The Short Title of this Act is “The Local Elections and Polls Act, 1908.”

This Act is a consolidation of the enactments mentioned in the First Schedule hereto, and with respect to those enactments the following provisions shall apply: —

Savings.

In this Act, if not inconsistent with the context,—

Subject to the provisions of any Act by which this Act is made to apply, every election, and every poll on a proposal to be submitted to the vote of the electors under any such Act, shall be held and taken in the manner provided by this Act.

For every district there shall be a Returning Officer appointed by the local authority, who shall hold office until his removal by such local authority, or his resignation, incapacity, or death, in any of which events the local authority shall appoint a Returning Officer in his stead.

Every election and every poll on any proposal shall be held or taken by the Returning Officer, but if from any cause he is unable to fulfil the duties of his office at any election or poll he shall by writing under his hand appoint a substitute, who for all the purposes of that election or poll shall be deemed to be the Returning Officer.

If at any time, either before or during an election or poll, a Returning Officer who is unable to act fails to appoint a substitute as aforesaid, the local authority may appoint a substitute, who for the purposes of that election or poll shall be deemed to be the Returning Officer.

No member of the local authority shall be appointed or shall act as Returning Officer or as his substitute, and no Returning Officer or his substitute shall be capable of being a candidate at any election to be held by him or by his substitute in virtue of his office.

Every Returning Officer and every substitute for a Returning Officer shall, before entering on the duties of his office, make and sign before a Justice, or before the Chairman of the local authority, a declaration in the form numbered (1) in the Second Schedule hereto.

Not less than fourteen clear days before any election to fill an ordinary vacancy, the Returning Officer shall give public notice thereof, and shall in such notice appoint a place within the district. and a day not less than five nor more than seven days (exclusive of the day of election) before the election, for the nomination of candidates: Provided that—

No person shall be deemed to be a candidate for any local elective office unless nominated as follows: A nomination-paper, in the form numbered (2) in the Second Schedule hereto, signed by two electors of the district, and by the candidate in token of his assent to such nomination, shall be delivered to the Returning Officer, or addressed to him and delivered at the place named in the said notice, at any time after the publication thereof and before noon of the day appointed therein.

At the hour of noon on the said day, or as soon thereafter as practicable, the Returning Officer shall post the names of all the candidates so nominated in a conspicuous public place outside the place appointed in the said notice.

If the number of the candidates does not exceed the number of vacancies to be filled, the Returning Officer shall, at the place and on the day so appointed, publicly declare the candidate or candidates so nominated to be duly elected to the office or offices to be filled at the election then being held.

If the number of candidates exceeds the number of offices then to be filled, the Returning Officer shall forthwith give public notice of the day on which the poll is to be taken, of the names of the several candidates, and of the situation of the polling-booths.

The day on which the poll is to be taken shall be the day appointed for holding the election as hereinbefore provided.

If a candidate at an election signs and delivers to the Returning Officer, not later than three clear days before the polling-day, a paper in the form numbered (3) n the Second Schedule hereto, stating that such candidate retires from the election, the Returning Officer shall give public notice thereof; and if by such retirement the number of candidates is reduced to the number of vacancies to be filled, the Returning Officer shall publicly declare the remaining candidates to be duly elected; but if the said number of candidates is not so reduced, the poll shall proceed, but the person so retiring shall not be capable of being elected:

If a candidate retires after the voting-papers have been printed, the Returning Officer shall, before the poll, erase his name from every voting-paper.

The Returning Officer may appoint as many Deputies and poll-clerks as he deems necessary for the effective taking of the poll at every polling-booth.

Every such Deputy shall have and may exercise in and about the polling-booth for which he is appointed all the powers and duties of the Returning Officer.

Every Deputy Returning Officer shall, before acting as such, make and subscribe before the Returning Officer a declaration in the form numbered (1) in the Second Schedule hereto; and every poll-clerk shall, before acting, make and subscribe before the Returning Officer, or the Deputy Returning Officer at the booth at which he is to act, a declaration in the form numbered (4) in the said Schedule.

The Returning Officer shall provide the following things for taking the poll:—

The voting-papers shall be printed on paper of uniform colour, and shall be in the form numbered (5) in the Second Schedule hereto, and shall bear the imprint of the person who printed them.

Each candidate may, by writing under his hand, appoint one scrutineer for each polling-booth at any election.

