Every notice under section 78(2) of the Act must be in a form that the Electoral Commission has approved.

Every inquiry under section 89D(1) of the Act must be in a form that the Electoral Commission has approved.

As soon as practicable after the close of registration, the Electoral Commission must send to the Returning Officer a list of those persons whose names have been entered (under section 88(3) of the Act) on the electoral roll for the district after writ day and before the close of registration.

Nothing in this regulation requires the Electoral Commission to complete processing all applications for registration received by the Electoral Commission under section 88(3) of the Act before forwarding the list referred to in subclause (1) to the Returning Officer.

Every person is entitled to a copy of a printed main roll with its supplements, as one roll, on payment of a fee of—

The fee payable on each request for information, under section 112 or section 114 of the Act, to be supplied on a computer-compiled list is $455.50 plus $2.40 for every 1 000 lines on the list.

The fee payable on each request for the supply of information, under section 112 or section 114 of the Act, to be supplied on an electronic storage medium is $455.50 plus $42.30 for each such medium.

Requests under section 112 or section 114 of the Act must be processed in the order in which they are received, and their processing must not take priority over electoral roll maintenance work.

When electoral information is to be supplied, in accordance with section 113 of the Act, on any electronic storage medium, the fee specified in subclause (2) is payable if the information is not required for the conduct of an election or a by-election, or the conduct of any poll that is required by or under an Act.

The fee referred to in subclause (1) is $455.50 plus $42.30 for each electronic storage medium.

The fee payable for a copy of a habitation index compiled under section 108 of the Act shall be $120.80:

provided that the fee shall be reduced to $36.30 if the Electoral Commission is satisfied that the copy is required for any purpose relating to an election or poll that is required by or under any Act.

The Electoral Commission must arrange for the printing of special ballot papers for every electoral district as soon as practicable after nomination day.

The ballot paper must be,—

Ballot papers may be printed without counterfoils.

Where, for the purposes of any general election being conducted in accordance with the Act, lists of candidates (in this regulation called party lists) are submitted to the Electoral Commission under section 127 of the Act, the Electoral Commission must, as soon as reasonably practicable after nomination day for that election, send to each Returning Officer copies of each party list (not being a list rejected under section 128 of the Act).

Where the names of more than 120 candidates are included on a party list, only the first 120 of those names shall be included on each copy of that list sent under subclause (1) to each Returning Officer.

Following the close of nominations and the completion of the discharge by the Electoral Commission of its duties under section 128 of the Act in respect of the lists of candidates, ballot papers may be issued to special voters at any time before the close of the poll,—

Where an election is to be held in any district, the Returning Officer—

Ballot papers and voting papers may be issued to special voters during the hours of polling by any Issuing Officer in a like manner as by Returning Officers.

It shall be the duty of every Returning Officer to ensure that, as far as practicable, facilities for special voting are made available at every hospital, maternity facility, or institution for the reception or relief of persons requiring medical or surgical or other treatment or suffering from any illness, disease, or disability, or for convalescent, aged, infirm, incurable, destitute, or poor people.

Without limiting the generality of subclause (3), for the purpose of enabling hospital votes to be exercised in accordance with regulation 23, the Returning Officer in whose district any such hospital, maternity facility, or institution as aforesaid is situated shall ensure that, as far as practicable, there are provided at the hospital, maternity facility, or institution the main and supplementary rolls, ballot papers, and voting papers for the districts ordinarily served by the hospital, maternity facility, or institution, and a ballot box for each such district.

Any person issuing ballot papers or voting papers in any hospital, maternity facility, or institution may, with the approval of the chief executive officer or other person having charge of the hospital, maternity facility, or institution, be accompanied by any persons appointed respectively by the local branches of political or other organisations interested in the election or poll; and if he or she is not accompanied by any such person he or she shall be accompanied by a person appointed by the Returning Officer.

Copies of party lists—

This regulation applies to a person who—

This regulation also applies to a person who is witnessing a declaration made by a person described in subclause (1).

A person to whom this regulation applies may take a physical action to—

In this regulation, special voting paper means any or all of the following:

An application for a special vote may be made—

Subject to regulation 19, any Issuing Officer may, upon application made by or on behalf of an elector in accordance with regulation 20, issue,—

The Issuing Officer shall, in the case of a general election,—

The Issuing Officer shall, in the case of a by-election,—

Special ballot papers issued pursuant to paragraph (a) or paragraph (b) of subclause (1) may include logos in accordance with section 172(3A) of the Act.

