Scottish Parliament and Local Government Elections

IN THE POLLING STATION - B

Dealing with Problems and Special Voting Procedures

1. REGISTRATION PROBLEMS

1a. Under Age but Registered Elector

Occasionally a person who is under 18 and whose birthday is not indicated against their entry in the Register may have been registered by mistake. This person should be issued with a ballot paper because the Register is conclusive, but the applicant and/or accompanying adult should be warned that the "voter" will be guilty of an offence if they vote. Furthermore before being issued with a ballot paper the under age voter must be asked the statutory questions by the Presiding Officer and they must answer them unaided (see paragraph on The Prescribed Questions below). The Returning Officer should subsequently be informed.

1b. Mis-spelt Names and Electors who have changed their Name

Sometimes you may find that a voter's name has been mis-spelt or that they have legally changed their name since they last completed their Electoral Registration Form, for example, when someone marries and takes the name of their spouse or conversely if they have divorced or their spouse has died and they have reverted to their pre-marital name.

If you are confronted by this problem then you should ask:

"Are you the person entered on this Register

of Electors as (the name on the Register)?"

If the answer is "yes" then the elector should be allowed to vote (assuming they are eligible to vote).

1c. A Person who is not on the Register of Electors in Your Polling Station

Anyone who is not on the Register of Electors must not be allowed to vote.

They may be registered to vote in a different polling district, in which case please ask them to check their Poll Card if they have it. This will disclose their correct polling place.

If they do not have a Poll Card then refer them to your Returning Officer or to your Electoral Registration Officer (telling them to make sure they have their address as of 10 October 1998).

2. POSTAL AND PROXY VOTERS

2a. Who are Postal Voters and Postal Proxies?

Some electors may be unable to get to the polling station on polling day, and have applied to be treated as absent voters at the elections. These people will have been granted the right to vote by post or by proxy.

Those electors and electors whose proxies have chosen to vote by post will have a letter "A" placed against the elector's name in the Register to be used at the polling station to show that they are an absent voter. Such electors or proxies may not vote in person at the polling station.

Occasionally absent voters try to hand in their postal ballot paper envelopes at a polling station. Presiding Officers must not accept these and you should ask them to deliver it to the Returning Officer at the address shown on the envelope. They may do this at any time up to the close of poll.

2b. Procedure for Proxy Voters

You should ask for the proxy's name and address and see if they are included on the List of Proxies. If they are then the person should place a mark against the proxy's name in the List of Proxies with a straight line to indicate that the proxy has exercised the elector's vote. The Polling Clerk should then ask for the name and address of the elector for whom they are voting, and then find the elector on the Register of Electors and read out loud the elector's name and their electoral registration number. The elector's number and name in the Register should then be marked in the usual manner.

You should write the elector's electoral registration number (including the polling district letter(s)/number(s)) on the face of the counterfoil of each ballot paper in the usual manner.

A person can act as a proxy at an election for no more than two electors of whom they are not an immediate member of their family. Where a person who has been appointed to act as proxy to vote for more than one elector applies to exercise the electors' votes, the proxy should only be given one set of ballot papers at a time.

Please remember that you may only issue ballot papers for electors who are eligible to vote in the elections.

Proxies can be challenged in the same way that an ordinary voter may be if they are suspected of personation, and if this happens please ask the relevant prescribed questions (see below).

2c. What if the elector turns up to vote instead of the Proxy?

Sometimes the person who has appointed a proxy turns up to vote in person. If this happens please allow the elector to vote provided their proxy has not already voted for them. The list of proxies must not be marked if this happens, but the elector's entry on the Register of Electors must be. If the Proxy then turns up later they should not be allowed to vote as a proxy for the elector. However they may under certain circumstances be issued a tendered ballot paper (see below).

3. PERSONATION OF A VOTER

There may be rare occasions when a member of the polling station team or another voter or a Candidate or their Polling Agent suspect that the person requesting a ballot paper is not who they claim to be. This is called personation. It is a serious offence.

Please remember that an elector as distinct from a proxy, is not guilty of personation if they apply for a ballot paper by a name, which is not their own, but is the name under which they have been registered.

Presiding Officers have no right to interrogate a person if they suspect an instance of personation. You may only ask the questions prescribed by law (see section on Prescribed Questions below). The prescribed questions must be put to the would-be voter before they are issued with a ballot paper, and not afterwards.

A Polling Clerk may ask the prescribed questions, but it is preferable for the Presiding Officer to intervene if a person is suspected of personation.

The prescribed questions are asked to determine whether the applicant is the person who appears on the Register of Electors (or list of proxies if they are voting as a proxy for someone else), and whether they have voted before in the election (or on behalf of that voter if they are their proxy).

