling station, immediately before the commencement of the poll, shall show the ballot box empty to such persons if any, as may then be present in such station, so that they may see that it is empty, and shall then lock it up, and place his seal upon it in such manner as to prevent its being opened without breaking such seal, and shall place it in his view for the receipt of ballot papers, and keep it so locked and sealed.

21. Immediately before a ballot paper is delivered to an elector it shall be marked on both sides with the official mark, either stamped or perforated, and the number, name, and description of the elector as stated in the copy of the register of electors shall be called out, and the number of such elector shall be marked on the counterfoil, and a mark shall be placed in the register against the number of the elector, to denote that he has received a ballot paper, but without showing the particular ballot paper which he has received.

22. The elector, on receiving the ballot paper, shall forthwith proceed into one of the compartments in the polling station, and there mark his paper, and fold it up so as to conceal his vote, and shall then put his ballot paper, so folded up, into the ballot box ; he shall vote without undue delay, and shall quit the polling station as soon as he has put his ballot paper into the ballot box

23. If any elector satisfies the presiding officer that

( a ) his sight is so impaired ; or

( b ) he is otherwise so physically incapacitated ; or

( c ) he is so illiterate, that he is unable to vote without assistance ; or if any elector declares that he is of the Jewish persuasion and objects on religious grounds to vote in manner prescribed by this Act,

the presiding officer shall in the presence of the agents of the candidates, cause the vote of such elector to be marked on a ballot paper in manner directed by such elector and shall place the ballot paper so marked in the ballot box. A request made by any elector within four hours before the hour fixed for closing the poll to have his ballot paper marked for him under this Rule may be refused by the presiding officer, if in his opinion, having regard to the number of electors then coming in to vote or likely to come in to vote before the close of the poll his acceding to such request would interfere with the proper discharge of his duties or would unduly obstruct the voting of other electors.

In carrying out the provisions of this rule the presiding officer shall observe the directions contained in Part II of this Schedule.

24. If a person, representing himself to be a particular elector named on the register, applies for a ballot paper after another person has voted as such elector the applicant shall, upon duly answering the questions and taking the oath or affirmation permitted by law to be asked of and to be administered to voters at the time of polling, be entitled to mark a ballot paper in the same manner as any other elector, but the ballot paper (in this Act called a tendered ballot paper) shall be of a colour differing from the other ballot papers, and instead of being put into the ballot box, shall be given to the presiding officer and endorsed by him with the name of the voter and his number in the register of electors, and set aside in a separate packet and shall not be counted by the returning officer, and the name of such elector and his number on the register shall be entered on the tendered votes list in the prescribed form.

25. A voter who has inadvertently dealt with his ballot paper in such manner that it cannot be conveniently used as a ballot paper, may, on delivering to the presiding officer the ballot paper so inadvertently dealt with, and proving the fact of the inadvertence to the satisfaction of the presiding officer, obtain another ballot paper in the place of the ballot paper so delivered up (in this Act called a spoilt ballot paper), and the spoilt ballot paper shall be immediately cancelled.

26. The presiding officer at each polling station, as soon as practicable after the close of the poll, shall, in the presence of the agents of the candidates, make up into separate packets sealed with his own seal and seals of such agents of the candidates, as desire to affix their seals—

(1) Each ballot box in use at his station, unopened, but with the key attached ; and

(2) The unused and spoilt ballot papers, placed together ; and

(3) The tendered ballot papers ; and

(4) The marked copies of the register of electors, and the counterfoils of the ballot papers ; and

(5) The tendered votes list, and shall deliver all such packets to the returning officer.

27. The packets shall be accompanied by a statement in the prescribed form made by the presiding officer, showing the number of ballot papers entrusted to him, and accounting for them under the heads of ( a ) ballot papers in the ballot box ; ( b ) unused ballot papers ; ( c ) spoilt ballot papers, and ( d ) tendered ballot papers which statement is in this Act referred to as the ballot paper account.

28. The candidates may respectively appoint agents to attend the counting of the votes.

29. The returning officer shall make arrangements for counting the votes in the presence of the agents of the candidates, as soon as practicable after the close of the poll, and shall give to the agents of the candidates appointed to attend at the counting of the votes notice in writing of the time and place at which he will begin to count the same.

30. The returning officer, his assistant and clerks, and the agents of the candidates, and no other person, except with the sanction of the Returning Officer, may be present at the counting of the votes.

31. Before the returning officer proceeds to count the votes, he shall, in the presence of the agents of the candidates open each ballot box and, taking out the papers therein, shall count and record the number thereof, and then mix together the whole of the ballot papers contained in the ballot boxes. The returning officer while counting and recording the number of ballot papers and counting the votes, shall keep the ballot papers with their faces upwards, and take all proper precautions for preventing any person from seeing the numbers printed on the backs of such papers.