The Issuing Officer must—

This regulation applies if an elector—

Instead of issuing to the elector a special ballot paper under regulation 21(1), an Issuing Officer may issue to the elector a ballot paper in accordance with section 167 of the Act.

If an elector is issued with an ordinary ballot paper under section 167 of the Act,—

When an elector who is issued with a ballot paper under this section is voting, then, unless section 170 of the Act applies, any other person present at the time—

An Issuing Officer authorised to issue hospital votes must, in respect of each district and in accordance with the instructions of the Returning Officer,—

This regulation applies to any person in New Zealand who is qualified to vote at any election in any district as a special voter because he or she has satisfied an Issuing Officer that it will not be practicable for him or her to vote at a polling place in a district without incurring hardship or serious inconvenience on the ground that he or she—

A person to whom this regulation applies may request to vote by dictation if for the particular election a system allowing special votes by dictation is made available by the Electoral Commission.

A request under subclause (2)—

On receipt of a request made in accordance with subclause (3), the Electoral Commission must decide whether to grant or decline the request.

If for a particular election a system allowing special votes by dictation is made available by the Electoral Commission, the Electoral Commission must make any arrangements that the Electoral Commission considers to be necessary for the issue and receipt of special votes by dictation, including—

To avoid doubt, a voter who is voting by dictation on any day at the time such voting closes is entitled to complete dictating his or her vote.

The following regulations apply, with all necessary modifications, to special votes by dictation:

The Electoral Commission may appoint 1 or more Issuing Officers for—

Every Issuing Officer must, before entering into the duties of office, declare that he or she will comply with section 203.

The declaration must—

This regulation applies to any person in New Zealand who is qualified to vote at an election in any district as a special voter because the person has satisfied the Electoral Commission that, as a result of a significant event, it will not be practicable for the person to vote at a polling place in a district without incurring hardship or serious inconvenience.

A person to whom this regulation applies may request the Electoral Commission to have the papers referred to in regulation 21 issued to the person—

A request under subclause (2) may be made during the period—

If the Electoral Commission grants a request under subclause (2)(a) and allows a person to vote by dictation, regulation 23A applies with all necessary modifications.

If the Electoral Commission grants a request under subclause (2)(b) and allows a person to vote electronically, regulation 45A(4) and (5) applies with all necessary modifications.

A person to whom papers have been issued under subclause (5) must return the papers to the Electoral Commission electronically in a manner specified by the Electoral Commission.

Papers returned electronically must be received by the Electoral Commission before the close of the poll.

An Electoral Commissioner or electoral official who, on behalf of the Electoral Commission, receives any papers electronically in accordance with subclause (7) or (8) must immediately—

This regulation does not apply to any person if—

In this regulation, significant event, in relation to an elector, means an event or circumstance caused by adverse weather conditions, or an occurrence beyond the control of the elector, that impedes the elector’s travel to a polling place (for example, road closures due to storm damage or flooding).

This regulation applies to any person in New Zealand who is qualified to vote at an election in a district as a special voter because the person—

A person to whom this regulation applies may make a request to the Electoral Commission to vote by dictation.

A request under subclause (2) may be made during the period—

If the Electoral Commission grants a request under subclause (2) and allows a person to vote by dictation, regulation 23A(5) to (7) applies with all necessary modifications.

In this regulation,—

Every person who makes a declaration as a special voter must indicate in the declaration the ground or grounds on which they are claiming a special vote.

A declaration must—

However, a declaration that is made by a person as a special voter in New Zealand need not be witnessed if—

Each candidate may nominate 1 or more persons authorised by the candidate to witness special voting declarations.

Every nomination under this regulation shall—

On receipt of any nomination made under this regulation, the Returning Officer shall approve or reject the nomination.

The Returning Officer may at any time revoke his or her approval of the nomination of any witness if he or she has reason to believe that the witness is not complying with any duty imposed on the witness under these regulations.

Where a nomination is rejected or revoked, the Returning Officer shall, upon request by the nominating candidate, inform the candidate of the reason for the rejection or revocation of the nomination.

Subject to regulation 27(10), a person approved under this regulation and authorised by a candidate to witness, for the purposes of the election, declarations by special voters may witness the declaration of any special voter.

