ELECTIONS AND THE LAW

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3064, 27 April 1917, Page 6

ELECTIONS AND THE LAW

ONE AMENDMENT BADLY ' NEEDED. In regard to the! induction of the Mayor into his'office, the Mfcafcipal Corporations Act 3a ys that tho function must take place on the Wednesday succeeding the day of election, and goes on to instruct: "Tho Mayor, before entering upon. his office, shall make and sign in the presence of the counoil a declaration in tho form of the third schedule hereto." That would read as a feasible procedure, Tore it not for the fact that no council is likely to be declared duly elected by the returning officer in time to attend the function on the Wednesd&y suoceeding the election. For instance, Mr. Amos (returnjng officer for Wellington) says that it will be at least ten or twelve. <lays before his official recount will have been made, and -until that is made he cannot possibly declare anyone elected to the counoil, bo it is a problem as to how a'duly declared council ia to be provided, for noon on Wednesday next. It is suggested by the deputy town clerk (Mr. JR. Tait) that the Act may mean the old counoil, but to swear a Mayor in before a council which may have been displaced entirely at an eleotion, is not likely. Another part of the same' Act says that tho Mayor shall remain in office until the election of his successor (which probably means until the election of , his successor is officially declared), which fact, however, does not provide for a council before which he must make his declaration.

. "The whole of this trouble would be avoided," declares the oldest and most experienced returning officer in New Zealand■ (Mr. Jameg Ames), if a more reasonable length of time- were allowed for the recount and! checking of the rolls. In tho recount the name of every person who voted has to be called, and every roll used at a. booth.checked in order to see that there was no dual voting. You simply can't do this work in a day or two. Two years ago wo were only able to get through the check aa far as the Mayoral election mas.concerned half' an hour before the time fixed for the installation of the Mayor. •We want at laast a fortnight, instead of a week. How they are going to get on in Christchuroh, where they are trying the proportional voting system, I "don't know, but the Act certainly wants amending in the direction I have mentioned."