32. The returning officer shall, so far as practicable proceed continuously with counting the votes, allowing only time for refreshment, and excluding (except so far as he and the agents otherwise agree) the hours between seven o'clock at night and nine o'clock on the succeeding morning. During the excluded time the returning officer shall place the ballot papers and other documents relating to the election under his own seal and the seals of such of the agents of the candidates as desire to affix their seals.

33.—(1) the returning officer or if the votes are counted by a deputy returning officer, the deputy returning officer shall endorse " rejected " on any ballot paper which he may reject as invalid, and shall add to the endorsement " rejection objected to," if an objection be in fact made by any agent to his decision. The returning officer shall prepare a statement showing the number of ballot papers rejected and not counted by him under the several heads following, that is to say :—

(1) Want of official mark

(2) Invalid under paragraphs ( b ), ( c ) or ( d ) of sub-section (4) of

section 26

of the

Electoral Act, 1923

;

(3) Writing or mark by which voter could be identified ;

(4) Unmarked or void for uncertainty.

and shall on request allow an agent of any candidate to copy such statement.

(2) Any statement made by a deputy returning officer in pursuance of the foregoing paragraph shall be transmitted to the returning officer as soon as possible after a reasonable opportunity has been afforded to the agents of the candidates to copy the same.

34.—(1) Upon the completion of the counting, the returning officer, or, if the votes have been counted by a deputy returning officer, the deputy returning officer shall seal up in separate packets the counted ballot papers and the rejected ballot papers. He shall not open the sealed packets containing the tendered ballot papers and the marked copy of the register of electors and counterfoils respectively, but shall proceed, in the presence of the agents of the candidates, to verify the ballot paper account given by each presiding officer by comparing it with the number of ballot papers recorded by him as aforesaid and the unused and spoilt ballot papers in his possession and the tendered votes list, and shall reseal each sealed packet after examination. The returning officer shall prepare a statement showing the result of such verification, and shall, on request, allow the agent of any candidate to copy it.

(2) Any statement made by a deputy returning officer in pursuance of the foregoing paragraph shall be transmitted to the returning officer as soon as possible after a reasonable opportunity has been afforded to the agents of the candidates to copy the same.

35. and 36. The returning officer shall retain in his custody for one year all the packets of ballot papers in his possession, together with the said reports the ballot paper accounts, tendered votes lists, and packets of counterfoils, and marked copies of registers sent by each presiding officer, endorsing on each packet a description of its contents and the date of the election to which they relate, and the name of the constituency for which such election was held, and shall then, unless otherwise directed by an Order of the High Court cause them to be destroyed.

36. No returning officer at any election, nor his deputy, nor any partner or clerk of either of them, shall act as agent for any candidate at that election in the management or conduct of his election ; and if any returning officer, his deputy, the partner or clerk of either of them, shall so act he shall be guilty of a misdemeanour.

37. No person shall be allowed to inspect any rejected ballot papers in the custody of the returning officer, except under an Order of the High Court, to be granted by such court on being satisfied by evidence on oath that the inspection or production of such ballot papers is required for the purpose of instituting or maintaining a prosecution for an offence in relation to ballot papers, or for the purpose of a petition questioning an election or return ; and any such Order for the inspection or production of ballot papers may be made subject to such conditions as to persons, time, place, and mode of inspection or production as the court making the same may think expedient, and shall be obeyed by the returning officer. Any power given to a court by this rule may be exercised by any judge of such court at chambers.

38. No person shall, except by Order of a tribunal having cognizance of petitions complaining of undue returns or undue elections, open the sealed packet of counterfoils after the same has been sealed up, or be allowed to inspect any counted ballot papers in the custody of the returning officer ; any such Order may be made subject to such conditions as to persons, time, place, and mode of opening or inspection as the tribunal making the order may think expedient : Provided that on making and carrying into effect any such Order care shall be taken that the mode in which any particular elector has voted shall not be discovered until he has been proved to have voted, and his vote has been declared by a competent court to be invalid.

39. All documents in the custody of the returning officer, other than ballot papers and counterfoils, shall be open to public inspection at all reasonabletimes. The returning officer shall supply copies of or extracts from the said documents to any person demanding the same, on payment of such fees and subject to such regulations as may be prescribed by the local authority.

40. Where an order is made for the production by the returning officer of any document in his possession relating to any specified election, the production by the returning officer or his agent of the document ordered, in such manner as may be directed by such order, or by a rule of the Court having power to make such order, shall be conclusive evidence that such document relates to the specified election ; and any endorsement appearing on any packet of ballot papers produced by the returning officer or his agent shall be conclusive evidence of such papers being what they are stated to be on such endorsement. The production from proper custody of a ballot paper purporting to have been used at any election, and of a counterfoil marked with the same printed number and having a number marked thereon in writing shall be prima-facie evidence that the person who voted by such ballot paper was the person who at the time of such election had affixed to his name in the register of electors at such election the same number as the number written on such counterfoil.

