Tony McLoughlin (Sligo-North Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Office of the Ceann Comhairle for affording me the opportunity to raise this issue with the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Phil Hogan. Members will be aware that persons not on the voting register may apply to register on the supplementary voting register up to 15 days before polling day. Sundays, public holidays and Good Friday are not counted as days for this purpose. I am aware of recent abuses in this regard that occurred in the local electoral area in my constituency. Persons were added to the register through the supplementary registration system and assigned to vacant addresses. I am confident these people switched their votes from their home areas to the area in question to support a particular candidate, despite the fact that, in reality, they never lived there, nor will live there in the future. Any person who applies to register to vote through the supplementary register should be required to forward with his application a document with proof of address. This could be a bill, bank statement or other evidence normally required to prove one's address. This move would stamp out the abuse which I believe led to up to 20 to 30 people voting in a particular electoral area when they should have registered elsewhere.

The second issue I wish to raise is the application process for persons who seek a postal vote because of their occupation. In the Ballinamore municipal electoral area of County Leitrim during the recent local elections, 406 applications were received for postal votes. The vast majority were received for reasons associated with people’s occupations. Of the 406 applicants, 368 voted, with 365 casting a valid vote. I am still asking what happened to the remaining 40 plus.

I believe a number of applications came from people who were living and continue to live in Australia, Canada and the United States. It is clear that these people did not make the applications themselves and that the applications were made by people acting for a particular candidate in the local election area. With regard to one candidate I know who delivered the unmarked ballot paper to the returning officer, the parent of the applicant was bewildered and could not understand how his or her son could have a postal vote considering that he has resided in Australia for the past two years.

I am not advocating that we suspend postal votes for persons who cannot vote due to their occupation but proposing that the Minister review the application process and ensure that a garda or authorised local government official will personally witness the application by a person rather than allowing an application form to be sent in from nowhere.

Why did 40 applicants in the Ballinamore area of County Leitrim not proceed to cast their votes?

I can only suspect that once the list of voters was published and the Garda authorities were notified, attempts by some persons to vote on behalf of others did not go ahead. I urge the Minister to review these two issues and consider changes to prevent the abuse of democracy that may have happened at May's local elections.

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