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19 1963

ELECTORAL ACT, 1963

PART III.

Conduct and Costs of Dáil Elections.

Chapter I.

General.

“General Election”, “Bye-Election” and “excluded day”.

9. —(1) Section 65 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for the definitions of “General Election” and “Bye-Election” of the following definitions:

“The expression ‘General Election’ shall mean a general election for members of the Dáil held in accordance with subsection 2° of section 3 of Article 16 of the Constitution;

“The expression ‘Bye-Election’ shall mean an election of a member of the Dáil to fill a vacancy occasioned by a person having ceased to be a member of the Dáil otherwise than in consequence of a dissolution;”.

(2) In this Part of this Act “excluded day” means any of the days which are specified in subsection (1) of section 60 of the Principal Act as days not to be reckoned.

Maximum duration of Dáil.

10. —The same Dáil shall not continue for a longer period than five years from the date of its first meeting.

Returning officers and assistant, deputy and acting returning officers.

11. —(1) The returning officer for a constituency shall be—

(a) in case the whole of the constituency is situate in a county or county borough for which there is a sheriff—the sheriff,

(b) in case part of the constituency is situate in a county borough and part in a county and there is a sheriff for the county borough and a sheriff for the county—such one of the sheriffs as the Minister appoints from time to time,

(c) in any other case—the county registrar or, where part of the constituency has one county registrar and part another county registrar or parts other county registrars, such one of the county registrars as the Minister appoints from time to time.

(2) (a) Where a constituency does not consist of the whole or part of a county or county borough, the returning officer may appoint the appropriate officer to be assistant returning officer for part of the constituency.

(b) The exercise of the power conferred by the foregoing paragraph shall be obligatory if the appropriate officer requires its exercise.

(c) In this subsection the “appropriate officer” means the county registrar for the county or county borough in which the part of the constituency is situate or if there is a sheriff for that county or county borough, such sheriff.

(3) Where the same person is returning officer for two or more constituencies, in each of which there is at the same time a contested election, he shall—

(a) in case those constituencies are two and not more, appoint in respect of one of them, a deputy returning officer to open the ballot boxes and count the votes,

(b) in any other case, appoint, in respect of each of the constituencies (except one), a deputy returning officer to open the ballot boxes and count the votes,

and he may include in any such appointment, if he so thinks proper, an appointment to receive nomination papers.

(4) A person shall not be appointed under subsection (3) of this section unless the appointment has been approved of by the Minister.

(5) Where a vacancy occurs in the office of county registrar or sheriff and the holder was a returning officer, the Minister, if he so thinks proper, may appoint a person to act as returning officer during the period of the vacancy.

(6) Where the returning officer is prevented by illness or other reasonable cause from performing all or any of his duties, the Minister shall appoint a person to act as returning officer for the performance of those duties during the period of the prevention.

(7) An assistant returning officer shall perform, in the part of the constituency for which he was appointed, such of the duties of the returning officer for the constituency as that officer is not required by law to perform in person but if any doubt arises as to the duties of an assistant returning officer, the doubt shall be determined by the Minister.

(8) Any reference in this section to a county shall be construed as a reference to an administrative county.

(9) References in the Electoral Acts, 1923 to 1963, to returning officers shall, where appropriate, include references to assistant, deputy and acting returning officers.

(10) An appointment which was in operation immediately before the commencement of this section under paragraph (b) or paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section 7 of the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 1961, (repealed by this Act) shall be deemed to be an appointment under paragraph (b) or paragraph (c) (as may be appropriate) of subsection (1) of this section.

Issue and return of writs.

12. —(1) Where the Dáil is dissolved, the Clerk of Dáil Éireann shall, immediately upon the issue of the Proclamation dissolving the Dáil, issue a writ to each returning officer for a constituency directing him to cause an election to be held of the full number of members of the Dáil to serve in the Dáil for that constituency.

(2) Where a vacancy occurs in the membership of the Dáil by a person ceasing to be a member otherwise than in consequence of a dissolution, the Chairman of Dáil Éireann (or, where he is unable through illness, absence or other cause to fulfil his duties, the Deputy Chairman of Dáil Éireann) shall, as soon as he is directed by the Dáil so to do, direct the Clerk of Dáil Éireann to issue a writ to the returning officer for the constituency in the representation of which the vacancy has occurred directing the returning officer to cause an election to be held of a member of the Dáil to fill the vacancy mentioned in the writ.

