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Amendment of Rules 1 to 12 of Part I of Fifth Schedule to Principal Act.
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21.—(1) The following Rules shall be substituted for Rules 1 to 12 of Part I of the Fifth Schedule to the Principal Act:
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Notice of election.
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“1. (1) The returning officer shall, within two days after the day on which he receives the writ, give public notice in the form specified by regulations made by the Minister of—
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(a) the times and place at which forms of nomination papers may be obtained;
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(b) the times and place at which he will attend to receive nomination papers; and
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(c) the day on which (if the election is contested) the poll will be taken.
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(2) The returning officer shall send one copy of such public notice by post to the postmaster of the principal post office for each polling district in the constituency in an envelope endorsed with the words ‘Notice of Election’, and such notice so endorsed shall be forwarded and delivered by post free of charge, and each postmaster to whom a copy of such notice is sent shall upon receipt thereof forthwith publish it in the manner in which post office notices are usually published.
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Necessity for nomination.
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2. A person shall not be entitled to have his name inserted in a ballot paper as a candidate at a Dáil election unless he has been nominated in manner provided by these Rules and his nomination paper has been ruled as valid by the returning officer.
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Nominations.
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3. A person may nominate himself as a candidate for election to the Dáil or may, with his consent, be nominated by another person (being a person registered as a Dáil elector in the constituency for which he proposes to nominate the candidate) as proposer.
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Nomination to be in writing and specified form.
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4. Each nomination shall be in writing and in the form specified by regulations made by the Minister.
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Supply of nomination forms.
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5. The returning officer shall arrange for the supply of nomination forms during the usual office hours, at such place as is named in that behalf in the Notice of Election, on each day between the publication of that notice and up to 12 noon on the last day for receiving nominations, but the use of a form supplied by the returning officer shall not be obligatory so long as the nomination paper used is in the specified form.
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Delivery of nomination papers.
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6. (1) Nomination papers shall be delivered to the returning officer by the candidate or his proposer not earlier than the second day after the publication of the Notice of Election under Rule 1 hereof and not later than 12 noon on the last day for receiving nominations.
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(2) The delivery shall be made by the candidate in person but, if the candidate is proposed by another person, it may be made either as aforesaid or by the proposer.
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(3) The returning officer shall attend to receive nominations at the place specified in that behalf in the Notice of Election under Rule 1 hereof between the hours of 10 a.m. and 12 noon and between the hours of 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. on the day before the last day for receiving nominations and between the hours of 10 a.m. and 12 noon on such last day.
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(4) The candidate nominated by each nomination paper and his proposer, if any, and one other person selected by the candidate or his proposer, as the case may be, and no other person whatsoever except with the permission of the returning officer shall be entitled to attend while a nomination paper is being ruled upon by the returning officer.
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Selection of nomination papers.
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7. The returning officer shall number the nomination papers in the order in which they are received by him; and the first valid nomination paper nominating a candidate for election in a constituency shall be deemed to be the nomination of that candidate for that constituency.
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Description of candidate.
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8. The names, address and occupation (if any) of each candidate shall be stated on his nomination paper and his surname shall come first in the statement of his names.
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Ruling on nomination papers.
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9. (1) The returning officer shall rule on the validity of a nomination paper within one hour after its delivery and may rule that it is invalid if, but only if, he considers that it is not properly made out or subscribed.
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(2) The returning officer shall object to the description of a candidate in a nomination paper which is, in his opinion, incorrect, insufficient to identify the candidate or unnecessarily long; where a returning officer so objects, he shall allow the candidate or his proposer, as may be appropriate, to amend the description and, if it is not so amended to the returning officer's satisfaction, the returning officer may amend or delete it, as he thinks fit, after consultation with the candidate or his proposer, if either is present, or may rule that the nomination paper is invalid as not being properly made out.
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(3) (a) A candidate may include in his nomination paper the name of the political party registered in the Register of Political Parties of which he is a candidate provided that, at the time the nomination paper is delivered to the returning officer, a certificate in the form specified by regulations made by the Minister authenticating the candidature is produced to the returning officer, being a certificate signed by the officer or officers of such party whose name or names appear in the said Register pursuant to paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section 13 of the Electoral Act, 1963. The returning officer, provided he is satisfied that it is appropriate to do so in relation to the candidate, shall cause a statement of the name of such party, as shown in the nomination paper, to be specified in relation to the candidate on all the ballot papers and on notices.
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(b) Where a candidate is not the candidate of a political party registered in the Register of Political Parties, he shall be entitled to enter after his name on the nomination paper the expression ‘Non-Party’ and, if he does so, the returning officer shall cause a statement of that expression to be specified in relation to the candidate on all the ballot papers and on notices.
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(c) Any reference in the foregoing subparagraphs to the Register of Political Parties shall be construed as a reference to the copy of that Register sent to the returning officer pursuant to subsection (9) of section 13 of the Electoral Act, 1963.
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(4) When the returning officer has ruled on the validity of a nomination paper, he shall put a note of his decision on the nomination paper, and shall sign the note. If he decides that the paper is invalid, he shall include a statement of his reasons. His decision, if it rules that the nomination paper is valid, shall be final and, if it rules that the nomination paper is invalid, shall be subject to reversal on petition questioning the election or return.
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(5) As soon as practicable after ruling on the validity of a nomination paper, the returning officer shall give, by post or otherwise, notice in writing of his decision to the candidate.
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(6) Nothing in this Rule shall prevent the nomination or election of any candidate being questioned by petition questioning the election.
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Publication of names of candidates.
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10. The returning officer shall, as soon as practicable after he has ruled that a nomination paper is valid, placard in a conspicuous position outside the place at which he is receiving nominations the name and description of the person nominated in the paper and the name and address of his proposer, if any.
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Withdrawal of nominations.
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11. (1) A candidate may before 12 noon on the day after the last day for receiving nominations, but not afterwards, withdraw from his candidature by delivering or having his proposer deliver a notice to that effect, signed by him, to the returning officer.
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(2) In a case in which the returning officer is satisfied that a candidate is unable to attend and wishes to withdraw his candidature, withdrawal may be effected by furnishing, before the said hour, a notice to that effect, signed by the candidate and the person presenting the notice, to the returning officer.
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Publication of withdrawal.
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12. The returning officer shall, immediately on the withdrawal, give public notice of a withdrawn candidate (and, in the case of a withdrawn candidate whose nomination paper was subscribed by another person, of the name of the other person).”
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(2) Where a person produces to a returning officer a certificate such as is referred to in paragraph (3) of Rule 9 of Part I of the Fifth Schedule to the Principal Act which that person knows to be forged, he shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding two hundred pounds or, at the discretion of the Court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both such fine and such imprisonment.
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(3) (a) A person shall not—
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(i) nominate another person for election to the Dáil, or
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(ii) withdraw the candidature of another person for election to the Dáil,
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save with the consent of that person.
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(b) A person who contravenes paragraph (a) of this subsection shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding two hundred pounds or, at the discretion of the Court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both such fine and such imprisonment.
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