If the person answers the questions satisfactorily then you must issue them with a ballot paper.

4. THE PROCEDURE FOR TENDERED BALLOT PAPERS

There may be rare occasions when a person not entitled to vote by post applies for a ballot paper, either to vote on their own behalf or as a proxy, only to find that someone else is recorded as having voted instead of them. The tendered ballot paper procedure then needs to be followed. The Polling Clerk should refer the elector to the Presiding Officer. Persons entitled to vote by post cannot be given a tendered ballot paper.

The Presiding Officer should follow the Procedure for issuing Tendered Ballot Papers if: An elector has already been marked off on the Electoral Register as having voted i.e. someone else (other than a proxy) seems to have voted for them A proxy has already been marked off on the List of Proxies and their elector marked off on the Electoral Register i.e. another person seems to have impersonated the proxy and voted for the elector A proxy insists that the elector has not voted after their application to cast a vote as a proxy has been rejected because the Electoral Register indicates that the elector has voted in person (the List of Proxies in this case would not be marked).

The Presiding Officer should check the entry on the Register of Electors to make sure no mistake has been made. Once this has been confirmed the Presiding Officer must ask the prescribed questions (see below).

If the elector or proxy answers the prescribed questions satisfactorily then the Presiding Officer must issue a tendered ballot paper - they must not be given an ordinary ballot paper. The tendered ballot paper is differently coloured.

The Presiding Officer must write the elector's electoral registration number with the polling district letter(s)/number(s) on the counterfoil of the tendered ballot paper and enter the elector's name and electoral registration number on the Tendered Votes List.

The Presiding Officer should stamp the tendered ballot paper with the official mark, and hand it to the voter, ask the voter to vote in secret, fold the ballot paper and return it to the Presiding Officer.

The tendered ballot paper must not be placed in the ballot box

The Presiding Officer should then take the folded tendered ballot paper and endorse it with the name of the voter together with their electoral registration number including the polling district letter(s)/number(s) and place it in the relevant official envelope.

