20/04/1923: Polling Districts and Polling Places Rules, 1923.

AIREACHT UM RIALTAS ÁITIÚIL. (Ministry of Local Government).

THE ELECTORAL ACT, 1923.

[Extract from Iris Oifigiúil of 1st May, 1923.]

IN pursuance of the powers vested in me by sub-sections (2) and (4) of Section 42 of the Electoral Act, 1923 , and of all other powers enabling me in this behalf, I, the Minister for Local Government, do by this my Order, make the following rules in accordance with which the powers of a Council under Section 42 of the said Act, shall be exercised, that is to say:—

1. This Order may be cited as the Polling Districts and Polling Places Rules, 1923.

2. In this Order the expression "the Act" means the Electoral Act, 1923 ; the expression "the Minister" means the Minister for Local Government; the expression "Council" means the Council of an Administrative County or County Borough by which the registration expenses of the registration officer under the Act for any registration area are to be paid; and other expressions have the same meaning as in the Act.

3. (1) Every Council shall prepare a scheme or schemes for the division of its Administrative County or County Borough into polling districts, and for the appointment of polling places for such polling districts and such scheme or schemes shall be submitted to the Minister for confirmation before taking effect.

(2) There shall be a separate scheme for each constituency or portion of a constituency that is proposed to be affected.

(3) No scheme shall be submitted to the Minister for confirmation until:—

(i) the Registration Officer and the Returning or Assistant Returning Officer for any constituency or portion of a constituency affected by the scheme shall have been consulted as to such scheme, and

(ii) until the scheme shall have been adopted by the Council.

4. (1) Every scheme for the division of a constituency (other than a borough constituency) into polling districts shall provide that the polling districts to be constituted as a result of the exercise of the powers of the Act shall consist (wherever practicable) wholly of one or more district electoral divisions.

(2) Every scheme to which this Rule applies shall set forth:—

(i) the name and constitution by district electoral divisions or parts of such district electoral divisions of every existing polling district affected by the scheme; and

(ii) the name and constitution by one or more district electoral divisions of each polling district as proposed to be constituted under the Act.

5. Every scheme for the division of a constituency into polling districts shall set forth:—

(i) the details of each proposed change; and

(ii) any recommendations made by the Registration Officer or Returning Officer, and the manner in which such recommendations have been dealt with.

6. Every scheme for the appointment of polling places shall set forth:—

(i) the existing polling places affected;

(ii) the details of each proposed appointment and the reasons for proposing such appointment; and

(iii) any recommendations made by the Registration Officer or Returning Officer, and the manner in which such recommendations have been dealt with.

7. (1) Public notice of the provisions of any scheme as adopted by a Council shall be given forthwith by advertisement in some local or other newspaper circulating in the constituency affected by the scheme. The said advertisement shall contain a statement of the effect of the scheme, and a statement of the time and place or places during and at which copies of the scheme may be inspected by any elector or person affected by the scheme during a period of two weeks from the date of the publication of such advertisement, and a statement of the provisions of sub-section (5) of Section 42 of the Act.

(2) Every scheme shall be open for such inspection and during such period as are mentioned in paragraph (1) of this Rule.

8. A copy of any scheme adopted by a Council shall, at any time while copies of the scheme are open to inspection in accordance with Rule 7 or Rule 10 hereof, be supplied by the Secretary or Clerk of the Council to any elector or person affected by the scheme upon payment by such elector or person of a sum not exceeding threepence for each hundred words of manuscript if the copy of the scheme be in writing or upon payment of a sum not exceeding threepence for a printed copy of the scheme.

9. On or before the date of the publication of the advertisement, in pursuance of Rule 7 of this Order, of the provisions of any scheme adopted as aforesaid, copies of the scheme shall be forwarded to each of the following, that is to say, the Registration Officer, and the Returning Officer or Assistant Returning Officer, for the constituency or portion thereof affected thereby, and each local authority within such constituency.

10. (1) When a scheme for the division of a constituency into polling districts, or the appointment of polling places, or the alteration of any of the same, has been confirmed by the Minister with or without modifications, the Council shall cause a statement showing such division, appointment, or alteration as so confirmed to be sent forthwith to the Minister, and to the Registration Officer and the Returning Officer or Assistant Returning Officer for the constituency or portion thereof affected by such division, appointment, or alteration.

(2) When a scheme has been confirmed as aforesaid, the Council shall publish the notice required by sub-section (3) of Section 42 of the Act, in some local or other newspaper circulating in the constituency affected by the scheme, and shall thereafter keep a copy of the scheme as so confirmed open to inspection by any elector or person affected thereby at the office of the Council during office hours.

11. Nothing contained in the foregoing Rules shall affect prejudicially any powers or duties of a Returning Officer under the Act, or any other enactment, with respect to the provision of polling stations or accommodation for electors at any polling place or places appointed by a Council under the Act, or with respect to the giving of any public notices by a Returning Officer in pursuance of any such enactment.

GIVEN under My Seal of Office this 20th day of

April, in the Year of Our Lord, One Thousand

Nine Hundred and Twenty-three.

EARNÁN DE BLAGHD,

Aire um Rialtas Áitiúil.