Municipalities. s. 101. 78. AN election to fill every extraordinary vacancy shall be held on such a day, being not less than twenty and not more than When held. twenty-five clear days after the occurrence of such vacancy, as the 59 Vict., No. 10, mayor, or in case there is no mayor, or the mayor is absent, incapable of acting, or refuses to act, the council may appoint, and, in default of such appointment, on the twenty-first day after the occurrence of such vacancy. 79. IN case any extraordinary vacancy occurs in the office of councillor in any council within two months before any annual election, and the previous occupant of the seat so become vacant would have gone out of office at such election, or was one of the several persons who might have gone out of office by rotation at such election, such extraordinary vacancy shall not be filled up, and the previous occupant of such seat shall be reckoned one of the councillors going out of office at such election. See Ibid., s. 94. Where extraordinary vacancy not filled. Mayor to be Justice 80. THE mayor for the time being of every municipality shall be ex officio a Justice of the Peace for the magisterial district of the of the Peace. municipality from the time when he shall have duly taken the necessary oaths before a Judge of the Supreme Court, Resident Magistrate, or Warden. 81. IN case of a municipality which is not divided into palities, divided and wards, the proceedings upon every election shall be taken and had Elections in munici for the whole municipality, and in case of a municipality divided not divided. into wards, the like proceedings shall be taken and had for every ward thereof. additional council 82. WHERE under the provisions of this Act a municipality is entitled to elect an additional number of councillors, an election Time of election of shall thereupon be had, and the like proceedings shall be taken as lors. nearly as may be as at an annual general election of councillors. (2.) WHO SHALL ELECT. Ibid., s. 58. Voters, where there 83. AT every municipal election for which no roll is in force, every British subject qualified under this Act to have his name on the Municipal Roll, and liable for the time being to be rated under See Loc. Govt. Act the provisions hereof, shall be entitled to vote; and every such (Vic.), s. 104. person shall be entitled to one vote. 84. AT every municipal election for which a roll is in force, Voters, where there every person whose name is inscribed on such roll shall be entitled is a roll. to vote, and to the number of votes for which he is enrolled. (3.) Ibid., s. 105. Returning officer. Ibid., s. 106. Appointment of returning officer in new municipality. Municipalities. (3.) WHO SHALL HOLD ELECTIONS. 85. EVERY municipal election shall be held before some person, hereinafter called the returning officer. 86. AT every first municipal election in a newly-proclaimed municipality the returning officer shall be nominated by the See 59 Vict., No. 10. Governor, and at every subsequent election, as hereinafter provided. s.59. Appointment of returning officer. See ibid., s. 59. Returning officer not to be a candidate. See ibid., s. 59. Nomination-how made. See ibid., s. 60. Sixth Schedule. Moneys to be deposited with returning officer. What persons alone deemed candidates. 87. AT every election, save as aforesaid, the returning officer shall be the mayor or any councillor of the municipality appointed by the council for that purpose. Such appointment shall be notified by affixing a written notice to that effect to the outer door of the municipal chamber or other accustomed place of meeting for the council at least eight days before the day fixed for such election, and keeping the same there affixed until the day of such election; but no omission to so publish the said notice shall be deemed to invalidate any such appointment. Whenever any returning officer has been appointed, the mayor or town clerk shall deliver to such officer all notices and deposits, as hereinafter provided, which he has received from candidates for election. and also the electoral lists for the municipality and the various wards thereof. 88. NO person who acts as returning officer at any election shall be or become a candidate for office at such election. (4.) NOMINATION OF CANDIDATES. 89. SEVEN clear days before any election under this Act any person who is qualified and desirous of being a candidate for the office of mayor, councillor, or auditor shall, at or before four o'clock in the afternoon, cause to be delivered to the returning officer town clerk at the council chambers a nomination paper in the form of the Sixth Schedule or to the like effect, stating therein the surname and other names of such candidate, together with the other particulars required in and by the said schedule, and such nomination paper shall be signed by not less than two qualified ratepayers, and also by the person named therein as a candidate, in token of his assent thereto, and to act if elected. 90. AT the time of the delivery to the returning officer or town clerk of any such nomination paper the candidate named therein, or some person for him or on his behalf, shall pay into the hands of the returning officer or town clerk the sum of Five pounds. to be dealt with as hereinafter provided; and no person who has not been so nominated, or by whom or on whose behalf such payment has not been made, shall, within the subsequent provisions of this Part of this Act, be or be deemed to be a candidate at any such election. 91. Municipalities. Proceedings at 91. ON the day of the nomination the returning officer shall attend at four o'clock in the afternoon at the place fixed for such nomination. nomination, and shall read the names of the candidates so nominated, See ibid., s. 61. together with the names of their nominators; and, in the event of there being no greater number of candidates than is required to be elected, the returning officer shall declare the said persons to be duly elected; but, in the event of there being more candidates than the number required to be elected, the returning officer shall advertise in some newspaper the names of the candidates, the day of poll and the polling place or places: Provided that it shall be in the power of any candidate so nominated, by notice in writing signed by him addressed to the returning officer, and delivered to such returning officer or town clerk at any time before the expiration of forty-eight hours after the day of nomination to withdraw from such candidature. 92. THE returning officer may appoint one or more deputy returning officers and such poll-clerks as are required for taking the poll, and may make and enforce all necessary regulations, and fix the polling place or polling places, and provide proper and convenient rooms or booths for polling. 