WEDNESDAY'S POLL

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 103, 4 May 1931, Page 8

WEDNESDAY'S POLL

ARRANGEMENTS COMPLETE. FIVE ISSUES IN CITY. TOTAL OF 81 ; CANDIDATES. One clear day remains before the poll is taken in the Auckland local body elections. Voters will be called upon next Wednesday to elect a Mayor, 21 city councillors, five members of the Auckland Hospital Board, four members of' the Auckland Harbour Board, and six members of the Auckland Transport Board. •

The arrangements for the poll are complete, said Mr. P.'.F. Notley, city returning officer, to-day, and the ballot bbXes, screens, and ballot papers are being delivered to the booths. This work was begun this morning, and will be finished to-morrow evening. There are 200,000 ballot papers, 142 ballot boxes, and 400 screens to be delivered to 44 booths in the city and suburbs. The staff for election day will number 600, of whom 250 will be required when the poll closes for counting the votes.

All the ballot papers will be in distinct colours to avoid confusion, and for this the colour scheme adopted is the same as at the 1929 election: Yellow for the Mayoral chair (two candidate^); white for the City Council (35 candidates); red for the Hospital Board (eight candidates); blue for the Harbour Board (seven candidates); and green for the Transport Board (27 candidates). Even the longest of the papers can be spread out on the voting platform! 5

In providing for a poll of 40,000 on each- issue, the electoral department has left a good margin over all previous polls. At the 1929 election there, were 24,000 votes cast, and the roll t6-day has only 2000 more names.

Regarding declaration votes, Mr. Notley said: "The people must not take it for granted that, because their names are not on the roll, they are entitled to a declaration vote. That is allowed only if they made an actual claim for enrolment, and. through some neglect of the electoral staff, their names were omitted.' .

The first result announced on Wednesday night will be the name of the new, Mayor. It is expected that the other four results will be available before midnight.