(3) If at any time there are two or more vacancies in the representation of any constituency in the Dáil and the Clerk of Dáil Éireann is directed on the same day to issue writs for the election of members to fill all or more than one of the vacancies, the Clerk of Dáil Éireann shall issue only one writ to the returning officer for the constituency and shall by the writ direct him to hold one election to fill all the vacancies mentioned in the writ in the representation of the constituency, and the returning officer shall accordingly hold one election only for the election of members of the Dáil to fill all the vacancies mentioned in the writ.

(4) (a) The return of a member or members to serve in the Dáil shall be made by a certificate of his name or their names endorsed on the writ for the constituency concerned under the hand of the returning officer.

(b) The returning officer shall as soon as possible after the ascertainment of the result of the election deliver the return to the Clerk of Dáil Éireann and may for that purpose, if he so thinks fit, dispatch it by registered post.

(c) A return so dispatched shall be transmitted to the Clerk of Dáil Éireann free of charge by the earliest practicable post.

(5) Where an outgoing Chairman of Dáil Éireann within the meaning of section 14 of this Act is deemed by virtue of that section to be elected at a general election as a member of the Dáil—

(a) the writ issued to the returning officer for the constituency for which he is so deemed to be elected shall be so worded that it directs the returning officer to cause an election to be held of one less than the full number of members of the Dáil for the constituency;

(b) at the time of issuing the writ or as soon as may be thereafter, the Clerk of Dáil Éireann shall send to the returning officer and shall publish in Iris Oifigiúil a certificate certifying that the outgoing Chairman of Dáil Éireann did not announce to the Dáil before the dissolution thereof that he did not desire to become a member of the Dáil at the general election consequent on the dissolution;

(c) the returning officer shall, in the public notice given by him under Rule 43 of Part I of the Fifth Schedule to the Principal Act, include the name of the outgoing Chairman of Dáil Éireann among the names of the candidates elected for the constituency.

(6) A writ issued under this section shall be in the appropriate form specified in Part I of the Second Schedule to this Act, shall be dispatched by registered post to the returning officer and shall be transmitted free of charge by the earliest practicable post, and the returning officer, immediately after receiving the writ, shall acknowledge by telegram its receipt.

(7) If and so long as the office of Clerk of Dáil Éireann is vacant or the holder of that office is unable through illness, absence or other cause to fulfil his duties, the Clerk-Assistant of Dáil Éireann shall carry out the duties under this section of the Clerk of Dáil Éireann.

Register of Political Parties.

13. —(1) (a) The person who for the time being holds the office of Clerk of Dáil Éireann shall be the Registrar of Political Parties for the purposes of this section.

(b) If and so long as the office of Clerk of Dáil Éireann is vacant or the holder of that office is unable through illness, absence or other cause to fulfil his duties, the Clerk-Assistant of Dáil Éireann shall act as Registrar of Political Parties for the purposes of this section.

(c) In the subsequent subsections of this section, “the Registrar” means the Registrar of Political Parties for the purposes of this section or the Clerk-Assistant of Dáil Éireann acting as such Registrar (as may be appropriate).

(2) The Registrar shall prepare and maintain a register (to be known as the Register of Political Parties) in which, subject to the subsequent provisions of this section, he shall register any political party—

(a) which applies to him for registration, and

(b) which is in his opinion,—

(i) a genuine political party, and

(ii) is organised to contest a Dáil election or a local election.

(3) The following particulars shall be entered in the Register of Political Parties in respect of a political party registered therein:

(a) the name of the party,

(b) the address of the party's headquarters,

(c) the name or names of the officer or officers of the party authorised to sign certificates authenticating the candidature of candidates of the party at elections.

(4) Immediately on setting up the Register of Political Parties, the Registrar shall register therein the parties then represented in the Dáil by the names by which they are commonly known and shall complete each such registration by inserting the particulars referred to in paragraphs (b) and (c) of subsection (3) of this section on being informed thereof.

(5) A political party shall not be registered in the Register of Political Parties if its name—

(a) is identical with the name of any party already registered in the Register of Political Parties or, in the opinion of the Registrar, so nearly resembles such name as to be calculated to mislead, confuse or deceive,

(b) is, in the opinion of the Registrar, unnecessarily long, or

(c) in the case of a party operating in relation to a particular part only of the State, does not include such reference to that part as, in the opinion of the Registrar, distinguishes the party as so operating.

(6) A political party registered in the Register of Political Parties shall from time to time keep the Registrar informed as to the name or names of the officer or officers referred to in paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of this section.

(7) The Registrar shall, with respect to each party registered in the Register of Political Parties, enquire at least once in each year, by letter sent by post to an officer of the party referred to in paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of this section, whether the party desires to remain registered and, unless he receives an affirmative reply to such an enquiry within twenty-one days from the date of the posting of the letter containing the enquiry, he shall cancel the registration of the party concerned.

