Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001

Duties of presiding officer at close of poll.

42.—(1) At the time fixed for the close of the poll the presiding officer shall take steps to ensure that no further Dáil electors are admitted to the polling station, but any elector on the premises at that time shall, subject to the provisions of the Principal Act and this Act, be entitled to vote.

(2) As soon as practicable after the close of the poll, the presiding officer after ensuring that the lock referred to in section 39 on each voting machine in the polling station has not been interfered with shall cause a statement showing the total number of votes recorded on the machine and a list of the candidates on the ballot paper at the polling station to be produced by the machine. The statement shall be signed by the presiding officer and witnessed by another person in the polling station. The presiding officer shall then open the lock and remove the cartridge or disc from each such voting machine so that no further votes can be entered therein.

(3) The presiding officer shall immediately send the said cartridge or disc together with the statements produced at the opening and close of the poll referred to in section 40 (1) and subsection (2) to the returning officer together with a polling station reconcilation account, in such form as may be directed by the Minister, made out by him or her and shall seal up in separate packets—

(a) the marked copies of the register of Dáil electors;

(b) a statement prepared in accordance with section 104(2) of the Principal Act as applied by this Part;

(c) any authorisations given by the returning officer under section 99 or 100 of the Principal Act authorising persons to vote at the polling station, and any undertakings by a personation agent to prove that a person has committed personation; and

(d) unused stationery and other documents and materials relating to the Dáil election,

and shall deliver all such packets to the returning officer.

(4) The returning officer shall make adequate arrangements for the safe custody of the packages delivered in pursuance of this section and of all documents connected with the poll.

(5) An election shall not be questioned on the grounds that the requirement in subsection (2) with respect to the production by a voting machine of the printed statement referred to in that subsection has not been complied with.