The vote of an elector voting as a special voter must be exercised—

Where the elector applies in person for a special vote, the Issuing Officer shall, after the completion of the declaration,—

Where the elector does not apply in person for a special vote, the elector must, after completing the declaration, place the declaration in—

When the declaration has, as the case may require, been dealt with as required by subclause (2) or subclause (3), the elector shall then alone and secretly—

The ballot paper and any voting papers must then be placed in—

Where an elector exercises a special vote in a polling place, the envelope shall be deposited as an Issuing Officer directs either in the ballot box or in a receptacle specially provided for the votes of special voters, and every such envelope shall be deemed to have been received by the Issuing Officer for that polling place at the time when it was so deposited.

Where an elector exercises a special vote other than in a polling place, the elector may arrange for the envelope to be delivered to a Returning Officer or an Issuing Officer—

An envelope delivered by hand under subclause (7)(a) must be received before the close of the poll.

An envelope delivered by post under subclause (7)(b) must be received—

If the elector—

he or she may vote in accordance with subclause (9) or subclause (10).

If an elector to whom subclause (8) applies votes at a polling place, the provisions of section 170 of the Act shall apply with the necessary modifications.

If an elector to whom subclause (8) applies votes otherwise than at a polling place, the witness to the declaration (who shall not be a person approved under regulation 26) shall—

Every person present when an elector is exercising a special vote shall comply with the foregoing provisions of this Part so far as they relate to that person.

Subject to subclauses (8) to (10) of regulation 27, every person present when an elector is exercising a special vote—

At any time before 2 pm on polling day, an Issuing Officer for a district in which ordinary ballot papers have been issued to advance voters under section 171A(a)(i) of the Act must—

A Returning Officer or an Issuing Officer who receives an envelope in accordance with regulation 27(7A) or in accordance with the requirements of regulation 27(7B) must immediately mark the envelope with his or her official mark.

A Returning Officer or an Issuing Officer who receives an envelope otherwise than in accordance with regulation 27(7A) or the requirements of regulation 27(7B) must immediately—

An Electoral Commissioner or electoral official who, on behalf of the Electoral Commission, receives an envelope that is delivered either by hand before the close of the poll or by post in accordance with the requirements of regulation 27(7B) must immediately mark the envelope with the Electoral Commission’s official mark.

An Electoral Commissioner or electoral official who, on behalf of the Electoral Commission, receives an envelope that is delivered either by hand after the close of the poll or by post otherwise than in accordance with the requirements of regulation 27(7B) must immediately—

After marking an envelope in accordance with regulation 29(1) or (2), an Issuing Officer must immediately deliver the envelope to the Returning Officer by whom the Issuing Officer was appointed.

If a Returning Officer receives under subclause (1) an envelope containing a special vote issued for a district that is not the Returning Officer’s district, the Returning Officer must immediately post or forward the envelope to the Returning Officer for the district for which the vote was issued.

After marking an envelope in accordance with regulation 29(3) or (4), the Electoral Commissioner or electoral official must immediately—

At the first opportunity after receiving an envelope containing a special vote, the Returning Officer for the district for which the vote was issued must extract the declaration form from—

The Returning Officer must ensure that the declaration form and its envelope are marked with the same unique number.

A Returning Officer may open an envelope, or the compartments of an envelope, to correct the placement of papers if the Returning Officer has reason to believe that—

A Returning Officer may open the envelope, or a compartment of an envelope, to—

After taking any of the actions described in subclause (1) or (2), the Returning Officer must—

This regulation applies despite any other provision in these regulations.

A Returning Officer must disallow a special vote issued for the Returning Officer’s district under this Part if the envelope containing the vote is received by the Returning Officer—

A Returning Officer must also disallow any special vote if, after examining the envelope and declaration form in respect of that vote, the Returning Officer is satisfied that,—

If a Returning Officer disallows a special vote under this regulation, the envelope or the compartment of an envelope containing the ballot and voting papers must be left unopened and the Returning Officer must set aside the envelope after having written across it and across the declaration form the words “Disallowed, received late”.

At any time after receiving a special vote and declaration form in respect of the vote, the Electoral Commission must—

The examination under subclause (1)(a) may commence at any time after a special vote is received but a determination under subclause (1)(b) may not be completed until the process set out in section 176(4) of the Act relating to post-writ deletions has been undertaken.

