Absent Voters Act 1890 (SA)

ANNO QUINQUAGESIMO TERTlO ET QUINQUA-

GESIMO QUARTO

VICTORIB REGINB.

A.D. 1890.

No. 498,

An Act for the purpose of giving Greater Facilities

to Absent Voters to Record their Votes at

Elections of Members of the Legislature of

South Australia.

[Assented to, December yrd, 1890.1

HEREAS it is expedient to give greater facilities to absent ~ r ~ m b l e.

the Legislature of South Australia-Be it therefore Enacted	W voters to record their votes at electioi~s of members of
by the Governor of the Province of South Australia, with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and House of Assembly, in this present Parliament assembled, as follows:

entitled to vote at the forthcoming elections.

1. This Act may be cited as 'aThe Absent Voters Electoral Act, shod tide.

1890," and sllall apply only in the ease of an election of members

t o serve in the Parliament of South Australia,

2. In the interpretation of this Act the words " voter " or Interpretation.

b 6 voters" shall include every person registered as a voter in any

electoral district.

3. Any voter who shall have reason to believe that he will be Cefiifica.ts granted.

absent from the electoral district in which he is registered as a voter on the day of voting, shall be entitled any time after the issuing of the writ to obtain a certificate in one of the forms, as the case may be, of the Schedule hereto annexed, marked A, from the Returning Officer, that he is registered as a voter upon the electoral roll and

2 53O & 54" VICTORIW, No. 498.

The Absent Voters Blectoral Act.-1890.

Decht ionon

cation for certificate. 4. The applicant for such certificate shall make a declaration

before the Returning Officer-

I. That he is the person named on the register of voters:

11. That he makes the said application believing that he will be

absent from the district on. the forthcoming day of voting.

Uueetions may be put 5, The Returnin g Officer shall, if he think fit, put to the appli-

'"'" **pEmnt. cant proposing to vote the questions authorised to be put to voters on the day of voting before the delivery of any voting-paper.

Returning OBcer

may refuse to grant 6. If the applicant shall refuse to answer any questions, or shall

certificate.	answer the same in such a manner as to show that he is not qualified
to vote, the Returning Officer shdl refuse to grant the certificate,
Certificate and voting-
paper.	7, The certificate shall be made on the back of an envelope, to be used as hereinafter directed, and handed by the Returning Officer to the elector, together with a voting-paper, with instructions on the
back of the voting-paper how to vote,

(a) The voting-paper shall be in the form given in the Schedule hereto annexed marked C, with a counterfoil attached thereto, for the signature of the voter, and also for that of the postmaster or his depnty witnessing the same:

(6) The Returning Officer shall also supply the elector with another envelope, duly addressed to the Returning Officer at the chief voting-place of the district, in which the elector shall post the certificate and voting-paper, witnessed and stamped:

(c) The elector applying to vote through the post office shall sign his name in a book, acknowledging the receipt of the certificate and voting-paper:

( d ) The Returning Officcr shall initial all voting-papers issued,

and shall placo in the receipt-book numbers in consecutive

are granted, writing the corresponding number on the order against the names of all persons to whom ccrtificates

counterfoil of the voting-paper, and such receipt-book shall

contain the particulars set out in Schedule B.

Names of oandidetes

to be written. 8, The elector shall indicate the name or names of the candi-

dates for whom he intends to vote, by writing the names of each

such candidate on the inside of the voting-paper.

Elector to sign his

name in presence of 9, The elector intending to vote through the post office shall, in

postmaeter. the presence only of any postmaster in the province of South Aus- tralia, sign his name on the counterfoil on the back of the voting- paper, and present the voting-payer, folded up, to be witnessed and stamped with the letter stamp of the day and date then being used at the post office.

(a) The

-- 5 3 O & 54' VICTORIE, No. 498.

The Absent Voters EectoraE Act.-1@90,

( a ) The voter shall then and there, in the presence only of the postmaster, insert the voting-paper in the envelope, on the back of which his certificate for voting has been signed by the Returning Officer, and fasten up the same; and shall forthwith duly enclose his voting-payer and certifi- cate in the envelope supplied to him, addressed to the Returning Officer of the District or Division, and having sealed up the same shall at once hand the same to the postmaster for delivery.

10. Having issued the certificate, the Returning Officer shall ~ ; ~ m ~ 6 ' ~ ~ ~ ~

notify the fact on the lists of voters to be used at the booths on the cert iLe.

day df voting; and no elector who has received any such certificate shall be entitled to vote at any polling-booth unless he shall have delivered up the same to the Returning OfEcer to be cancelled two days before the day of election.

