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8 1994

LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT, 1994

PART III

Local Elections

Interpretation of Part III .

13. —In this Part—

local authority” means—

(a) the council of a county,

(b) the corporation of a county or other borough,

(c) the council of an urban district, or

(d) the commissioners of a town;

local electoral area” means an area by reference to which a local election is held;

local election” means an election pursuant to this Part.

Elections to certain local authorities in 1994.

14. —(1) An election of members of every local authority being the council of a borough (other than a county borough), the council of an urban district, or the commissioners of a town shall be held in the year 1994 on such day as is appointed by order of the Minister under this section and such elections shall be local elections and the law for the time being in force in relation to local elections shall apply to such elections.

(2) The provisions of section 21 shall apply to an order made under this section.

(3) The term of office of the members of every local authority elected at the elections referred to in subsection (1) shall terminate in the year 1998 so as to be in accordance with the holding of local elections in that year.

Harbour authorities.

15. —(1) The year 1994 shall be deemed to be an election year as respects local authorities to which section 14 applies for the purposes of sections 10 (1) (a) and 14 of the Harbours Act, 1946 .

(2) The term of office of those members of a harbour authority (within the meaning of the Harbours Act, 1946 ) who were appointed by a local authority referred to in subsection (1) current on the commencement of this section shall terminate in the year 1994 so as to be in accordance with the provisions of section 14 (2) of the Harbours Act, 1946 .

(3) The year 1998 and every year thereafter which is a year in which elections of members of councils of counties are held shall be an election year for the purposes of the Harbours Act, 1946 , and the term of office of those members of a harbour authority who are appointed by a local authority referred to in subsection (1) in the year 1994 shall terminate in the year 1998 so as to be in accordance with this subsection and section 14 (2) of the Harbours Act, 1946 .

Vocational education committees.

16. —(1) The term of office of—

(a) the members of a vocational education committee for an urban district vocational education area elected by a local authority to which section 14 applies, and

(b) those members of a vocational education committee for a county vocational education area who were elected by a local authority referred to in paragraph (a),

current at the commencement of this section shall terminate in the year 1994 so as to be in accordance with the provisions of section 10 (3) of the Vocational Education Act, 1930 .

(2) (a) The year 1994 shall be deemed to be an election year as respects vocational education committees referred to in subsection (1) (a) and as respects those members of vocational education committees referred to in subsection (1) (b).

(b) The year 1994 shall not be an election year as respects vocational education committees or members of vocational education committees, as the case may be, other than those referred to in paragraph (a).

(3) A quinquennial meeting of a vocational education committee referred to in subsection (1) (a) shall be held in the year 1994.

(4) The year 1998 and every year thereafter which is a year in which local elections are held shall be an election year for the purposes of the Vocational Education Acts, 1930 to 1993, and the term of office of those members of a vocational education committee who are elected by a local authority referred to in subsection (1) in the year 1994 shall terminate in the year 1998 so as to be in accordance with this subsection and section 10 (3) of the Vocational Education Act, 1930 .

Alteration of boundaries for purposes of certain local elections.

17. —(1) The Minister may by regulations and by reference to a submitted map within the meaning of this section alter the boundary of any borough, urban district or town having town commissioners, specified in the regulations, for the purposes of the elections to be held in 1994 pursuant to section 14 and for local elections thereafter. Where regulations have been made under this subsection, the area of any borough, urban district or town specified in the regulations shall, for the purposes of those elections (and only for such purposes) be the area contained within the altered boundary and the local government electors registered in respect of such area shall be entitled to vote at those elections.

(2) Where a proposed boundary alteration shown on a submitted map would involve the inclusion in a borough or urban district of an area which is located in a county other than the county in which the said borough or urban district is situate, regulations under subsection (1) may provide for the simultaneous alteration of the boundary between the two counties in question so as to correspond with the boundary of the borough or urban district altered by those regulations and on the coming into operation of such regulations the said county boundary shall accordingly also stand so altered for the purposes of the elections referred to in that subsection and for the purposes of the next elections to the councils of the counties in question and for local elections thereafter.