When examining a declaration, the Electoral Commission must determine whether the name stated in the declaration is that of a person—

Without limiting any other steps that the Electoral Commission may take or the information it may use when making its determination, the Electoral Commission—

Where the words “Not qualified” are shown on a declaration, the Returning Officer shall disallow the vote of the elector stated in the declaration form.

If the words “Party vote qualified” are shown on a declaration, the Returning Officer must allow the party vote, but disallow the electorate vote, of the elector stated in the declaration form unless the Returning Officer is required to disallow the party vote in accordance with subclause (3), (4), or (4A).

If the word “Qualified” is shown on a declaration, the Returning Officer shall allow the vote of the elector named in the declaration unless the Returning Officer is required to disallow the vote in accordance with subclause (3), (4), or (4A).

If a declaration of the kind mentioned in subclause (1A) or subclause (2) does not indicate the ground or grounds on which a special vote is claimed, the Returning Officer shall disallow the vote of the elector stated in the declaration except in any case where—

If a declaration referred to in subclause (2) or (3) is not signed by the elector named in the declaration form, the Returning Officer must disallow the vote of the elector.

If a declaration referred to in subclause (2) or (3) is required to be witnessed but the declaration form has not been signed by a witness authorised by or under these regulations to witness the declaration (an authorised witness), the Returning Officer must disallow the vote unless satisfied that the declaration was made in the presence of an authorised witness.

Where a Returning Officer disallows a vote under this regulation, the Returning Officer shall endorse on the envelope and on the declaration form the words “Disallowed, not qualified”, or on the declaration the words “Disallowed, declaration not in order”, as the case may require.

The Returning Officer shall not disallow the vote of an elector on the ground that the elector has failed to show his or her date of birth or former names in a declaration (being a declaration of the kind mentioned in subclause (2)).

If a Returning Officer allows a vote under regulation 37(2), that Returning Officer must identify the envelope with the declaration form when the vote is allowed and must place the envelope in a box specially set aside for the purpose.

If a Returning Officer allows a party vote under regulation 37(1A), that Returning Officer must identify the envelope with the declaration form when the party vote is allowed and must place the envelope in a box specially set aside for the purpose.

The boxes referred to in subclauses (1) and (2) must be boxes that can be securely closed.

The Returning Officer shall hold for production at the scrutiny of the rolls under section 175 of the Act all declaration forms returned to the Returning Officer under regulation 36 together with those retained by the Returning Officer under regulation 35 and those in respect of special votes that have been disallowed as having been received late.

After the scrutiny of the rolls, the Returning Officer must make up into separate parcels—

Subject to regulation 33, the ballot and voting paper envelopes or compartments of the envelopes placed, in accordance with regulation 38, in boxes that can be securely closed shall not be opened until the official count conducted under section 178 of the Act, and shall then be opened in the presence of such scrutineers as choose to be present.

After the votes have been recorded at the official count and after any recount has been disposed of, the Returning Officer shall forward to the Clerk of the House of Representatives, with the ordinary ballot papers and voting papers, the parcels referred to in regulation 40.

For the purpose of taking votes outside New Zealand (other than votes to which Part 4 applies), the Electoral Commission, or an electoral official on behalf of the Electoral Commission, must appoint 1 or more Overseas Returning Officers.

In the case of a general election, the Electoral Commission, or an electoral official on behalf of the Electoral Commission, must forward to every Overseas Returning Officer the required number of copies of the following:

In the case of a by-election, the Electoral Commission, or an electoral official on behalf of the Electoral Commission, must forward to every Overseas Returning Officer the required number of copies of the following:

Any Overseas Returning Officer must—

An Overseas Returning Officer may exercise all the powers and functions of an Overseas Issuing Officer.

Every Overseas Returning Officer and Overseas Issuing Officer must, before entering into the duties of office, declare that he or she will comply with section 203.

The declaration must—

A person who is qualified to vote at an election in any district and who is outside New Zealand (an overseas elector) may apply to vote as a special voter.

An application may be made in any of the ways specified in regulation 20.

Voting papers may be issued to an overseas elector—

In this regulation, voting papers means the documents referred to in regulation 43(2) or (3).

Following—

the Overseas Returning Officer or Overseas Issuing Officer may, subject to regulation 46, issue those documents to electors of any electoral district in accordance with Part 2.

The issue of documents under subclause (1) in person or by post must be completed before 4 pm local time on the day before polling day.

