Electoral Reform Act 2022
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Anonymous electors | ||
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93. The Act of 1992 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 15D: | ||
“15E. (1) A person who— | ||
(a) is entitled to be registered as an elector and applies to be so entered on the register under section 15D(1), or | ||
(b) a person who is an elector on the register, | ||
may, where the publication or the making available for inspection of the name and address of the person or a member of the household of the person would be prejudicial to the personal safety of the person or member of the person’s household, apply to the registration authority in the registration area in which he or she is ordinarily resident to have his or her name and address omitted from the register published or made available by the registration authority for inspection under section 20 and Rules 13 and 14 of Part I of the Second Schedule (and, where the application is granted by the registration authority, shall be referred to in this Act as an ‘anonymous elector’). | ||
(2) An application under subsection (1) shall be made in accordance with Rule 36 of Part VII of the Second Schedule in a form directed by the Minister and shall be evidenced by any of the following: | ||
(a) a specified order within the meaning of the Domestic Violence Act 2018 made in favour of the person applying under subsection (1) or a member of the household of that person that is in force; | ||
(b) an order under section 10 (3) of the Non-Fatal Offences against the Person Act 1997 made in favour of the person applying under subsection (1) or a member of the household of that person that is in force; | ||
(c) an harassment order under section 46 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017 made in favour of the person applying under subsection (1) or a member of the household of that person that is in force; | ||
(d) a declaration by a qualified person, in the form provided under Rule 36 of Part VII of the Second Schedule, stating that, in the opinion of that person, the personal safety of the person applying under subsection (1) or a member of the household of that person would be at risk if the register published or made available for inspection by the registration authority contained the name and address of the person. | ||
(3) Where the registration authority is satisfied that the requirements of this section and Rule 36 of Part VII of the Second Schedule have been met, it shall— | ||
(a) notify the applicant of its decision, | ||
(b) direct that the name and address of the person shall not be published or made available for inspection, and | ||
(c) include the name of the person on the postal voters list under section 14 and Part VI of the Second Schedule. | ||
(4) Where the registration authority is not satisfied that the requirements of this section and Rule 36 of Part VII of the Second Schedule have been met, it shall refuse the application and notify the applicant of its decision, the reasons for the decision and of the applicant’s right to appeal the decision to the county registrar in accordance with Rule 39 of Part VIII of the Second Schedule. | ||
(5) Where an application under this section is refused by the registration authority under subsection (4), the applicant may appeal the decision to the county registrar in accordance with Rule 39 of Part VIII of the Second Schedule. | ||
(6) (a) The Minister shall— | ||
(i) not later than 3 years after the coming into operation of section 93 of the Electoral Reform Act 2022, carry out or cause to be carried out a review of the operation of this section, and | ||
(ii) not later than 12 months after the commencement of the review, publish a report of the findings resulting from the review and of the conclusions drawn from the findings and arrange for a copy of the report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas. | ||
(b) In carrying out a review under this section, the Minister or such person as the Minister shall cause to carry out the review, shall consult with registration authorities and such other persons as the Minister or person carrying out the review considers appropriate for the purposes of the review. | ||
(7) In this section, ‘qualified person’ means— | ||
(a) a member of the Garda Síochána not below the rank of superintendent, or | ||
(b) a registered medical practitioner.”. |