Statutes of Newfoundland and Labrador 2007 Chapter 22

Be it enacted by the Lieutenant-Governor and House of Assembly in Legislative Session convened, as follows:

SNL1992 cE-3.1
as amended

1. Section 13 of the Elections Act, 1991 is repealed and the following substituted:

Publication of returning officers

13. The Chief Electoral Officer shall, as he or she considers appropriate, publish or announce in a newspaper, magazine or other print, visual, audio or electronic media accessible in an electoral district or on a website established for the purpose, a list of the names and addresses of the returning officers for that electoral district.

2. The Act is amended by adding immediately after section 56.1 the following:

Agreements with municipalities and school boards

56.2 (1) The Chief Electoral Officer may enter into an agreement with a municipality or a board with respect to the supply and exchange of information necessary for a revision, correction or compilation of a Permanent List of Electors.

(2) In this section

(a) "board" means a board as defined in the Schools Act, 1997; and

(b) "municipality" means a municipality as defined in the Municipal Elections Act.

3. Paragraph 70(1)(c) of the Act is amended by deleting the amount "$100" and substituting the amount "$200".

4. Paragraph 73(2)(a) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

(a) where, in accordance with section 304,

(i) the district association of the registered party with which the candidate is affiliated has filed financial statements, or

(ii) the candidate who is a non-affiliated candidate personally entitled under section 312 to be reimbursed for his or her election expenses has filed financial statements,

be returned to the candidate;

5. Subsection 74(4) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

(4) The Chief Electoral Officer shall

(a) on April 1 of each year furnish to each political party registered under Part III a copy of the list of electors for the electoral districts involved in the election; and

(b) upon the filing of nomination papers with the returning officer for a candidate who has been officially nominated by a party, or as soon afterwards as possible, furnish to that candidate a copy of the list of electors for the electoral district in which the candidate is nominated.

(4.1) In addition to the list of electors provided under subsection (4), not later than 5 days before polling day, the Chief Electoral Officer shall furnish to

(a) each political party registered under Part III, an updated list of the electors for the electoral districts involved in the election; and

(b) each candidate, an updated list of the electors for the electoral district for which that candidate is nominated.

6. Subsection 86(4) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

(4) An application to vote by special ballot may be made to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer beginning not more than 4 weeks before the issue of the writ of election and ending at 6:00 p.m. on a day to be determined by the Chief Electoral Officer.

7. Section 86.4 of the Act is amended by adding immediately after subsection (3) the following:

(4) A special ballot kit shall be distributed to an elector by an election official only.

(5) A special ballot kit shall be returned to the Chief Electoral Officer by the elector or an election official only.

(6) Where a voter requires assistance in the completion of his or her special ballot, that assistance shall be provided by an election official only.

8. (1) Subsection 86.6(2) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

(2) Notwithstanding section 216, at 6:00 p.m. on a day before polling day to be determined by the Chief Electoral Officer, the declaration envelopes shall be removed from the ballot box by the Special Ballot Administrator or a special ballot officer in the presence of the persons designated under section 86.5 or, where they are not available, in the presence of 2 other witnesses.

(2) Subsection 86.6(6) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

(6) Notwithstanding section 216, at 6 p.m. on a day before polling day to be determined by the Chief Electoral Officer, the Special Ballot Administrator or a special ballot officer, in the presence of the persons designated under section 86.5 to act as scrutineers, or 2 other witnesses, where the scrutineers are not available, shall open the ballot boxes, open the sealed ballot envelopes and proceed to count the votes.

9. Subsection 92(3) of the Act is amended by deleting the word and number "containing 50".

10. Section 129 of the Act is repealed.

11. Section 130 of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

Requirements of elector

130. The deputy returning officer, a candidate or a scrutineer of a candidate may require that a person offering himself or herself as an elector at an advance poll take, before being handed a ballot, an oath that an elector at an ordinary poll on the scheduled polling day may be required to take.

12. Subsection 145(3) of the Act is repealed and the following substituted:

(3) The deputy returning officer shall deliver one copy of the statement of the poll to each of the scrutineers.

13. Paragraph 159(1)(b) of the Act is amended by deleting the words "candidates or their".

14. Section 184 of the Act is amended by renumbering it as subsection 184(1) and by adding immediately after that subsection the following:

(2) Notwithstanding subsections (1) and 185(1), after the date upon which an application may be made under section 235 has passed, the Chief Electoral Officer may, for the purpose of revising and correcting the Permanent List of Electors under section 56, open a sealed ballot box in the presence of the Clerk of the House of Assembly and, with respect to that opened box,

(a) may remove the contents relevant to the revising and correction of the Permanent List of Electors; and

(b) shall ensure that the contents of an opened ballot box are used or kept in a secure place; and

(c) shall reseal the opened ballot box with a numbered seal making a record of the number on the seal used and furnishing the Clerk of the House of Assembly with a copy of the record.

15. Paragraph 269(1)(c) of the Act is amended by deleting the number "6" and substituting the number "4".

16. Subsection 304(1) of the Act is amended by deleting the number and word "6 months" and substituting the number and word "4 months".