Notwithstanding subclause (1),—

In the case of a general election, the Electoral Commission may, as soon as is reasonably practicable after the close of nominations and at any time before the close of the poll, issue electronically the documents referred to in regulation 43(2) to persons outside New Zealand who are electors of any electoral district.

In the case of a by-election, the Electoral Commission may, as soon as is reasonably practicable after the close of nominations and at any time before the close of the poll, issue electronically the documents referred to in regulation 43(3) to persons outside New Zealand who are electors of the electoral district in which the by-election is to be or is being held.

The following provisions apply, with any necessary modifications, to the issue of documents under this regulation:

A copy of the official mark of the Electoral Commission must be present on ballot papers and declarations issued under this regulation.

For the purposes of this regulation, documents are issued electronically if the documents are able to be—

This regulation applies to a person who—

A person to whom this regulation applies may request to vote by dictation if, for the particular election, a system allowing special votes by dictation is made available by the Electoral Commission.

A request must be made during the period—

On receipt of a request, the Electoral Commission must decide whether to grant or decline the request.

If the Electoral Commission grants a request under subclause (4) to issue a vote by dictation, the Electoral Commission must make any arrangements that the Electoral Commission considers necessary for the issue and receipt of special votes by dictation, including—

The following regulations apply, with all necessary modifications, to special votes by dictation under this regulation:

A special vote by dictation must be received by the Electoral Commission by 7 pm New Zealand time on polling day (the deadline).

To avoid doubt, a voter who is voting by dictation at the deadline is entitled to complete dictating their vote.

The officer commanding every unit comprising members of the Defence Force shall afford all necessary facilities for members of the Defence Force to cast their votes in accordance with this Part so far as may be done consistently with the proper performance of their duties.

Where any member of the Defence Force is in a hospital, sanatorium, or other institution, that member of the Defence Force shall, for the purposes of these regulations, be deemed to be a member of the unit under the command of the officer in charge of the hospital, sanatorium, or other institution.

Every person who knowingly and wilfully makes a false statement for the purpose of voting under section 60(f) of the Act, or who votes under that provision when that person has already received a ballot paper for the same election, shall be liable on conviction or on conviction by the Court Martial to a fine not exceeding $1,000.

Every Issuing Officer shall, where possible, be supplied with a sufficient number of ballot papers, envelopes, forms and all other materials for taking the votes of any members of the Defence Force who apply to that Issuing Officer.

Following—

the votes of members of the Defence Force comprised in any unit may be cast at any convenient time or times before 4 pm local time on the day before polling day and, as far as practicable, notice shall be given of the day appointed for the closing of the poll.

Any person to whom documents are issued under regulation 45 or 45A may, after voting in the manner prescribed for special voters by Part 2, arrange for an envelope containing the ballot paper, any voting papers, and the declaration to be delivered—

An envelope delivered by hand or by post under subclause (1)(a) must be received by the Overseas Returning Officer or Overseas Issuing Officer by 4 pm local time on the day before polling day.

An envelope delivered by post under subclause (1)(b) must be—

Electors to whom documents are issued under regulation 45 or 45A may return those documents in accordance with subclause (2) if, for that particular election, a system allowing secure electronic transmission is made available by the Electoral Commission for that purpose.

If subclause (1) applies, an elector may, after voting in the manner prescribed for special voters,—

An Overseas Returning Officer, an Overseas Issuing Officer, or a Returning Officer in New Zealand who receives delivery of an envelope in accordance with the requirements of regulation 47 must immediately mark the envelope with his or her official mark.

An Overseas Returning Officer, an Overseas Issuing Officer, or a Returning Officer in New Zealand who receives delivery of an envelope otherwise than in accordance with the requirements of regulation 47 must immediately—

Immediately after marking an envelope in accordance with subclause (1) or (2), an Overseas Returning Officer or Overseas Issuing Officer must arrange for the envelope to be posted or forwarded (either directly or through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade) by the quickest means of transport to the Electoral Commission or to the Returning Officer of the district for which the vote was issued.

Immediately after marking an envelope in accordance with subclause (1) or (2), a Returning Officer in New Zealand, if that officer is not the Returning Officer for the district for which the vote was issued, must post or forward the envelope to—

Immediately after marking an envelope in accordance with subclause (1) or (2), a Returning Officer in New Zealand, if the Returning Officer for the district in which the vote was issued, may post or forward the envelope to the Electoral Commission.