93. (1.) EXCEPT as hereinafter provided, the voting at any such election shall be by ballot, and within the place or places appointed for holding such election there shall be provided and set apart a separate ballot room or compartment into which no person may enter except electors who may remain while preparing their ballot papers as hereinafter provided, but no longer; and the returning officer shall cause pencils, or pens, ink, and blotting paper to be placed in the said room or compartment. (2.) Every person, otherwise than as aforesaid, entering or remaining in the said ballot room or compartment shall be guilty of an offence against this Act and be liable to a penalty of not less than Fifty pounds nor more than One hundred pounds. 94. (1.) BEFORE, and in time for every such election, the returning officer shall cause to be printed a sufficient number of ballot papers according to the respective forms prescribed in the Seventh Schedule, and each such ballot paper shall have a number printed on the back, and shall have attached a counterfoil with the same number printed on the face, and shall be initialled by such returning officer at the back thereof: Provided always, that the initials of such returning officer may be lithographed or stamped by or under his authority. (2.) And at the same time the returning officer shall also cause a sufficient number of papers, called " voting papers," for the purpose Municipalities. purpose of voting in absence, as hereinafter mentioned, to be printed, and such voting papers shall be in accordance with the forms prescribed in the Eighth Schedule. 95. THE returning officer shall preside at the polling place for taking the poll. 96. EACH candidate shall be entitled to appoint in writing one scrutineer to be present in each polling place during the election. 97. EVERY returning officer shall before acting make and subscribe before a Justice of the Peace, or in the case of a poll clerk or scrutineer, before the returning officer of the election then pending, a declaration in the form prescribed in the Ninth Schedule. 98. EVERY returning officer shall have power to maintain and enforce order and keep the peace at any election or polling held by him, and, without any other warrant than this Act, to cause to be arrested and taken before a Justice any person reasonably suspected of knowingly making a false answer to any of the questions hereinafter mentioned, or of personating or attempting to personate any voter, or of attempting to vote more than once at the same election, or leaving or attempting to leave the polling place after having received a ballot paper, and before having deposited the same in the box as hereinafter provided, or causing a disturbance at any election, and to cause any person to be removed who obstructs the approaches to any polling place, or conducts himself in a disorderly manner, or misconducts himself, or fails to obey the orders of the returning officer; and any person so removed shall not again be allowed to enter the polling place during the time such election is being held without the permission of the returning officer; and all constables shall aid and assist such returning officer in the performance of his duty. 99. THE returning officer shall provide a separate ballot box for the election of mayor, for the election of auditor or auditors, and for each ward for the election of a councillor or councillors, and on the top of each such ballot box there shall be an opening sufficient to receive the ballot papers and voting papers, folded as hereinafter mentioned; and such boxes, being previously locked by the returning officer with a key or keys (which shall be kept by himself and of which no other person shall have a counterpart or counterparts) shall be placed on a table before the returning officer. 100. THE poll at any election shall be taken by the returning officer and shall commence at eleven o'clock in the forenoon and close Municipalities. close at seven o'clock in the afternoon of the same day. Every person entitled to vote at the election of a councillor or councillors may at such election give as many votes as he is entitled to, to each of any number of persons not exceeding the number of persons to be elected. Every person entitled to vote at the election of a mayor or auditors, or an auditor, may, at the election of a mayor, give as many votes as he is entitled to to any one candidate, and, at the election of auditors or an auditor may give as many votes as he is entitled to to each of as many candidates as there are vacancies to be filled up. Ballot papers to be 101. (1.) EXCEPT as hereinafter mentioned, every person who is qualified and entitled to vote, and is desirous of voting at any such given to persons election, shall present himself to the returning officer, and shall state applying. his name and address, and if such returning officer finds that the Ibid., s. 68. name of such person is on the electoral rolls, he may ask such person the questions hereinafter mentioned, and if such questions are answered satisfactorily, or if such questions are dispensed with, the returning officer or poll clerk shall make a mark against the name of such person on the electoral lists or rolls to signify that the ballot paper or ballot papers to which such person is entitled has or have been duly given to him, and deliver to such person so many ballot papers for the election of mayor, or councillor or councillors, or auditor or auditors respectively, as are equal to the number of votes which such person appears by the electoral lists or rolls to be entitled to give at such elections respectively. (2.) All the ballot papers to which any person is entitled at such election shall be received by him at one and the same time: And no person, having once received any such ballot paper or ballot papers, and voted, shall at the same election receive any other ballot paper or ballot papers, or exercise any further right of voting. 102. EVERY person to whom a ballot paper or ballot papers Manner of voting have been given shall, within the ballot room or compartment, and ballot. without leaving the same, strike through the names of all persons Ibid., s. 69. named in such ballot paper or ballot papers except the names of each person for whom he intends to vote, and shall then fold up each paper so as to conceal the interior and disclose the initials of the returning officer upon the back thereof, and shall then in the presence of the returning officer, poll clerks, and such scrutineers as are in attendance, deposit such ballot paper or ballot papers in the ballot box: Provided always, that in the case of any person who is afflicted with blindness or defective eyesight, the returning officer shall, in the presence of such scrutineers as are then in attendance, strike through each ballot paper the names of all persons except such as such person declares his intention of voting for. 103. |