Local Government Act, 1994

Conduct of elections.

22.—(1) Local elections shall be held in accordance with regulations made by the Minister under this section and, if an election is contested, the poll shall be taken according to the system of proportional representation, each elector having one transferable vote.

(2) Regulations under this section may, in particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing subsection, include provision for all or any of the following matters in relation to local elections:

(a) nominations,

(b) deposits by candidates,

(c) deaths of candidates,

(d) duties of returning officers,

(e) staff of returning officers,

(f) taking of polls and counting of votes,

(g) use, free of charge, of schools and public rooms,

(h) arrangements for postal voting,

(i) arrangements for special voting,

(j) voting by persons in the employment of returning officers,

(k) voting by physically ill or physically disabled electors,

(l) polling on islands,

(m) issue of polling information cards,

(n) maintenance of secrecy of voting,

(o) removal of persons misconducting themselves in polling stations,

(p) procedure in cases of disorder or obstruction,

(q) interference with ballot boxes or ballot papers,

(r) the persons who are to be aldermen and their number,

(s) election of the same person in more than one local electoral area,

(t) adaptation of enactments,

(u) the manner in which the costs of local elections are to be paid by local authorities,

(v) provisions corresponding to sections 60 , 105 , 134 to 154 , 156 to 160 and 163 of the Electoral Act, 1992 , with such modifications as appear to the Minister to be appropriate.

(3) Where a provision of regulations under this section corresponds to a provision of the Electoral Act, 1992 which declares a matter to be an electoral offence, the regulations may provide for a corresponding offence in relation to local elections and lay down a penalty therefor which shall not exceed the relevant penalty specified in section 157 of that Act.

(4) Regulations made under sections 82 and 86 of the Electoral Act, 1963 (repealed by this Act) and in force at the commencement of this section shall continue in force and shall have effect as if made under this section.

(5) Where regulations under this section are proposed to be made, a draft thereof shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and the regulations shall not be made until a resolution approving of the draft has been passed by each House.

(6) No local election shall be invalid by reason of non-compliance with any regulation under this section, or any mistake in the use of forms provided for by any such regulation, if it appears to the court having cognisance of the question that the election was conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the regulations under this section taken as a whole, and that the non-compliance or mistake did not affect the result of the election.

(7) Regulations under this section shall apply to a new election under Part IV of the Act of 1941.

(8) In this section “transferable vote” has the meaning assigned to it in section 37 of the Electoral Act, 1992 .

(9) A decision to issue polling information cards in accordance with regulations under this section shall be a reserved function.