New South Wales Consolidated Acts

PARLIAMENTARY ELECTORATES AND ELECTIONS ACT 1912 - SECT 117A

117A Preliminary scrutiny of provisional absent voters’ ballot papers

(1) The returning officer for the district sent an envelope containing a ballot paper of a person voting under section 115A (or the election official assisting the returning officer) is, in the presence of the scrutineers, to examine the declaration on the envelope, and if the returning officer (after making such enquiries as he or she may deem necessary) is satisfied that the declaration is in order and the person who made the declaration:

(a) was, on the day of polling, entitled to enrol for the district-is to accept the ballot paper for further scrutiny, or

(b) was, on the day of polling, not entitled to enrol for the district, but was enrolled for some other district-is to arrange for the envelope to be promptly delivered to the returning officer for the district for which the person was enrolled to be dealt with in the manner set out in subsection (4),

but otherwise must reject the ballot paper without opening the envelope.

(2) Despite subsections (1) and (4), a ballot paper is not to be rejected for further scrutiny by a returning officer (the "scrutinising returning officer") only because the relevant declaration is not attested if, before the declaration of the poll, the returning officer for the district in which the declaration was made has in accordance with section 116 (2) sent advice in writing to the scrutinising returning officer that an envelope containing the ballot paper has been forwarded in accordance with section 116 (1).

(3) If the returning officer (or the election official assisting him or her) accepts a ballot paper for further scrutiny, he or she is to open the envelope without destroying the declaration and extract the ballot paper and, without unfolding it, place the ballot paper in the ballot box.

(4) The returning officer for a district to whom an envelope is forwarded under subsection (1) (b) (or the election official assisting him or her) is, if the person whose name is signed to the declaration on the envelope is enrolled for the district and the declaration is duly attested, to open the envelope and withdraw any ballot paper contained in the envelope and, without, as far as practicable, inspecting or unfolding the ballot paper or allowing any other person to do so:

(a) in the case of any ballot paper for a periodic Council election, is to accept the ballot paper for further scrutiny and place it in the ballot box, or

(b) in the case of any ballot paper for an Assembly election, is to disallow the ballot paper,

but otherwise must reject the ballot paper without opening the envelope.