Amendments To The Electoral Amendment Bill

Wanganui Chronicle, 2 December 1948, Page 6

Amendments To The Electoral Amendment Bill

PARLIAMENT BLDGS-, Nov. 30. (PA).—The right of halfcastes to transfer from the Maori roll to the European roll and vice versa, is restricted to the general elections by a Government timendm.ent inserted in the Electoral Amendment Bill, when the measure was in the committee •stage in the House of Representatives today.

Under the original Bill this option could be exercised after a period of 12 months. The effect of the amendment is to probibit a halfcaste from changing from one roll to another to vote at a by-election between general election. The amendment states that a halfcaste who has voted at the election of a member for a European electoral district (whether at a general election or by-election) shall not be entitled to be registered as an elector of a Maori electoral district for the purpose of any election before the general election next following the election at which he so voted. Similarly, a halfcaste who has voted at an election of a member for a Maori electoral district (whether a general election or a by-election) shall not be entitled to be registered as an elector of European electoral district for purposes of any election before the general election next following the election at which he so voted.

Another amendment states that a halfcaste who is for the time being registered as an elector of a European electoral district shall not be entitled to vote at any election of a member for a Maori electoral district. A halfcaste who has voted as an elector of European electoral district at any election (whether a general election or a by-election), shall not be entitled to vote as an elector of Maori electoral district at any election before the general election next following the election at which he so voted. Mi*. G. Fl. Macklev (Opp., Waira-ra-pa) said the Bill “did nothing to overcome the difficulty that was experienced at the Raglan election. It was not right that a man could have a home in one place, go to it at weekends and then determine to vote in a place where he properly resides or in the place \Vhere he works. A man’s qualification as an elector should be tied up with his place of residence and not where he worked. Even members of Parliament could not qualify to vote in Wellington when they resided in Christchurch. The Minister of Education (Mr McCombs said there was a great deal of case law as to what constituted residence for electoral purposes, but the Supreme Court Judge who had heard election petitions had generally agreed that persons who worked during the Week in one place and returned home at week-ends might have the choice of two electorates. What Mr. Mackley had suggested was, in effect, that in the case of Public Works employees a distinction should be drawn between married and single workers, the latter being permitted to vote where they workd during the week, but the former being obliged to enroll where their homes were. This would mean that men enrolling for electoral purposes would have to disclose their marital status. This might be invidious and embarrassing for those —and there were a number of such cases in New Zealand—who lived as married men but who were not. legally married. Some of them might be just the “star boarder.” The electoral qualification should have nothing to do with marriage. Mr. A. C. Baxter (Govt., Raglan) stressed that in the Raglan case the judges agreed there was no malicious intent by any elector to enroll or vote wrongly. What happened in Raglan occurred almost throughout ’the Dominion, but was not challenged elsewhere. Mr. Baxter said the judges had agreed that persons whose occupation was a floating one might be entitled to enroll in one or two or more electorates, and it must be left to the common sense of such persons to register as they thought best. The Bill, as amended by Mr. Nash, was passed without division.