Every scrutineer shall, before being allowed to act, make and subscribe before the Returning Officer, or the. Deputy Returning Officer at the polling-booth for which he is appointed, a declaration in the form numbered (4) in the Second Schedule hereto.

The poll at every election shall commence at nine o’clock in the forenoon of the day appointed, and shall close at six o’clock in the afternoon of the same day:

Provided that the Governor may, on the application of any local authority, by Order in Council gazetted, extend the hour at which the poll shall close in the district of such local authority to seven o’clock.

The Returning Officer shall, before the opening of the poll, and in the sight of any scrutineers present, see that the ballot-box is empty, and shall close and lock it, and retain, the key in his possession, and the ballot-box shall not again be opened till after the close of the poll.

Not more than six voters shall be allowed in a polling-booth or more than one voter in any inner compartment at one and the same time, and ho person shall be allowed to remain in any polling-booth except the Returning Officer and his clerks, any of the scrutineers, and as many constables as the Returning Officer thinks necessary to keep the peace.

No scrutineer or other official or unofficial person shall speak to any voter in a polling-booth either before or after such voter has given his vote, except only the Returning Officer (with an interpreter, if necessary), who may ask the questions he is authorised to put, and give such general directions as may assist any voter to give his vote.

Every person who offends against this section is liable to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds, and may be at once removed from the booth by order of the Returning Officer.

Every person proposing to vote shall inform the Returning Officer of his name, and the Returning Officer having satisfied himself, by reference to the roll, that such person is entitled to vote, and has not already voted, shall deliver to him one voting-paper for every vote he is entitled to give.

The Returning Officer may, and if so required by any scrutineer shall, before giving any voting-paper, put the following questions to any person proposing to vote:—

Any person to whom such questions are put who does not answer the same, or does not answer the first three in the affirmative and the fourth in the negative, shall not be permitted to vote.

Before giving any voting-paper the Returning Officer shall write upon the left-hand corner of the back thereof his initials, and the number appearing on the roll against the name of the voter to whom he gives the paper, and, after securing the said corner by gum or otherwise, shall place thereon an official mark, and shall draw a line in pencil or ink through the number and name of such voter on the roll, as evidence that he has proposed to vote at such election.

At elections where any voter is entitled to give more than one vote, the Returning Officer shall also write on the roll against the name of the voter a number denoting the number of voting-papers given to him.

The voter, having received the voting paper or papers, shall immediately retire into one of the inner compartments provided, and shall there alone and secretly on each voting-paper indicate the candidate or candidates for whom he desires to vote by marking a cross in a square set opposite to the name of each such candidate:

Provided that no voting-paper shall be rejected as informal that clearly indicates the candidate or candidates for whom the voter intended to vote, whether such indication is made in the manner prescribed by this section or by striking out the names of the candidate or candidates for whom the voter did not intend to vote.

Every voter shall, before leaving the inner compartment, fold the paper so that the contents cannot be seen, and shall then deposit it so folded in the ballot-box.

If any voter is blind, or is unable to read or write, and so desires, the Returning Officer shall, together with any scrutineers present not exceeding two, and if necessary an interpreter, retire with him into the inner compartment and there make up the ballot-paper according to the instruction of the voter, and such Returning Officer shall sign his own name at the foot thereof.

Immediately on the close of the poll the Returning Officer and each of his Deputies (if any) shall, in the presence of the poll-clerks (if any) and of such of the scrutineers as may be present, open their respective ballot-boxes and ascertain from the voting-papers deposited therein the number of votes received by each candidate; and shall, upon and after such opening, both abstain themselves from inspecting the writing on the back of the voting-papers and take care that the same is not seen by any person present.

The Deputy Returning Officer shall forthwith send the said numbers to the Returning Officer, who shall make up the whole number of votes received by each candidate at the election.

As soon as conveniently may be on or after the day of the poll, the Returning Officer shall give public notice of the number of votes received by each candidate, and shall declare those candidates, not exceeding the number of vacancies then to be filled, who have received the highest number of votes to be duly elected.

Where there is an equality of votes between candidates, and the addition of a vote would entitle any of such candidates to be declared elected, the Returning Officer shall determine by lot which candidate shall be elected.

Immediately after the close of the poll the Returning Officer and each Deputy Returning Officer shall seal up all the voting-papers used at his booth, together with the copy of the roll marked as above provided; and each Deputy shall deliver such packet, indorsed with the name of the booth, to the Returning Officer.