5 A CHALLENGE AGAINST A VOTER BY A POLLING AGENT OR A CANDIDATE If a Candidate or an Election or Polling Agent alleges that a person applying for ballot papers is guilty of personation and undertakes to substantiate that charge in a court of law then the Presiding Officer may order a police officer to arrest the person. The police officer, under such circumstances, may act purely at the request of the Presiding Officer and does not need a warrant to arrest the person. However the person should not be prevented from voting. Polling Clerks cannot request a police officer to arrest a would-be voter suspected by an Election or Polling Agent or Candidate of personation. The Presiding Officer will, of course, have to make a statement. In fact, if a police officer has to arrest anyone in a polling station then a statement will be required. The Presiding Officer's statement should include: The name and description of the person arrested as so given The offence with which the person is charged The name of the person who made the charge, and whether that person is the Presiding Officer, a Polling Clerk, an Election or Polling Agent, a Candidate or a police officer The grounds on which the charge is made Any other remarks the Presiding Officer may wish to offer. The statement should then be signed, sealed in an envelope, endorsed by the Presiding Officer and handed to the Returning Officer. The Presiding Officer should record details as soon as possible and must inform their Returning Officer that a person has been arrested in the polling station.   6 THE PRESCRIBED QUESTIONS The prescribed questions must be asked of and answered unaided by a person purporting to be an elector if: You suspect that person of impersonating an elector A Candidate or an Election or Polling Agent requires you to do so You suspect the person may not be mentally able to understand what they have to do through drink, drugs, or other incapacity The elector is registered as eligible to vote but is clearly under age (with no birth-date indicated on the register) The elector who a person purports to be has already been marked on the Electoral Register i.e. someone else (other than a proxy) seems to have voted for them already.   The prescribed questions to be asked of an elector 1. "Are you the person registered in the Register of Local Government Electors for this election as follows (you then read out loud the whole entry for that name on the Register)? If the would-be voter answers "No", do not issue them with a ballot paper. If they answer "Yes", then ask: 2. "Have you voted, here or elsewhere, in this election otherwise than as a proxy for some other person?" If they answer "Yes", to this question then do not issue them with a ballot paper. If the person has answered "Yes" to the first question and "No" to the second question then you must issue them with a ballot paper. These questions should be asked if appropriate both in relation to the Scottish Parliament elections and the Local Government elections.   The prescribed questions must be asked and answered unaided of a person purporting to be a proxy if: You suspect that person of personation A Candidate or an Election or Polling Agent requires you do so You suspect the person may not be mentally able to understand what they have to do through drink, drugs or other incapacity A proxy who the person purports to be has already been marked off on the List of Proxies and the entry of the elector on the Electoral Register has been marked i.e. another person seems to have impersonated the proxy and voted for the elector A proxy insists that the elector has not voted after their application to cast a vote as a proxy has been rejected because the Electoral Register indicates that the elector has voted in person (the List of Proxies in this case would not be marked) You suspect that a proxy applies to vote for more than two electors to whom they are not related (even if they hold proxy appointments for such elections).   The prescribed questions to be asked of a proxy A proxy is someone who has been nominated by an elector, unable to get to the polling station on polling day, to vote on their behalf. The Presiding Officer has a full list of Proxies who have been nominated by absent voters. The Presiding Officer would, in this case, ask: 1. "Are you the person whose name appears as (read out the name that appears in the List of Proxies) in the List of Proxies for this election as entitled to vote as proxy on behalf of (the name of the voter on the Register)? If the person answers "No", then do not issue them with the ballot paper. If however they answer "Yes", then ask: 2. "Have you already voted here or elsewhere at this election as proxy on behalf of (the name of the voter on the Register)? If they answer "Yes" to this question then you must not issue them with a ballot paper. If the person answers "No", then you should ask: 3. "Are you the husband/wife, parent, grandparent, brother/sister, child or grandchild of (the name of the voter on the Register)?" If they answer "Yes" to this question (and have satisfactorily answered the questions above) then you must issue them with a ballot paper. If, however, they answer "No" then ask: 4. "Have you at this election already voted in this Constituency on behalf of two persons of whom you are not husband/wife, parent, grandparent, brother/sister, child or grandchild?" If they answer "Yes" to this question, then do not issue them with a ballot paper. If they answer "No" to this question (and have satisfactorily answered the questions above) then you must issue them with a ballot paper. These questions should be asked if appropriate both in relation to the Scottish Parliament elections and the Local Government elections.   The Presiding Officer must issue ballot papers to anyone who has answered the questions correctly, even if you suspect they have lied. If a person refuses to answer the questions then they cannot be issued with ballot papers. If that person returns later then the Presiding Officer must again ask them the prescribed questions.   7 PROVIDING ASSISTANCE TO VOTERS Occasionally voters request assistance. These might include: visually impaired voters, people who are illiterate, voters for whom English is not their first language, and voters who suffer a physical incapacity and require the assistance of the Presiding Officer. You may find that these voters require general guidance on the voting process. In addition, for these elections you might find a larger number of people asking questions about how to vote, because of the new electoral system and combined polls. There are a number of visual aids available for voters in the polling station. First of all there are instructions on the ballot papers themselves. There is also the "Guidance to Voters" posters, which should be prominently displayed both inside and outside the polling station. The only poster to be inside the polling booth is the one instructing voters to mark only one vote on each ballot paper. For these elections there will also be a new notice to be displayed prominently inside the polling station informing electors of the different types of ballot papers. In addition your polling station may also have been issued with an enlarged version of the ballot papers for visually impaired voters. Although there is no requirement to supply this aid some Returning Officers have made use of these at previous elections. You are at liberty to direct voters to read the instructions printed on the ballot papers and the Presiding Officer may feel that it could be helpful to read out these instructions to voters where they require assistance. You may also direct voters' attention to the relevant notice. This is preferable in some circumstances rather than attempting to give your own explanation in answer to a query. However some voters may find the instructions on the ballot papers and the guidance and information notices to voters unclear. They may ask you, for example, to point out their favoured Individual Candidate or Political Party. Some might ask where they should place their cross on the ballot paper. In these circumstances the Presiding Officer may read out the names of Individual Candidates and Political Parties (together with the relevant names on their lists) in the order that they appear on the relevant ballot papers.   Providing Assistance to People who cannot read the Ballot Paper If a voter claims that they cannot read the ballot paper then the Presiding Officer should provide them with assistance. If the elector knows which Individual Candidate or Political Party they wish to vote for then they must instruct the Presiding Officer, in the secrecy of the polling booth, to mark the ballot paper on their behalf for the Voter's chosen Individual Candidate or Political Party.

8. CERTIFICATES OF EMPLOYMENT

Some persons (police officers and staff of Returning Officers) are entitled to vote at a polling station other than their prescribed one, so long as they have a Certificate of Employment. This Certificate must be signed by a police officer of the rank of Inspector or above, or by the Returning Officer, as the case may be.

Any Certificate produced for the above purpose must be handed to the Presiding Officer and cancelled and retained by the Presiding Officer before ballot papers are issued. At the close of poll any such Certificate of Employment is to be placed in the same envelope as the counterfoils of the used ballot papers.