(8) (a) Any doubt, dispute or question which may arise in connection with the Register of Political Parties shall be decided by an appeal board.

(b) The appeal board shall consist of a Judge of the High Court (to be nominated by the President of the High Court), who shall be chairman, the Chairman of Dáil Éireann (or, where he is unable, through illness, absence or other cause to fulfil his duties, the Deputy Chairman of Dáil Éireann) and the Chairman of Seanad Éireann, (or, where he is unable, through illness, absence or other cause to fulfil his duties, the Deputy Chairman of Seanad Éireann).

(c) A decision of the appeal board shall be complied with by the Registrar.

(9) On the third day (disregarding any excluded day) after the day of the issuing under section 12 of this Act of a writ or writs, the Registrar shall send to the returning officer or each returning officer a copy of the Register of Political Parties.

(10) The Minister for Finance shall, out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas, pay to the Registrar the amount of his reasonable charges, not exceeding such amount as may be sanctioned by that Minister, in respect of the performance by the Registrar of his duties under this section.

Re-election of outgoing Chairman of Dáil Éireann.

14. —(1) Where the Dáil is dissolved and the outgoing Chairman of Dáil Éireann has not announced to the Dáil before the dissolution that he does not desire to become a member of the Dáil at the general election consequent on the dissolution, he shall be deemed without any actual election to be elected at such general election as a member of the Dáil for—

(a) the constituency for which he was a member of the Dáil immediately before the dissolution, or

(b) if a revision of constituencies takes effect on the dissolution, the constituency declared on the revision to correspond to the constituency mentioned in the foregoing paragraph.

(2) Where an outgoing Chairman of Dáil Éireann is deemed by virtue of this section to be elected at a general election as a member of the Dáil for a particular constituency, the number of members actually elected at that general election for that constituency shall be one less than would otherwise be required.

(3) In this section “outgoing Chairman of Dáil Éireann” means a person who, immediately before the dissolution of the Dáil in relation to which the expression is used, was the Chairman of Dáil Éireann.

Specification by regulations of certain forms.

15. —(1) The Minister may by regulations specify the forms named in subsection (2) of this section and, where any such regulations are for the time being in force, each form specified thereby shall stand substituted in the Fifth Schedule to the Principal Act for the corresponding form specified in that Schedule.

(2) The forms referred to in subsection (1) of this section are the following forms in Part III of the Fifth Schedule to the Principal Act:

(a) form 4 (notice of election),

(b) form 5 (nomination paper),

(c) form 10 (notice of result of election and of transfer of votes).

(3) Regulations under this section which specify the form of nomination paper may, if the Minister so thinks proper, include in the form—

(a) a note of the qualifications, disqualifications and incapacities for election to and membership of Dáil Éireann,

(b) a form of declaration, to be signed by the candidate or his proposer, that he has read the note and believes himself or the candidate (as may be appropriate) to be eligible for election,

and if any person makes a declaration such as aforesaid pursuant to regulations under this section in a case in which he or the candidate (as may be appropriate) is not eligible for election, he shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one 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.

(4) In a prosecution for an offence under this section, it shall be a good defence for the defendant to show that he had reasonable grounds for believing that he or the candidate (as may be appropriate) was eligible for election.

Ballot paper.

16. —(1) The following section is hereby substituted for section 26 of the Principal Act:

“26. Votes at a Dáil election shall be given by ballot, and the ballot of each voter shall consist of a paper (in this Act called a ballot paper) in form 5A in Part III of the Fifth Schedule to this Act.”

(2) The form and directions set out in Part II of the Second Schedule to this Act are hereby inserted in Part III of the Fifth Schedule to the Principal Act after form 5, and the returning officer shall comply with such directions.

Destruction, etc. of ballot boxes or ballot papers.

17. —If at the poll at a Dáil election any ballot boxes or ballot papers are taken out of the custody of the returning officer or a presiding officer or are in any way tampered with or are either accidentally or intentionally destroyed or (in the case of ballot papers) are maliciously torn or defaced, the following provisions shall have effect:

(a) the polling at every polling place at which any of the ballot boxes or ballot papers were used shall be void;

(b) the returning officer shall forthwith inform the Minister of the polling having so become void;

(c) upon receipt of that information, the Minister shall forthwith take all such steps and give all such directions as he thinks proper for the taking of a fresh poll at every such polling place;

(d) a fresh poll shall be taken at every such polling place in accordance with the directions given by the Minister;

(e) the Electoral Acts, 1923 to 1963, shall apply in respect of such fresh poll in like manner as they apply to the original poll.