The Returning Officer shall seal up all such packets, and transmit the whole to the Clerk of the nearest Magistrate’s Court, who shall keep the same for six months thereafter, and shall not open such packet, or permit the same to be opened except on the order of some Court of competent jurisdiction; and shall, at the end of six months, effectually destroy the same.

Every person who, save on the order of any such Court, opens any such packet or destroys any of the contents thereof is liable to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds.

Every Deputy Returning Officer shall be personally responsible for the safe custody of all voting-papers used at the polling-booth at which he presides from the time each voting-paper was placed in the ballot-box by the voter until the parcel of used ballot-papers has been delivered to the Returning Officer as prescribed by section twenty-eight hereof, and the Deputy Returning Officer has obtained from the Returning Officer a receipt in writing for the same, which receipt the Returning Officer is in all cases required to give on such delivery.

In like manner every Returning Officer shall be personally responsible for the safe custody of all voting-papers used at the polling-booth at which he presides until the same have been dealt with in the manner prescribed by section twenty-nine hereof, and also for the safe custody of all parcels of used voting-papers for which he has given a receipt under the last preceding subsection until the same have been dealt with by him as aforesaid.

Every Returning Officer or Deputy Returning Officer who on any inquiry under section forty-five hereof is reported by the Court as having failed to take reasonable steps to secure the safe custody of all voting-papers for which he is responsible, and thereby any such voting-paper was removed from his custody, shall be liable to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds or to six months’ imprisonment.

Every Returning Officer shall have power to enforce order and keep the peace at any election, and may, without other warrant than this Act, cause to be arrested and taken before a Justice any person reasonably suspected of knowingly and wilfully making a false answer to any of the questions the Returning Officer is authorised to put, or who attempts to personate any voter, or to vote more than once at the same election, or obstructs the approaches to any polling-booth, or otherwise behaves in a disorderly manner or causes disturbance at any election; and all constables shall aid and assist the Returning Officer in the performance of his duty.

If the proceedings at any polling-booth are interrupted or obstructed by riot or violence, the Returning Officer or Deputy Returning Officer may adjourn the polling at such booth to the following day, and if necessary may so adjourn the polling from day to day till the riot ceases, when he shall again proceed therewith.

Every person is liable to two years’ imprisonment with or without hard labour who—

Every person is guilty of bribery who, whether before or after any election,—

Every person is liable to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds who—

Every Returning Officer, Deputy Returning Officer, scrutineer, clerk, or other person is liable to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds who makes known the state of the poll, or gives or pretends to give any information by which the state of the poll may be known, before the final declaration thereof by the Returning Officer, or who makes known for what candidate any voter has voted.

Every Returning Officer or Deputy Returning Officer is liable to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds who is guilty of any wilful or negligent act of commission or omission contrary to the provisions of this Act in respect of any election, and for which no other penalty is imposed by this Act.

If at any election to fill any vacancy in any office no person is nominated or returned, or a less number of persons are returned than there are vacancies to be filled, any vacancy remaining unfilled shall be deemed to be an extraordinary vacancy occurring on the day appointed for the nomination or election.

In the case of an extraordinary vacancy in an elective office, the Clerk or proper officer of the local authority shall forthwith give notice of such vacancy to the Returning Officer, and the Returning Officer shall forthwith by public notice appoint a day, not less than twenty nor more than twenty-five clear days from the occurrence of such vacancy, for the election to fill the same; and shall in such notice appoint a place and a day, not less than five nor more than seven days (exclusive of the day of election) before the election, for receiving the nomination of candidates.

Except as provided by this section, all the proceedings in an election to fill an extraordinary vacancy shall be the same as in the case of an ordinary vacancy.

All reasonable costs and expenses incident to any election, except expenses of the scrutineers and other expenses incurred by or on behalf of candidates, shall be paid out of the revenues at the disposal of the local authority.

Not less than fourteen clear days before any poll on a proposal to be submitted to the vote of the electors entitled to vote thereon (hereinafter referred to as “a poll”) the Returning Officer shall give public notice thereof.

The voting-papers shall be in the form numbered (6) in the Second Schedule hereto, and shall be printed on paper of uniform colour; and where an election and a poll are held simultaneously the voting-papers in each case shall be different in colour.

