S.I. No. 141/1984 - The European Assembly Election, Dáil Bye-Election and Referendum Regulations, 1984.

The Minister for the Environment, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by section 91 of the Electoral Act, 1963 (No. 19 of 1963), as amended by section 21 of the European Assembly Elections Act, 1977 (No. 30 of 1977), in order to give effect to the said section 91 in relation to the polls to be taken at the Assembly election, the Dáil bye-election and the referendum hereby makes the following Regulations:—

1 Citation

1. These Regulations may be cited as the European Assembly Elections, Dáil Bye-Election and Referendum Regulations, 1984.

2 Interpretation

2. (1) In these Regulations—

"the Act of 1942" means the Referendum Act, 1942 (No. 8 of 1942);

"the Act of 1963" means the Electoral Act, 1963 ;

"the Act of 1977" means the European Assembly Elections Act, 1977 ;

"the Act of 1984" means the European Assembly Elections Act, 1984 (No. 6 of 1984);

"Assembly ballot paper" means a ballot paper used for the purpose of the Assembly election;

"Assembly constituency" means a constituency or any of the constituencies specified in the Second Schedule to the Act of 1977;

"Assembly election" means the election of representatives to the Assembly of the European Communities to be held on the 14th day of June, 1984;

"Assembly election rules" means the First Schedule to the Act of 1977 as amended by the Act of 1984;

"local returning officer" means a person who is a local returning officer pursuant to section 14(2) of the Act of 1977 and pursuant to section 11 of the Act of 1942, as amended by section 67 of the Act of 1963 and modified by section 2 of the Referendum (Amendment) Act, 1984 (No. 7 of 1984);

"the Dáil bye-election" means the bye-election to fill the vacancy existing at the date of these Regulations in the Dáil constituency of Laoighis-Offaly;

"the Dáil constituency" means the constituency of Laoighis—Offaly specified in the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 1980 (No. 17 of 1980);

"the Dáil returning officer" means the person who, pursuant to section 11 of the Act of 1963, is the returning officer for the Dáil constituency of Laoighis-Offaly;

"referendum" means the referendum on the Ninth Amendment of the Constitution Bill, 1984 to be held on the 14th day of June, 1984;

"the Minister" means the Minister for the Environment;

(2) References in these Regulations to a local returning officer shall be construed as including references to a deputy or acting local returning officer.

3 Effect of Regulations

3. These Regulations shall have effect in relation to the Dáil bye-election, the Assembly election and the referendum.

4 Death of candidate

4. (1) Where in the circumstances referred to in Rule 20 of the Assembly election rules, as amended by section 7 of the Act of 1984, the poll at an Assembly election in an Assembly constituency is not taken or completed on the polling day appointed under section 6 of the Act of 1977, these Regulations shall not apply in relation to the fresh Assembly election to be held under the said Rule.

(2) Where in the circumstances referred to in section 32 of the Act of 1963, the poll at the Dáil bye-election is not taken or completed on the polling day appointed under section 24 of the said Act, these Regulations shall not apply in relation to the fresh election to be held under the said section 32.

5 Deputy local returning officer.

5. (1) It shall be lawful for a local returning officer at the Assembly election, with the consent of the Minister, to appoint deputy local returning officers for the discharge of all or any particular part of the duties of such local returning officer.

(2) Where the same person is the local returning officer at the Assembly election for both a county and a county borough or for two counties he shall appoint in respect of one of them, a deputy local returning officer for the purposes of Rule 51A of the Assembly election rules (inserted by section 7 of the Act of 1984) and article 11 of these Regulations.

(3) A person shall not be appointed under sub-article (2) of this article unless the appointment has been approved of by the Minister.

6 Polling Cards.

6. (1) Subject to sub-article (2) of this article in every Assembly constituency in which there is a contested Assembly election, a polling card sent to an elector under section 64 of the Act of 1963 or under section 1 of the Referendum (Amendment) Act, 1984 , shall contain, in addition to the statement set out in the Appendix to the said section 1, the following statement:—

"You will receive two ballot papers.

White Ballot Paper — European Assembly Election

You may vote for the candidates in the order of your choice (1, 2, 3, etc)

Green Ballot Paper — Referendum".

(2) In the event that the Dáil bye-election is contested a polling card sent to an elector, whose name is on the register of electors for the county of Laoighis or the county of Offaly under section 64 of the Act of 1963 or under section 1 of the Referendum (Amendment) Act, 1984 , shall contain, in addition to the statement set out in the Appendix to the said section 1, the following statement:—

"You will receive three ballot papers.

Blue Ballot Paper — Dáil Bye-Election

You may vote for the candidates in the order of your choice (1, 2, 3, etc)

White Ballot Paper — European Assembly Election

You may vote for the candidates in the order of your choice (1, 2, 3, etc)

Green Ballot Paper — Referendum"

and section 23 of the Act of 1963 shall not apply in relation to the Dáil bye-election.

(3) A polling card shall not be sent under Rule 28 of the Assembly election rules to an elector to whom a polling card is to be sent under section 64 of the Act of 1963.

7 Postal Voting.

7. (1) Where ballot papers and related documents are to be sent to a postal voter both under Rule 26 of the Assembly election rules and under section 20 of the Act of 1942, as amended by section 69 of the Act of 1963, the ballot papers and documents shall be enclosed in a single covering envelope addressed to the postal voter and a single covering envelope addressed to the local returning officer shall be provided for the return of the documents by the postal voter.

