Written answers

Wednesday, 6 November 2019

Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government

Postal Voting

Photo of Brendan  RyanBrendan Ryan (Dublin Fingal, Labour)
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218. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to the fact that many older persons, persons with long-term illnesses and those who are housebound feel angry and discriminated against due to the fact that they are unable to vote in elections and are unable to get to a Garda station to have a postal vote form verified; and the way in which he plans to rectify same. [45637/19]

Photo of John Paul PhelanJohn Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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Postal voting is provided for in electoral law in respect of certain categories of persons who are entered in the register of electors, including electors living at home who are unable to vote because of a physical illness or a physical disability.

Section 66(2) of the Electoral Act 1992 provides that the receipt sent with the ballot paper to postal voters must be in the form directed by the Minister and must have printed thereon the instructions to the voter. For a postal voter with a physical illness or disability the receipt requires the signature of the postal voter and not that of a Garda. The signed receipt, together with the marked ballot paper is then returned to the returning officer in the ballot paper envelope provided.

While some applications for entry onto the supplement to the register of electors require Garda verification, this is not the case for application for entry onto the supplements to the register of electors or the postal voters list by persons with a physical illness or physical disability.

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