An Electoral Commissioner or electoral official who, on behalf of the Electoral Commission, receives delivery of an envelope in accordance with the requirements of regulation 47 must immediately mark the envelope with the official mark of the Electoral Commission.

An Electoral Commissioner or electoral official who, on behalf of the Electoral Commission, receives delivery of an envelope otherwise than in accordance with the requirements of regulation 47 must immediately—

After marking an envelope in accordance with subclause (5) or (6), the Electoral Commissioner or electoral official must immediately—

An Electoral Commissioner or electoral official who, on behalf of the Electoral Commission, receives a ballot paper, any voting papers, and a declaration forwarded electronically under regulation 47B must immediately—

Immediately after the expiration of the time mentioned in regulation 45, every Overseas Returning Officer—

and shall mark each parcel to show the nature of its contents.

The Overseas Returning Officer shall, if the parcels contain papers relating to a general election, deal with those parcels and the other parcels similarly made up by the Overseas Returning Officer as follows:

The Overseas Returning Officer shall, if the parcels contain papers relating to a by-election, deal with those parcels and the other parcels similarly made up by the Overseas Returning Officer as follows:

An Electoral Commissioner, on behalf of the Electoral Commission, must—

The Clerk shall forthwith give or send to the Electoral Commission a receipt for the parcels, which receipt shall be signed by the Clerk.

This regulation applies to every envelope containing a special vote issued under this Part that is received by the Returning Officer for the district for which the vote was issued—

This regulation also applies to every envelope containing a special vote issued under this Part that is received by the Electoral Commission from a Returning Officer under regulation 48(4)(b)—

This regulation also applies to every envelope containing a special vote issued under this Part that is marked by an Electoral Commissioner or electoral official—

Regulations 32, 33, and 35 to 42 apply in respect of an envelope described in subclause (1), (2), or (3), and all references in those regulations to a Returning Officer must be read as references also to an Electoral Commissioner or electoral official.

After extracting from an envelope a declaration form completed by a member of the New Zealand Defence Force, the Returning Officer, Electoral Commissioner, or electoral official (as the case may be) must—

This regulation applies in respect of every envelope appearing to contain a special vote issued under this Part and to which regulation 50 does not apply.

The Returning Officer for the district for which the vote was issued, an Electoral Commissioner, or an electoral official (as the case may be) must—

Regulations 35 to 42 apply in respect of the envelope and all references in those regulations to a Returning Officer must be read as references also to an Electoral Commissioner or electoral official.

The Returning Officer for the district in respect of which a special vote has been cast in an election by a member of the Defence Force must allow the special vote if—

If a special vote cast by a member of the Defence Force is not allowed under subclause (1), the Returning Officer must disallow the special vote.

This Part applies to—

The Electoral Commission may appoint 1 or more Issuing Officers to issue ballot papers to special voters to whom this Part applies.

Every Issuing Officer must, before entering into the duties of office, declare that he or she will comply with section 203.

The declaration must—

In the case of a general election, the Electoral Commission, or an electoral official on behalf of the Electoral Commission, must forward to every Issuing Officer the required number of copies of the following:

In the case of a by-election, the Electoral Commission, or a person authorised by the Electoral Commission to do so, must forward to every Issuing Officer the required number of copies of the following:

If it appears to the Electoral Commission that the copies of the documents referred to in subclause (1) or (2) may not reach an Issuing Officer within the time allowed for the issue of special votes, the Electoral Commission may send those documents to the Issuing Officer electronically.

Following receipt of documents under regulation 55, the Issuing Officer may issue those documents to special voters.

The issue of documents under subclause (1) must be—

If the Issuing Officer will be forwarding the vote of a special voter electronically to the Electoral Commission under regulation 61, the Issuing Officer must issue to the special voter together with the documents referred to in subclause (1) a consent form in a form that the Electoral Commission has approved.

If an Issuing Officer is not able to issue documents to a special voter under regulation 56, the Electoral Commission may, on the request of the special voter, issue directly to the special voter in accordance with Part 2 each of the documents referred to in regulation 55(1) or (2), as the case may be.

The documents may be issued to the special voter under subclause (1)—

A copy of the official mark of the Electoral Commission must be on every ballot paper and every declaration issued under this regulation.