(3) Regulations under subsection (1) shall apply notwithstanding the provisions of any other enactment relating to the alteration of boundaries and may include all such provisions as the Minister may consider necessary to enable a boundary alteration to have effect for the purposes of elections to a local authority.

(4) (a) The Minister may by regulations under this subsection provide that an alteration of the boundary of a borough, urban district or town effected by regulations under subsection (1) shall (in addition to having effect for the purposes specified in that subsection) have effect for such other purposes as may be specified in the regulations and the regulations may—

(i) make a provision similar to or to the same effect (with any modifications which the Minister may consider appropriate in the particular circumstances) as any provision contained in the Second Schedule to the Local Government (Reorganisation) Act, 1985 ,

(ii) do any thing which may be done by order under section 24 of that Act,

(iii) make such other provision (if any) as the Minister shall think proper, in relation to any matter whatsoever related to or connected with the proposed boundary alteration for such other purposes.

(b) Regulations shall not be made under this subsection in respect of a borough, urban district or town unless either—

(i) a reorganisation report has been submitted under section 56 and the Minister has considered any proposals therein which may have a bearing on matters which are the subject of the regulations, or

(ii) there are in the opinion of the Minister in a particular

case exceptional circumstances for altering the relevant boundary for purposes specified in the regulations in advance of such submission and agreement has been reached and satisfactory arrangements have been made by the local authorities concerned as respects all matters related to or connected with the proposed boundary alteration.

(5) The Commissioner of Valuation (“the commissioner”) shall, by reference to a submitted map, but without prejudice to subsection (8), prepare for each county, borough, urban district and town the boundary of which is altered by regulations under this section, a map, in quadruplicate, or in quintuplicate in any case where the boundary between two counties is altered, drawn to such convenient scale and in such convenient number of separate sheets as the commissioner thinks fit, showing the boundaries of the said county or counties, borough, urban district or town as so altered and when such maps have been prepared, the commissioner shall seal each such map and shall, as soon as may be thereafter, deposit them as follows, namely, one of them in the principal office of the commissioner, one in the offices of the Minister, one in the principal office of the relevant borough corporation, urban district council or town commissioners and one in the principal office of the relevant county council or county councils.

(6) Every map deposited pursuant to subsection (5) in the principal office of the commissioner or of a local authority shall be retained in the office in which it is so deposited, and each such map, or true copies thereof, shall be open for inspection free of charge at the office in which it is so deposited by any person at any time at which such office is open for the transaction of public business, and it shall be lawful for the commissioner, or the relevant local authority to prepare and supply to any person requesting the same a true copy of any map so deposited or any particular part thereof and to charge for such copy such sum as the commissioner (with the consent of the Minister for Finance) or the local authority in question, may fix.

(7) It shall be the duty of the commissioner and of a local authority which retains a map pursuant to subsection (6), whenever required so to do by any Court of Justice, to prepare and produce to the Court a true copy of such map or any specified part thereof and to verify the copy to such Court by the oath of an officer of the commissioner or local authority as the case may be (whose official position it shall not be necessary to prove) and the Court shall receive the copy in evidence and thereupon the copy shall, unless the contrary is shown, be sufficient evidence of the boundary (in so far as the same is shown on the copy) of the county, borough, urban district or town to which the copy purports to relate, notwithstanding any discrepancy between the copy and any submitted map.

(8) In preparing the said maps the commissioner may notwithstanding—

(a) any description in any other enactment of any boundary of a county, borough, urban district or town or of any alteration of such, or

(b) any such boundary as shown on a submitted map or a map prepared pursuant to any enactment prior to the commencement of this section,

fix the boundary of any county, borough, urban district or town so as to avoid any minor anomaly such as the division of any building, other structure or curtilage by such boundary or to remedy any other minor inconsistency insofar as in the opinion of the commissioner such may be necessary.

