Procedure For Postal Voting At Municipal Poll

Wanganui Chronicle, 4 November 1950, Page 4

Procedure For Postal Voting At Municipal Poll

For the guidance of city and countyelectors who will find it impossible or inconvenient to record their votes at one of the local or district polling places on election day, Saturday, November 18, the following information has been supplied by the returning officer, Mr C. R. WhiteiPersons entitled to vote as postal voters are: Those who will be travelling through the hours of polling and will be unable to attend a duly-ap-pointed polling place; those who are ill or infirm and cannot attend a polling place or, in the case of women, approaching or reaching maternity; and those who have a religious objection to attending a polling place to vote on the day of the week on which the election falls. Arrangements have been made by the returning officers of the city and adjoining counties of Waitotara and Wanganui to meet the requirements of postal voters. The first essential Is to obtain from the appropriate returning officer the necessary application form, but applications in writing will also be accepted. Written applications must be received from individual electors—husbands cannot apply on behalf of their wives. On receipt of the properly completed form the necessary declaration form, accompanied by the voting papers, will be issued. Full instructions appear on the declaration form and these should b e studied carefully by the voter before proceeding to mark the voting papers. The voter must complete and sign the declaration form In the present of an ‘'authorised witness, ’ as set out in the instructions. The voting papers are to be marked by the voter, who shall then forward the same in tile special envelope provided, which, m turn, is enclosed in another envelope addressed to the appropriate returning officer. It is the responsibility of the voter to’ensure that this envelope reaches the returning officer before the close of the poll at 7 p.m. on election day. To meet the convenience of postal voters, arrangements have been made for the whole procedure, including that of voting, if so desired, to be undertaken at the City Council Office during the next fortnight. Through the co-operation of the secretary of the Wanganui Hospital Board, the votes of patients will be taken during the week preceding the elections. This will also apply to the Old People’s Home at Aramohu On polling day postal voting applications will be received only at the Drill Hall, the principal polling place for the city, where a special staff wilt be engaged to meet these requirements.

In the case of ratepayers and rest, dents of the Waitotara County, provision has been made for postal votes to be recorded at the office of the returning officer, Ridgway Street, Wanganui, during office hours for the next fortnight, and on polling day during the hours of polling—9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Similarmly, the returning officer for the Wanganui County, Mr S. L. Orr, will receive at the county office in Campbell Place, during office hours for the next fortnight, applications for postal votes, and here also, should it be desired, the nctual voting procedure may be undertake. On polling day applications for postal voting papers will be accepted only at the office of the returning officer in Campbell Place.