(2) The form of receipt for a ballot paper shall indicate whether it relates to the Assembly election, the Dáil bye-election or the referendum.

8 Polling on islands.

8. In relation to the referendum:

(a) section 65 of the Act of 1963 which provides for advance polling on islands because of weather or transport difficulties shall not apply;

(b) Rule 33 of the Assembly election rules, as modified by article 12 of these Regulations, shall apply in the same manner as it applies to the Assembly election.

9 Provisions relating to taking of poll.

9. The following provisions shall have effect in relation to the taking of the polls in a polling station:

(a) the same person shall be appointed to be the presiding officer at each poll;

(b) the same copy of the register of electors shall be used for each poll and the register shall be marked to indicate the poll or polls in respect of which a ballot paper is delivered to each elector;

(c) where one of the polls is the poll at the bye-election, a separate ballot box shall be provided for such poll and at the close of poll such box shall be delivered to the Dáil returning officer;

(d) the following questions shall be substituted for those set out in Rule 47(1)(b) of the Assembly election rules and sections 26(2)(b) and 70(2)(b) of the Act of 1963—

(i) Are you the same person as the person whose name appears as AB on the register of electors now in force for the county (county borough) of...............................................?

(ii) Have you already voted at this election? (or — at this referendum? — as the case may be)

(iii) Had you reached the age of eighteen years on the 15th day of April, 1984?

and (in the case only of a person who applies for an Assembly ballot paper)

(iv) Are you either or both of the following

(a) a citizen of Ireland,

(b) a national of a Member State of the European communities other than Ireland?

(e) the following oath (or affirmation) shall be substituted for the oath (or affirmation) set out in Rule 47(1)(c) of the Assembly election rules and section 26(2)(c) and 70(2)(c) of the Act of 1963.

"I swear by Almighty God (or — do solemnly, sincerely and truly declare and affirm — as the case may be) that I am the same person as the person whose name appears as AB on the register of electors now in force for the county (or county borough) of ...................... and that I have not already voted at this election (or — at this referendum — as the case may be) and that I had attained the age of eighteen years on 15th April, 1984 and (in the case only of a person who applies for an Assembly ballot paper) that I am a citizen of Ireland (or — a national of a Member State of the European Communities other than Ireland — or — both a citizen of Ireland and a national of a Member State of the European Communities other than Ireland — as the case may be)".

10 Bye-election ballot boxes.

10. Having opened the ballot boxes used at the Dáil bye-election in pursuance of Rule 22 of the Fifth Schedule to the Electoral Act, 1923 , the Dáil returning officer shall—

(a) examine the ballot papers therein so as to ascertain if the ballot box contains any Assembly or referendum ballot papers;

(b) remove any Assembly or referendum ballot papers found in such box;

(c) place such Assembly ballot papers and referendum ballot papers in separate packets together with a statement showing in each case the number of papers enclosed in the packet and giving particulars of the ballot box in which each such ballot paper was found;

(d) seal each such packet and transmit it by hand to the local returning officer.

11 Arrangements in relation to ballot boxes other than bye-election boxes.

11. (1) The local returning officer shall specify the hour of 9 a.m. on the day next after the close of the poll as the day and time at which he will open the ballot boxes pursuant to Rule 51A of the Assembly election rules (inserted by section 7 (f) of the Act of 1984) and shall specify the same place appointed by him under Rule 23A of the First Schedule to the Act of 1942 (as substituted by section 78 of the Act of 1963) as the place at which the ballot boxes will be opened pursuant to the said Rule 51A.

(2) At the time and place appointed under sub-article (1) the local returning officer shall commence to open the ballot boxes and shall—

(a) deal with the Assembly ballot papers in accordance with the said Rule 51A and

(b) deal with the referendum ballot papers in accordance with the rules set out in the first Schedule to the Act of 1942.

(3) In the event of the Dáil bye-election being contested, the local returning officer for the county of Laoighis and the local returning officer for the county of Offaly having opened each ballot box in pursuance of the proceeding sub-article shall—

(a) examine the ballot papers therein so as to ascertain if the ballot box contains any bye-election ballot papers;

(b) remove any bye-election ballot papers found in the box;

(c) place such bye-election ballot papers in a packet together with a statement showing the number of papers enclosed in the packet and giving particulars of the ballot box in which each such ballot paper was found;

(d) seal each such packet and transmit it by hand to the returning officer for the Dáil constituency.

12 Modification of Act of 1977.

12. The Act of 1977 shall have effect as if in the First Schedule—

(a) "hour of 9 a.m. on the day next following the polling day" were substituted for "time appointed for the commencement of the count" in Rule 33(b);

(b) "hour of 9 a.m. on the day next following the polling day" were substituted for "time fixed by the Minister under section 6 of this Act for the commencement of the count" in Rule 48(3); and

(c) Rule 32 was deleted.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for the Environment

this 30th day of May, 1984.

LIAM KAVANAGH,

Minister for the Environment.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These regulations make certain provisions in relation to the European Assembly elections, the Dáil bye-election in the constituency of Laoighis/Offaly and the referendum on the Ninth Amendment of the Constitution in order to facilitate the taking of the polls on the same day.