(9) In this section a “submitted map” means a map certified by a county manager and showing the existing boundary and the proposed new boundary of a town specified in the Third Schedule , being a borough other than a county borough, an urban district or a town having town commissioners with the name of the particular borough, urban district or town shown thereon, which map was submitted to the Minister pursuant to a request made to the manager by him prior to the enactment of this Act for the submission of such a map.

(10) For the purposes of the elections referred to in subsections (1) and (2) and all matters relating thereto the boundary as shown on a submitted map to which regulations under subsection (1) refer shall be the official map for such purposes pending the deposit of the relevant map by the commissioner pursuant to subsection (5) and the said submitted map shall continue to be the official map (for the period before, during and after such elections) until such time as the relevant map is deposited by the commissioner in accordance with subsection (5). Pending such deposit a copy of the submitted map shall be retained at the principal offices of the relevant borough corporation, urban district council, town commissioners and county council or councils (as the case may be) and the provisions of subsections (6) and (7) shall apply in respect of each such submitted map and each such local authority as if it were a map deposited by the commissioner under subsection (5).

Section 17 : ancillary provisions.

18. —(1) Where the boundary of a county is altered by regulations under section 17 the Minister or any other Minister of the Government, with the consent of the Minister, may by regulations under this section make such provision as the relevant Minister considers necessary or expedient in relation to any matter whatsoever arising from, in consequence of, or otherwise related to such boundary alteration and any provision so made shall, notwithstanding the provisions of any other enactment, apply and have effect accordingly.

(2) The provisions of subsection (1) of section 34 of the Act of 1991 and subsections (3) to (7) of that section shall apply and have effect with all necessary adaptations in relation to regulations under this section and for that purpose, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, in the said subsections—

(a) “primary order” shall mean regulations under section 17 of this Act;

(b) “supplementary order” shall mean regulations made under this section; and

(c) a reference to subsection (1) of this section shall be substituted for the reference to “subsection (2)” in the prefix to the said section 34 (1).

Arrangements with respect to certain polling districts and the register of electors.

19. —(1) Where, consequent on the alteration of the boundary of the area of a local authority under section 17 , or otherwise a polling district existing immediately before such alteration is not wholly situate within the area of a local authority, the appropriate officer shall with respect to each part of such polling district situate within the area of a local authority—

(a) join it or parts of it with any adjoining polling district or districts within the said area, or

(b) constitute it as a polling district and appoint a polling place for it.

(2) An arrangement made pursuant to subsection (1) shall have effect until (and only until) the first scheme under section 28 of the Electoral Act, 1992 in relation to the county or county borough in which the part concerned of the polling district is situate comes into operation after the making of the arrangement.

(3) An arrangement made pursuant to subsection (1) shall, as soon as may be, be notified to the Minister by the appropriate officer.

(4) The appropriate officer shall make such alterations in relation to the part of the register of electors in force as regards a part of a polling district referred to in subsection (1) as may be necessary to secure that the part of the register concerned shall be in conformity with the arrangement made pursuant to that subsection and may conveniently be used for the purposes of taking a poll.

(5) In this section “the appropriate officer” means—

(a) in relation to any part of a polling district situate in a county borough, the manager for the purposes of the Acts relating to the management of the county borough (including a person duly appointed either as deputy for such manager or to act in the place of such manager during an absence or incapacity or during a vacancy in the office of such manager),

(b) in relation to any part of a polling district situate in an administrative county the secretary of the council of the county concerned (including a person duly appointed either as deputy for such secretary or to act in the place of such secretary during an absence or incapacity or during a vacancy in the office of such secretary), or a person assigned to perform the duties of county secretary under this section.

Year of elections to all local authorities.

20. —(1) (a) An election of members of every local authority shall be held in the year 1998 and every fifth year thereafter.

(b) Nothing in this subsection shall affect Part IV of the Act of 1941, or any order made under that Part.

(2) The term of office of the members of the council of every county and county borough current on the commencement of this section shall stand extended so as to be in accordance with the holding in the year 1998 of the elections of the members of such councils next after such commencement.