11, The Returning Officer shall produce all letters so addressed Letteretobe~roaucea

to him and received up to the time of commencing the scrutiny of	at scrutiny.
the votes, and at such scrutiny the letters shall be opened in the presence of the agents for the candidates who may attend, and shall be dealt with in the following manner :--

(a) The Returning Officer shall produce the list of persons to

whom certificates have been granted, with the signatures

of the voters receiving them:

The Returning Officer, without unfolding the voting-paper or allowing it to be inspected, shall compare the signature on the back with the signature in the receipt-book, and allow the scrutineers to inspect the same, and shall determine whether the signature is that of the person entitled to vote:

(c) If the vote is allowed the Returning Officer shall tear off the

counterfoil bearing the signature of the voter and insert,

unfolded, the voting-paper in the ballot-box:

(d) If the Returning Officer shall reject the voting-paper, then the certificate and ballot-paper shall be preserved by the Returning Officer for production at any Court of Disputed Returns that may be held on or about such election, the voting-paper being a t once sealed u p without being unfolded or inspected:

( E ) Voting-papers so allowed shall be placed in a ballot-box by themselves, and, when they have all been inserted, the casting up of the votes shall commence:

( f ) B'o voting-paper shall be counted at the scrutiny which shall not bear the name of the postmaster or his deputy as wit- nessing the signature of the voter on the counterfoil attached, and which is not stamped with the said letter stamp.

12. When

53' & 54O VICTORIX, No. 498.

The Absent Voters fllectoral Act.-l 890

aet-i.w==to 12. When any difference of opinion may arise between the

decide.	Returning Officer and the scrutineers as to the signatures, the Returniug Officer shall finally decide, subject to reversal by the Court for the Trial of Disputed Returns.
I t shall be sufficient, where no two candidates have the same SUP name, for the voter to write the surname only of the candidate in voting, and any mistake in spelling of the surname, where it sounds the same, or the intention is clear, shall not prevent the vote being counted.

Forme to be supplied+ 13, The Returning Officer for the Province shall supply to

Returning Officers, on requisition, the necessary number of voting- papers, envelopes, and forms to carry the provisions of this Act into effect,

MiniRter to give 14. The Minister controlling the Post Office Department shall

nwmiry directions.	give the neceasary directions for duly carrying into cffect the pro- visions of this Act as to the duty of postmasters and their deputies, and for geeing that all letters to the Returning Officer so lodged with the postmaster shall be sent to the Returning Officer as registered letters free of charge, on being marked " Electoral Beturns."
Incorporation.	15. Except so far as the same are inconsistent with the provi- sions of this Act, "The Electoral Act, 1879," and any Acts amcnd- ing that Act shall be incorporated and read herewith as forming one Act.

Duration o i ~ c t. 16. This Act shall cease to be in force on the first day of January,

one thousand eight hundred and ninety -four.

I n the name and on behalf of Her Majesty, I hereby assent to

this Bill.

KINTORE, Governor.

SCHEDULES.

- 5 3 O & 54O VICTORIR, No. 498.

The Absent Voters Electoral Act.-l89O.

--.p

SCHEDULES.

SCHEDULE A.

Certijicate entitling an Elector to Vote through the Past O$Ecefor House of A ~ e m b l y

Election.

I hereby certify that of is entitled to

vote at the present election for the House of Assembly.

Dated this	day of	, l 8	.
(Signed j

Returning Officer, Electoral District of

Certijcate entitling an Elector to Vote through the Post Oflcefor Xegislative Council

Election.

I hereby certify that of is entitled to

vote at the present election for the Legislative Council.

Dated this	day of	, 18	.
(Signed)

Deputy Returning Officer, Division of

SCHEDULE B.

Form of Book; to be kept by Returning Oflcers, in which to enter the names of electors

to whom certificates and voting-papers have been granted.

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY or LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

Election day of 18

SIGNATURE OF ELECTORS.

We, the undersigned, hereby ac-

knowledge to have received of

Christian and Surname Returning Officer for

Date of Issue. af Voter the necessary certificate8 and

at full length.	voting-papera (the corresponding number of which is sot opposite our respective names) to enable us to vote through the Post
Office.

No.

The Absent Voters Electoral A c t. 1 8 8 0.

SCHBDULE C.

Form o f Voting Paper.

VOTING PAPER.

I ~ s ~ a u c x ~ o ~ s. - - I n the presence of the Postmaster the voter must sign his name

in the p l x e shown thereon. The Postmaster will witness the signature and stamp the voting-paper, without unfolding the same, with the Post Office letter stamp for he day and date, and return the voting-paper to the voter. The Elector will then insert this voting-paper in the envelope on which the certificate is signed and marked "For voting-paper," and fasten. Then, after sealing up or fastening the letter in the envelope addressed to the Returning Officer, will hand it a t once to the Postmaster for delivery through the post.

COUNTERFOIL.

No.

Signature of Voter

Witnees-

Postmaster.

[To be stamped with Post Office stamp.]

INDORSEMENT

Below write the names of the Candidates you vote for :-

ENVELOPE.

No. of Certificate HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY ELECTION.

Day of Election

Envelope for inserting Voting-paper.

Certzycate entitling Elector to vote through the Pos t O&ce.

I hereby certify that of is

entitled to vote at the above Election.

(Signed) Returning Officer,

Electoral District of

Y.B.-When

you have fsetened up the voting-paper, as directed herein, place this in the other

envelope addressed to the Returning Officer, and give it to Postmaster.

.. --.

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Adelaide : By authority, C. E. BBMTOW, Goverument Printer, North-terrace.