For the purposes of subclause (2)(a), documents are issued electronically if those documents are able to be—

In this regulation, disability, in relation to a special voter, means the voter is—

If the Electoral Commission grants a request under regulation 57(2)(d) to issue a vote by dictation, the Electoral Commission must make any arrangements that the Electoral Commission considers to be necessary for the issue and receipt of special votes by dictation, including—

A special vote by dictation must be received by the Electoral Commission by 7 pm New Zealand time on polling day (the deadline).

To avoid doubt, a voter who is voting by dictation at the deadline is entitled to complete dictating his or her vote.

A special voter to whom documents referred to in regulation 55(1) or (2) have been issued, other than by dictation under regulation 57(2)(d), may, after voting in the manner prescribed for special voters in Part 2, arrange for the ballot paper, any voting papers, and the declaration to be delivered—

A special voter may complete and attach to an envelope delivered under subclause (1)(a) a consent form in a form that the Electoral Commission has approved.

An envelope delivered by hand under subclause (1)(a) must be received by the Issuing Officer by 4 pm local time on the day before polling day.

An envelope delivered by post under subclause (1)(b) must be—

A ballot paper, any voting papers and a declaration delivered electronically under subclause (1)(d) must be received by the Electoral Commission before the close of the poll.

An Issuing Officer who receives, in accordance with regulation 59(3), an envelope containing a special vote that is delivered by hand under regulation 59(1)(a) must immediately—

An Issuing Officer who receives, otherwise than in accordance with regulation 59(3), an envelope containing a special vote that is delivered by hand under regulation 59(1)(a) must immediately—

Immediately after dealing with the envelope in accordance with subclause (1) or (2), the Issuing Officer must—

A Returning Officer in New Zealand who receives, in accordance with the requirements of regulation 59(4), an envelope containing a special vote that is delivered by post under regulation 59(1)(b)(i) must immediately mark the envelope with his or her official mark.

A Returning Officer in New Zealand who receives, otherwise than in accordance with the requirements of regulation 59(4), an envelope containing a special vote that is delivered by post under regulation 59(1)(b)(i) must immediately—

Immediately after marking an envelope in accordance with subclause (4) or (5), a Returning Officer in New Zealand, if that officer is not the Returning Officer for the district for which the vote was issued, must post or forward the envelope to—

Immediately after marking an envelope in accordance with subclause (4) or (5), a Returning Officer in New Zealand, if that officer is the Returning Officer for the district in which the vote was issued, may post or forward the envelope to the Electoral Commission.

An Electoral Commissioner or electoral official who, on behalf of the Electoral Commission, receives, in accordance with the requirements of regulation 59(4), an envelope containing a special vote that is delivered by post under regulation 59(1)(b)(ii) must immediately mark the envelope with the Electoral Commission’s official mark.

An Electoral Commissioner or electoral official who, on behalf of the Electoral Commission, receives, otherwise than in accordance with the requirements of regulation 59(4), an envelope containing a special vote that is delivered by post under regulation 59(1)(b)(ii) must immediately—

After marking the envelope in accordance with subclause (7) or (8), the Electoral Commissioner or electoral official must immediately—

If an Issuing Officer considers that it is doubtful whether forwarding an envelope containing a special vote under regulation 60(3)(a) will reach the Returning Officer by 7 pm on the tenth day following polling day, the Issuing Officer must, if a completed consent form in a form that the Electoral Commission has approved is attached to that envelope, deal with that envelope in accordance with this regulation.

If the Issuing Officer is satisfied that no other person is present, the Issuing Officer must, before the close of the poll, take each envelope required to be dealt with under this regulation and do the following:

This section applies if an Electoral Commissioner, or electoral official on behalf of the Electoral Commission, receives ballot papers, voting papers, and declarations by electronic transmission—

An Electoral Commissioner or electoral official on behalf of the Electoral Commission must immediately—

This regulation applies to every envelope containing a special vote issued under this Part that is received by the Returning Officer for the district for which the vote was issued—

This regulation also applies to every envelope containing a special vote issued under this Part that is received by the Electoral Commission from a Returning Officer under regulation 60(6)(b)—

This regulation also applies to every envelope containing a special vote issued under this Part that is marked by an Electoral Commissioner or electoral official—

Regulations 32, 33, and 35 to 42 apply in respect of an envelope described in subclauses (1), (2), and (3), and all references in those regulations to a Returning Officer must be read as references also to an Electoral Commissioner or electoral official.