9. ORDER IN THE POLLING STATION

9a. Disorder

Local police stations will be informed previously of the location of polling stations by the Returning Officer. Some police officers will be assigned polling station duties _ usually additional foot patrols in urban areas and patrol cars in rural areas. It is likely that they will visit polling stations during the day.

If there is disorder at the polling station during the day, contact your Returning Officer and inform them of the situation. If necessary, call the police to deal with the problem.

9b. Serious Disorder

In the event of serious disturbance - bomb scares or riot etc - the police may ask the Presiding Officer to vacate the premises. If you have been asked by the police to leave the building then you must do so. If you are requested to leave the building then you must inform the Returning Officer and seek guidance.

In the most extreme case a Returning Officer might permit the Presiding Officer to adjourn the poll until the subsequent day. DO NOT ADJOURN THE POLL ON YOUR OWN INITIATIVE. If the poll is adjourned then your Returning Officer will arrange for your election materials to be collected.

9c. Emergencies

You should never put the voters or other persons in the polling station at risk of death or injury. But if it is clear that there is no immediate risk, then gather up all the sensitive election materials _ the ballot boxes, ballot papers, stamping instrument, Electoral Register etc and take them with you.

If you are forced to leave the premises, but have been able to take the essential election materials with you, you should try to establish a temporary polling station nearby in order to avoid turning voters away. If you are unable to return to the original premises take instructions from your Returning Officer. Regardless of any interruption in polling you must nevertheless still close the polling station at 10pm.

9d. What to do with Incapacitated Persons

No member of the polling station team has the right to refuse a ballot paper to a person who appears to be unable mentally to understand what they have to do through drink, drugs or other incapacity if they are registered and eligible to vote. However if you or a polling agent suspect that the person is so incapacitated then you should ask them the prescribed questions (see section on the Prescribed Questions above). If they fail to answer them correctly then they should be refused a ballot paper. They may return, and a ballot paper may be issued if they answer the prescribed questions satisfactorily.

10. GUIDANCE ON TELLERS

Individual Candidates and Political Parties usually ask their members and supporters to act as polling station tellers. Telling is a vital part of the Political Parties' efforts to identify likely supporters who have not voted so that they can urge them to vote before the close of poll. Most tellers are volunteers and generally behave well. However there are questions and sometimes disputes over tellers and their activities.

Tellers have no legal status and are not allowed to enter the room set aside for voting unless to record their own vote or to vote as proxy for an elector. Sometimes they may sit in an ante-room or in a corridor if there is room in the premises (probably in bad weather), as long as they do not block the route for voters. If there is such a place then Presiding Officers should display clearly any notes or guidance for tellers supplied by the Returning Officer. If you have sufficient copies, please hand them to the tellers when they arrive at the beginning of the day and ask them to pass them on to their colleagues.

In general, guidance on tellers, which also applies to Polling Agents when they are not in the polling station, is that they should not: Be allowed in or near the room set aside for voting. They must not be able to hear what is going on in the room Obstruct voters' access to the polling station Canvass, campaign or wear any sticker, rosette, colours etc urging voters to vote for a specific Individual Candidate or Political Party Ask voters for their registration number or address on their way in -that may be asked on the way out Ask how the voter has voted Ask voters to re-enter the polling station to request their poll card Be aggressive Park cars emblazoned with the name of their Individual Candidate or Political Party within the polling place Distribute any Political Party materials or propaganda within the polling place.

The Presiding Officer should check on their activities from time to time and make sure that they do not block the entrance or hinder or harass voters entering the polling station.

11. THE MEDIA AND EXIT POLLS

The media have no special rights to enter a polling station except as voters. They must not be allowed to film or interview voters in the polling station. If a film crew has been given permission by the Returning Officer to film outside the polling station but within the polling place, please make sure that they do not hinder or harass voters on their way to vote nor obstruct the entrance to the polling station.

We have all become used to the announcement of exit polls minutes after the close of poll and it is possible that one or other major public opinion poll companies - MORI, ICM or NOP for example - will be commissioned to organise an exit poll for these elections. Opinion poll companies are commissioned usually by major media organisations or academic researchers.

Customarily, and as a matter of courtesy, the pollsters contact the Returning Officer before polling day. It is hoped therefore that your Returning Officer will be able to forewarn the Presiding Officer if one of the polling companies intends to conduct an exit poll outside your polling station. If that is the case, please make sure that the polling company's interviewers do not enter the polling place, except in exceptional circumstances and only with the permission of the Presiding Officer.