GENERAL PROVISIONS.

41. The return of a person or persons elected to be a member or members of a local authority shall be made by a certificate of the names of such person or persons under the hand of the returning officer to be given by the returning officer at the completion of the counting or where there is no poll on the day of election. The returning officer shall deliver such certificate to the local authority.

42. The returning officer shall, as soon as possible give public notice in the prescribed form of the names of the candidates elected, and also in the case of a contested election, of the total number of votes given for each candidate whether elected or not. The returning officer shall also give public notice of any transfer of votes made under this Act, and of the total number of votes credited to each candidate at the end of the count at which such transfer took place in the prescribed form.

43. Where the returning officer is required or authorised by this Act to give any public notice, he shall carry such requirement into effect by advertisements, placards, handbills, or such other means as he thinks best calculated to afford information to the electors.

44. The returning officer may, if he thinks fit, preside at any polling station and the provisions of this Act relating to a presiding officer shall apply to such returning officer with the necessary modifications as to things to be done by the returning officer to the presiding officer, or by the presiding officer to the returning officer.

45. In the case of a contested election the returning officer may, in addition to any clerks, appoint competent persons to assist him in counting the votes.

46. No person shall be employed by a returning officer for any purpose relating to an election who has been employed by any other person in or about that election.

47. The presiding officer may do, by the clerks appointed to assist him, any act which he is required or authorised to do by this Act at a polling station except ordering the arrest, exclusion, or rejection from the polling station of any person.

48. A candidate may himself undertake the duties which any agent of his, if appointed, might have undertaken, or may assist his agent in the performanceof such duties, and may be present at any place, at which his agent may, in pursuance of this Act, attend.

49. The name and address of every agent of a candidate appointed to attend the counting of the votes shall be transmitted to the returning officer one clear day at the least before the opening of the poll ; and the returning officer may refuse to admit to the place where the votes are counted any agent whose name and address has not been transmitted, notwithstanding that his appointment may be otherwise valid, and any notice required to be given to an agent by the returning officer may be delivered at or sent by post to such address.

50. If any person appointed an agent by a candidate for the purpose of attending at a polling station, or at the counting of the votes, dies, or becomes incapable of acting during the time of the election, the candidate may appoint another agent in his place, and shall forthwith give to the returning officer notice in writing of the name and address of the agent so appointed.

51. Every returning officer, and every officer, clerk, or agent authorised to attend at a polling station, or at the counting of the votes, shall, before the opening of the poll sign an undertaking to preserve the secrecy of the ballot in the prescribed form (Form L E 1), and no returning officer, clerk, or agent as aforesaid, shall, save as aforesaid, be required, as such, to make any declaration or take any oath on the occasion of any election.

52. Where in this Act expressions are used requiring or authorising or inferring that any act or thing is to be done in the presence of the agents of the candidates such expressions shall be deemed to refer to the presence of such agents of the candidates as may be authorised to attend and as may in fact attend at the time and place where such act or thing is being done and the non-attendance of any agents or agent at such time and place shall not, if such act or thing be otherwise duly done, in anywise invalidate the act or thing done.

PART II.

DIRECTIONS TO PRESIDING OFFICERS IN REGARD TO MARKING BALLOT PAPERS PURSUANT TO RULE 24 OF PART I OF THIS SCHEDULE.

62. (2) If any difficulty shall arise in the holding of any election and the Minister is of opinion that such difficulty is an emergency requiring to be removed immediately, the Minister may by Order do any matter or thing which appears to him to be necessary to be done immediately to enable the election in respect of which such difficulty has arisen to be properly held.

63.—(1) Where any returning officer, clerk, or other person having duties in connection with the conduct of any election refuses, neglects, or fails without reasonable cause to perform his duties in that behalf, a person aggrieved by such refusal, neglect, or failure shall be entitled to recover by action at law from such person such sum not exceeding one hundred pounds by way of damages as the Court by which such action shall be tried shall consider just.

(2) Every returning officer, presiding officer, clerk or other person having duties in connection with the conduct of any election, who is guilty of any wilful or grossly negligent misfeasance or any wilful or grossly negligent act or omission in contravention of this Act shall, in addition to any other liability to which he may be subject, be liable on prosecution by the Minister in a Court of Summary Jurisdiction to forfeit to the State such penal sum not exceeding £100, as the Court before whom such prosecution shall come shall consider just.

FIFTH SCHEDULE.

PART I.

RULES FOR THE CONDUCT OF ELECTIONS.

STATUTORY RULES AND ORDERS. 1942. No. 255.

LOCAL ELECTIONS ORDER, 1942.

ARRANGEMENT OF ARTICLES.