THE ELECTIONS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 3049, 20 November 1908, Page 5

THE ELECTIONS.

THE HA WEE'S BAY SEAT.

By Telegraph—Press Association. HASTINGS, November 19. The election committees of Messrs H. I: Simson, A. E. Jull and G. S. Clapham met to-day, and decided tc* take united action to secure the return of Mr Alfred Dillon (Government candidate) at the second ballot against Sir Wm. Russell. DUNEDIN, November 19. The official count in connection with the Chalmers election gives the following results:—Allen, 2552; Clarke, 2463; Barr, 102. A second ballot will be necessary. Four votes have still to come in. DANNEVIRKE, November 9. So far 37 absent voters' permits have come to hand. Of these 27 are for Hall and 12 for Hunter. This makes Hall's total 2474, and Hunter'sr 2425. The outstanding votes cannot affect the position. The scrutiny will not be completed until to-morrow. THE ELECTION RESULT AT MASTERTON. HOW THE SCRUTINY IS PRO r CEEDING. STATUTORY CONDITIONS TO BE OBSERVED. Keen interest is being maintained in the probable result of the figures in connection with the local option poll at Masterton, the Returning Officer being continually applied to on the subject. The staff of scrutineers under the direction of the Returning Officer (Mr W. Gillespie) and the supervision of Mr Eli Smith, J.P., put in a busy day yesterday at Dominion Hall, when more than half the votes were scrutinised, and * in no instance was any irregularity discovered. It is expected that the f scrutiny will be completed by midday to day, and it is not unlikely that the result of the poll will be available for to-morrow morning's Age. In 1905 it was six days after the election before the results were made available, the election taking; place on the 6th December and the official declaration taking place on, the 12th. A good deal of misapprehension: appears to exist as to what the scrutiny and vote counting entails, and for the information of readers we republish the sections of the Legislature Act, 1908 (which erabodies the 1905 Electoral Act). This Act "On cympletion ofthe] scrutiny directed by section one hundred and thirty-two the Returning QjJ!ce£ shall, with sueh asglstence as her deems necessary, and in the presence of scrutineers, and also in the presence of some Justice (who shall attend at the request of the ReturningOfficer), take all the used ballotpapers from the several packets, and all the absent voters' ballot-papers received by him. and, mixing them up together, shall plaoe them in an open box, "The ballot-papers shall then be drawn out of the box in succession, and each such paper as it is drawn shall be marked or stamped with a number in arithmetical series, beginning with the number one, and so that no two ballot-papers shall bear the same number. 'The Justice attending shall sign a certificate stating the total number of the ballot-papers received at the election, and such certificate shall be carefully reserved by the Returning Officer for production when required. "The Returning Officer shall then, in the presence of scrutineers deal with the ballot-papers as follows: — He -(hall reject as informal all ballot-papers that do not bear the official mark and that * there is reasonable cause to believe were not issued to a voter by any Deputy Returning Officer, and all ballot papers whereon anything not authorised by this Act is written or marked by which the voter can be identified, other than the writing in the corner seal by the Deputy Returning Officer, and all ballot-papers that do not clearly indicate the candidate for whom' the elector desired to vote." So far as a recount goes this only takes place where any candidate has reason to believe that the public declaration by the Returning Officer of the number of votes received by each candidate is incorrect, and that on a recount such first-mentioned candidate might be found 'to be elected, such candidate may within three days after such public declaration apply to a Mag istrate for a recount of the votes. Every such application shall be accompanied by a deposit of twenty pounds, which may be ordered to be applied towards the cost of the recount.

LOCAL OPTION. By Telegraph—Press Association. AUCKLAND, November 19. Keen interest is being taken in the final result of the Manukau licensing poll, as the question of No-License is hanging in the balance. The present figures are:—Continuance, 2243; Reduction, 3103; No-License, 3352. The valid votes, calculated on the basis of the Parliamentary vote, give 46 short of No-License, but that cannot be taken as more than approximate, while about 50 absentee vote 3 have yet to be counted. The question of the legality of the poll of the habitual drunkards at Pakatoa Island has been raised, but it appears they are not on the same footing as the occupants of gaols. HOKITIKA, November 19. Westland local option voting:— Continunce, 3123; Reduction, 1232; No-License, 1823. One small return is not available, but should increase the continuance vote slightly. WELLINGTON, November 19. " The latest in regard to the local option poll at the Hutt is that there are five votes short of the number required for No-License. There are still 62 absent voters' papers to come in, and telegraphic advices show that 53 of these votes have been recorded. DUNEDIN, November 19. The complete returns in connection with the Taieri.Local Option Poll are as follow:—Voters, 4615; continuance, 1860; reduction, 2405; nolicense,J2739. Reduction was carried by 97 votes.