ELECTION PETITION

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 674, 28 May 1929, Page 7

ELECTION PETITION

MOVE TO UPSET POLL OPOTIKI COUNTY COUNCIL (Special to THE SUN) OPOTIKI, Monday. Alleging irregularities in connection with the recent county council elections a petition has been lodged in the Magistrate’s Court in Opotiki. signed by Messrs. J. McDonnell, P. Morten - sen, P. McGivern, G. L. Taylor, L. D. Ross and F. Jackson, asking the magistrate to declare the elections void. The following are the grounds of the petition: (a) That various persons, viz., Maoris, were permitted to vote when they were not qualified by virtue of section 107 of the Act, in that although they appeared on the valuation roll for the county of Opotiki as owners and occupiers of certain pieces of native land owned by two or more owners in common, they had not been appointed to vote in respect of the respective pieces of land by a Judge, commissioner or registrar of the Native Land Court, and their names had not been entered in the valuation roll as occupiers in pursuance of any such appointment. (b) That various persons. viz., Maoris, were permitted to vote and did vote when by section 57 of the Counties Act, 1920. their names should have been included in the list of disqualified ratepayers prepared by the county clerk in pursuance of section 57. The inquiry will be held in the Magistrate’s Court on June 4.