European Parliament Elections Act 1997
Duties of local returning officer in relation to documents relating to postal voters.
39. (1) The local returning officer, as soon as may be practicable after the completion of the issue of the ballot papers to postal voters and in the presence of the agents of the candidates, if any, shall make up in separate packets, sealed with the officer’s own seal and sealed by such of the agents as desire to affix their seals, the marked copy of the postal voters list and the counterfoils of the ballot papers: provided that where any subsequent issue of ballot papers is made, the sealed packet containing the marked copy of the postal voters list may be opened by the local returning officer for the purposes of that issue, and on completion of that issue, the list and the counterfoils of the ballot papers at that issue shall be made up and sealed in accordance with this rule.
(2) Having completed the placing of the ballot papers in the ballot box mentioned in rule 38 the local returning officer shall seal up in separate packets—
(a) the receipts which accompanied any ballot papers duly accepted;
(b) any rejected receipts, with envelopes, if any, attached; and
(c) any rejected ballot papers, with envelopes, if any, attached.
(3) Where covering envelopes are received by the local returning officer after the close of the poll, or where any envelopes addressed to postal voters are returned as undelivered, the local returning officer shall not open such envelopes and shall, subject to the power of readdressing such envelopes pursuant to rule 32(5), seal such envelopes up into separate packets.
(4) The local returning officer shall endorse on each packet mentioned in paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) a description of its contents, the name of the constituency and of the county or county borough for which he or she is the local returning officer and the date of the polling day at the European election to which such contents relate.
(5) The local returning officer shall forward to the F79[chief returning officer] at the same time as he or she forwards the documents mentioned in rule 93—
(a) the packets referred to in the foregoing provisions of this rule, and
(b) a statement in such form as may be directed by the Minister showing the number of ballot papers sent to postal voters, and giving with respect to such papers the particulars required by the form.
(6) Any envelopes returned as undelivered and any covering envelopes received by the local returning officer after the said packets have been forwarded to the F79[chief returning officer] shall not be opened and shall be forwarded to the F79[chief returning officer].
Annotations
Amendments:
F79
Substituted (1.11.2001) by Electoral (Amendment) Act 2001 (38/2001), s. 51(e)(iv)(III), S.I. No. 497 of 2001.
Modifications (not altering text):
C15
Prospective affecting provision: application of rules 39, 82 extended by Electoral (Amendment) Act 2004 (15/2004), s. 12(2), (4), not commenced as of date of revision.
Counting of postal and special voter ballot papers under this Part.
12. —(1) The sealed ballot box containing postal and special voters ballot papers shall be opened, in the presence of agents and not less than 2 members of the returning officer or local returning officer's staff, not earlier than one hour before the conclusion of voting on polling day.
(2) The ballot papers extracted by the returning officer or local returning officer from the said ballot box shall be counted and their total number compared with the number shown in the appropriate ballot paper account prepared under section 76 of the Act of 1992 (as modified and applied to the Act of 1993 or Act of 1994) or Rule 39 of the Second Schedule to the Act of 1997 or Article 41 of the Regulations of 1995 as applied to this Part by a Schedule to this Act.
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(4) Section 48 of the Act of 1993, section 34 of the Act of 1994, Rule 82(2) to (4) of the Second Schedule to the Act of 1997 and Article 80(2) to (5) of the Regulations of 1995, as appropriate, shall apply to ballot papers dealt with under this section.
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