Scrutineers may be appointed in the following manner:—

Subject to the two last preceding sections, the proceedings at a poll shall be the same as in the case of an ordinary election, and such of the provisions of sections seven to forty hereof as are applicable shall, mutatis mutandis, extend and apply to the taking of the poll.

Where any candidate and five electors, or where any ten electors, are dissatisfied with the result of any election or poll held or taken under this Act, or under any Act to which this Act or any part thereof is applied, they may within fourteen days after the declaration of the result of the election or poll, by petition filed in the Court as hereinafter-mentioned, demand an inquiry as to the conduct of the election or poll, or of any candidate or other person thereat.

Every such petition shall be accompanied by a deposit of ten pounds.

Such petition shall be in such one of the forms in the Third Schedule hereto as is applicable, or to the like effect, and shall be filed in the Magistrate’s Court nearest to the principal polling-place at the election or poll to be inquired into, and shall be heard and determined before any Magistrate exercising jurisdiction at that Court.

The petition shall allege the specific grounds on which the complaint is founded, and no grounds other than those stated shall be investigated except by leave of the Magistrate and upon reasonable notice being given, which leave may be given on such terms and conditions as the Magistrate deems just:

Provided that, in the case of an election, evidence may be given to prove that the election of any rejected candidate would be invalid in the same manner as if the petition had complained of his election; and, in the case of a poll, evidence may be given to prove that some proposal other than that declared to be carried was carried and not rejected, or was rejected and not carried.

Any candidate in the case of an election, or any six electors in the case of a poll, may, at any time before the commencement of the inquiry, file in the Court in which the petition is filed a notice in writing of his or their intention to oppose the petition, and thereupon the candidate or electors giving such notice shall be deemed to be the respondent or respondents to the petition.

The inquiry shall be commenced within fourteen days after the filing of the petition, and not less than seven days’ public notice shall be given of the time and place at which the inquiry will be held.

For the purposes of the inquiry the Magistrate shall have and may exercise all the powers of citing parties, compelling evidence, and maintaining order he would have in his ordinary jurisdiction, and, in addition, may at any time during the inquiry direct a recount or scrutiny of the votes given at the election or poll, and shall disallow the vote of every person who—

The Magistrate shall determine whether, by reason of some irregularity that in his opinion materially affected the result of the election or poll, the election or poll is void; or whether, in the case of an election, the candidate whose election is complained of, or any and what other candidate, was duly elected; or whether, in the case of a poll, any and what proposal was duly carried.

Where on any such inquiry the Magistrate is of opinion that any irregularity has been wilfully committed by any person, he shall direct the chief officer of police in the district to take proceedings for the prosecution of such person, who on conviction shall (unless some other penalty is elsewhere prescribed) be liable—

The Magistrate may order that the expenses of and incident to the inquiry shall be borne either by any party to the inquiry or, where he declares the election or poll void on the ground or partly on the ground of any negligence or misfeasance of any Returning Officer or other person acting officially at the election or poll, may order that such expenses or any part thereof shall be borne by that Returning Officer or other person; and such order shall have the same effect and may be enforced in like manner as if it were a judgment for a sum of money obtained under “The Magistrates’ Courts Act, 1908,” in an action for debt in the Magistrate’s Court in which the petition is filed:

Provided that no such order shall be made against any person other than a party to the inquiry unless he has been summoned to attend and give evidence at the inquiry.

Subject to any such order, the Magistrate shall direct that the deposit accompanying any petition under section forty-five hereof shall be returned to the person who paid the same, unless the Magistrate is of opinion that the petitioners have failed to establish the grounds specified in their petition, or any other grounds investigated by leave of the Magistrate, in which case the deposit or the surplus remaining after satisfying such order shall be forfeited to the Crown.

Where an election or poll is declared void, a fresh election or poll shall, on a day to be fixed by the Returning Officer, being not later than twenty-five days after the date of such declaration, be held or taken under the same provisions, so far as practicable, as the voided election or poll.

Every determination or order under this Act shall be final and conclusive, and no such determination or order shall be removed by certiorari or otherwise into the Supreme Court, nor shall any writ of quo warranto issue for trying therein the validity of any election.

No polling-booth shall be in any house licensed under “The Licensing Act, 1908,” or in any premises belonging to such house.

All fines under this Act may be recovered in a summary way before any two Justices.