POLLING TODAY

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 205, 27 May 1944, Page 8

POLLING TODAY

Returning Officer Advises “Vote POINTS FOR ELECTORS The last shots have been fired in the l’J44 local bodies election campaign, today it remains for the electors to decide the issues at the ballot box. Though attendances at meetings have been lur greater than they were three years ago, the aggregate numbers who heard the candidates in Wellington would not equal one-tenth of the total on the rolls, bb,348 (this includes 31,196 ratepayers). In the past three weeks most Wellington candidates have addressed at least 40 meetings, the ticket leaders with their midday factory meetings probably uO, with attendances ranging from a handful to near 2000. Each ticket has been allocated only 35 gallons of petrol for the Wellington elections, largely for the purpose of taking sick voters to the poll. This works out at less than a gallon a candidate; in contrast one Maori electorate in the general election had an allocation nearer a gallon a voter. A record poll faces the Wellington returning officer, Mr. J. Norrie, and a staff of more than 1000. There will be 112 polling places with 262 booths. The election will cost probably £5OOO. Voting is from 9 a.m. till 6 p.m. Even with the greatly increased facilities for voting as. compared with 1941, early voting will be absolutely essential to avoid congestion and- waiting. Each Wellington elector will have to vote for a mayor, 15 councillors, 13 hospital board members, and four harbour board members. That makes 33 crosses, or less if the voter desires, to be marked. Ratepayers will have three extra papers for the loan polls, making a total of seven. There is no absentee, proxy or postal voting. Company voters must be entered on the roll as the representative of the company, but they cannot record another vote in their own right. No person may vote more than once. Blind voters, or those unable to read or write, may apply to the deputy returning officer for assistance. Married women on the roll in their maiden name may vote. There is provision for declaration votes where a voter satisfies the deputy that he had reasonable cause to believe his name was entered on the roll.

Hotels will not close except at the usual time —between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. and at 6 p.m. Employers are not required by law to give employees time off to vote. There are 34 nominations for councillors, 15 each by the Labour Party and the Citizens’ tickets, one Communist and three independents. One of the independents. a woman, is on the Citizens’ ticket for the hospital board, but not the council. The hospital board has 28 candidates for 13 seats, full-Labour and Citizens’ tickets plus two independents. The harbour board is a straightout issue between Citizens and Labour.

It will not invalidate a voting- paper to mark it for lesg than the number required. but Citizens and Labour alike, for obvious reasons, l urge full support for their respective tickets. Bona fide electors will be permitted to enter Trentham camp to vote at the special booth there for the Wellington elections. There will also be booths, for Wellington, at Day’s Bay pavilion. Lower Hutt! Petone and Paraparatimu beach.

The Concert Chamber will have a results board for the public where the ''starter;” Mr. Dorrie Leslie, expects to have the first booth result posted by 6.20 p.m. The final result should be known before midnight, but it may be near 3 aim. Sunday before the returning officer and his staff can call it a day. The official recount -will be finished in 10 to 14 days. Unless there is some very close voting this should not affect the results posted tonight. The Wellington loan proposals are: Special works, £BB,OOO (constructing street works, including footpaths, £54.000, constructing stormwater drainage £34,O 00). Suburban libraries at Island Bay, Brooklyn. Northland, Ngaio and Khandallah £30,000. Waterworks. £125,000 (constructing reservoirs, feeder mains and providing improvements to city water services). Grand total of loans, £243,000. The biggest polling place will be the Town Hall, with 16 booths. The Trades Hall will have eight. Oddfellows’ Hall (Kent Terrace) six, and some others four to six each.

Four sitting members-of the Hutt County Council have been returned unopposed but electors must still vote for representatives on the Wellington Harbour Board, Hutt Valley Power Board <md Wellington Hospital Board, for which more than the required number offer themselves. All ratepayers must also vote on the rating value poll—capital value or unimproved value. Among Lower Hutt candidates for the Hutt Valley Power Board is a member ;of the board’s engineering staff, standing ns an independent. The candidates having made their appeals. the returning officer now makes his in two words. “Vote Early.”

ELECTION RESULTS

As the final figures become available, the results of . the voting in Wellington will be shown in the main windows of “The Dominion” office for the convenience of the public during the weekend. Results will be confined to the Wellington mayoralty. city council, harbour board and hospital board.