(3) The appointments next after the commencement of this section under section 10 of the School Attendance Act, 1926 , shall be made in the year 1998 and shall be regarded as quinquennial appointments.

(4) The term of office of the members of a harbour authority (within the meaning of the Harbours Act, 1946 ), other than those members referred to in section 15 , current on the commencement of this section shall stand extended so as to terminate in the year 1998 and be in accordance with this section and section 14 (2) of the Harbours Act, 1946 .

(5) The term of office of the members of a vocational education committee, other than those members referred to in section 16 , current on the commencement of this section shall stand extended so as to terminate in the year 1998 and be in accordance with this section and section 10 (3) of the Vocational Education Act, 1930 .

(6) In the Vocational Education Acts, 1930 to 1993, and in any order or regulation made thereunder, “election year” shall mean any year in which local elections are held pursuant to subsection (1).

(7) The following subsection shall be substituted for subsection (2) of section 9 of the Harbours Act, 1946 :

“(2) Every year which is a year in which elections of members of councils of counties are held shall be an election year in respect of a harbour authority.”.

Times of poll.

21. —(1) The poll at local elections shall be held on such day and shall continue for such period, not being less than twelve hours, between the hours of 8.00 a.m. and 10.30 p.m., as may be fixed by the Minister by order, subject to the restriction that a day so fixed shall be in the month of June.

(2) An order under this section shall be published in Iris Oifigiúil as soon as may be after it is made.

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.

Right to vote at local elections.

23. —(1) For the purposes of this section and subject to this Part and regulations made thereunder, every person whose name is on the register of local government electors prepared under Part II of the Electoral Act, 1992 (“the register”) for the time being in force for a local electoral area, and no other person, shall be entitled to vote at the poll at a local election in that area.

(2) A person's name shall be taken to be on the register if it includes a name which, in the opinion of the returning officer or presiding officer, was intended to be the person's name.

(3) A person who has voted at a local election shall not in any legal proceeding be required to state for whom he or she has voted.

(4) A person—

(a) who is registered in the register for the time being in force for a local electoral area but is not entitled to be so registered, or

(b) who is not registered in the register,

shall not vote at the poll at a local election in that area.

(5) Nothing in this section shall be construed as entitling any person to vote who is not entitled to do so, or as relieving that person from any penalties to which that person may be liable for voting.

Local electoral areas.

24. —(1) The Minister may by order—

(a) subject and without prejudice to Part V of the Act of 1991, divide a county, county or other borough or urban district into local electoral areas, and

(b) of the members of the council, fix the number of such members to be elected for each electoral area and in the case of a county or other borough, the numbers of those members who are to be aldermen.

(2) The number of members of a council of a county, county or other borough or urban district to which an order under this section relates to be elected at an election of members of the council held after the making of the order for each local electoral area specified in the order shall (without prejudice to any subsequent order) be the number fixed by the order for the local electoral area.

(3) Where on the commencement of this section an order is in force dividing a county, county or other borough or urban district into local electoral areas or fixing the number of members for each electoral area, the order shall continue in force in relation to the county, county or other borough or urban district as if it were an order under this section.

(4) The Minister may by order—

(a) amend or modify any division made by an order under this section (including an order under this subsection) or alter the number of members of the council of any county, county or other borough or urban district to be elected by virtue of an order under this section (including an order under this subsection or an order deemed by subsection (3) to be an order under this section) in respect of any local electoral area in the county, county or other borough or urban district, or

(b) in the case of a county or other borough, alter the number of such members who are to be aldermen.

(5) An order under this section shall have effect for the purpose of the election of members of the council of that county, county or other borough or urban district held next after the order is made and thereafter.

(6) Subject to the foregoing provisions of this section at every election of the members of any council of a borough or of an urban district which is not divided into local electoral areas and at every election of the commissioners of a town, there shall be one electoral area which shall, subject to section 17 , consist of the area of such borough, urban district or town (as the case may be) and all such members shall be elected for such electoral area.