Regulation Adapting the Canada Elections Act for the Purposes of a Referendum
Part 9
Voting
Voting Opportunities
Manner of voting
127. An elector may vote
(a) in person at a polling station on polling
day;
(b) in person at an advance polling station
during the period provided for the advance
poll; or
(c) by means of a special ballot issued in
accordance with Part 11.
Polling Day
Hours
Hours of voting
128. (1) The voting hours on polling day are
(a) from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., if the electoral
district is in the Newfoundland, Atlantic
or Central time zone;
(b) from 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., if the electoral
district is in the Eastern time zone;
(c) from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., if the electoral
district is in the Mountain time zone; and
(d) from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., if the electoral
district is in the Pacific time zone.
Exception — Saskatchewan
(2) Despite subsection (1), if polling day is
during a time of the year when the rest of the
country is observing daylight saving time, the
voting hours in Saskatchewan are
(a) in the case of an electoral district in the
Central time zone, from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30
p.m.; and
(b) in the case of an electoral district in the
Mountain time zone, from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00
p.m.
Daylight-saving time
129. The Chief Electoral Officer may, if he or
she considers it necessary, set the voting hours
for the electoral district so that the opening and
closing of its polls coincide with the opening
and closing of the polls in other electoral districts
in the same time zone.
When polls lie in two time zones
130. When more than one local time is
observed in an electoral district, the returning
officer shall, with the prior approval of the
Chief Electoral Officer, determine one local
time to be observed for every operation prescribed
by this Act or the Referendum Act,
and shall publish the hours in the Notice of
Referendum referred to in section 62.
Hours for voting
131. If a referendum is held only in one or
more provinces in the same time zone, the
hours of voting are from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Time to Employees for Voting
Consecutive hours for voting
132. (1) Every employee who is an elector is
entitled, during voting hours on polling day, to
have three consecutive hours for the purpose of
casting his or her vote and, if his or her hours of
work do not allow for those three consecutive
hours, his or her employer shall allow the time
for voting that is necessary to provide those
three consecutive hours.
Time at convenience of employer
(2) The time that the employer shall allow
for voting under subsection (1) is at the convenience
of the employer.
Transportation companies
(3) This section and section 133 do not apply
to an employee of a company that transports
goods or passengers by land, air or water who
is employed outside his or her polling division
in the operation of a means of transportation, if
the additional time referred to in subsection (1)
cannot be allowed without interfering with the
transportation service.
No penalty for absence from work to vote
133. (1) No employer may make a deduction
from the pay of an employee, or impose a penalty,
for the time that the employer shall allow
for voting under subsection 132(1).
Hourly, piece-work or other basis of employment
(2) An employer who pays an employee less
than the amount that the employee would have
earned on polling day, had the employee continued
to work during the time referred to in
subsection 132(2) that the employer allowed
for voting, is deemed to have made a deduction
from the pay of the employee, regardless of the
basis on which the employee is paid.
Prohibition
134. No employer shall, by intimidation,
undue influence or by any other means, interfere
with the granting to an elector in their
employ of the three consecutive hours for voting,
as provided for in section 132.
Proceedings at the Poll
Who may be present at polling station
135. (1) The only persons who may be
present at a polling station on polling day are
(a) the deputy returning officer and the poll
clerk;
(b) the returning officer and his or her representatives;
(c) not applicable;
(d) an agent of each registered referendum
committee or a maximum of two witnesses,
as the case may be;
(e) an elector and a friend or relative who
is helping him or her by virtue of subsection
155(1), only for the period necessary to
enable the elector to vote; and
(f) any observer or member of the Chief
Electoral Officer's staff whom he or she
authorizes to be present.
Delivery of agent's or witness's authorization
(2) When an agent of a registered referendum
committee or a witness is admitted to a polling
station, his or her written authorization in the
prescribed form shall be delivered to the deputy
returning officer.
Agent or witness authorized in writing
(3) An agent of a registered referendum committee
or a witness bearing a written authorization
referred to in subsection (2) is deemed
to be an agent of that committee or a witness
within the meaning of this Act and the
Referendum Act and is entitled to represent that
committee in preference to, and to the exclusion
of, any elector who might otherwise claim
the right to represent that committee.
Oath of secrecy
(4) Each agent of a registered referendum
committee or witness described in paragraph
(1)(d), on being admitted to the polling station,
shall take an oath in the prescribed form.
136. (1) Not applicable.
Agents or witnesses may absent themselves from poll
(2) The agents of registered referendum committees
and witnesses described in paragraph
135(1)(d) may leave a polling station at any
time and return at any time before the counting
of the votes begins and are not required to
produce new written authorizations or to take
another oath.
Examination of list of electors and conveying information
(3) An agent of a registered referendum committee
or a witness may, during voting hours,
(a) examine the list of electors, provided that
the agent or witness does not delay an elector
in casting his or her vote; and
(b) convey any information obtained by the
examination referred to in paragraph (a)
to any agent of the registered referendum
committee who is on duty outside the polling
station.
Communications device
(4) An agent of a registered referendum committee
or a witness shall not use a communications
device at a polling station during voting
hours.
137. (1) Not applicable.
Non-attendance of agents or witnesses
(2) The non-attendance of any agent of a
registered referendum committee or witness at
any time or place authorized by this Act or the
Referendum Act does not in any way invalidate
any act or thing done during the absence of the
representative if the act or thing is otherwise
duly done.
Initialling ballots
138. (1) Before a polling station opens on
polling day, and in full view of the agents of
registered referendum committees or witnesses
who are present at the polling station, the deputy
returning officer shall initial the back of
every ballot, entirely in ink or entirely in black
pencil so that when the ballot is folded the initials
can be seen. The initials shall be as similar
as possible on each ballot.
Ballots not to be detached
(2) For the purpose of initialling, the ballots
shall not be detached from the books in which
they are contained.
Vote not to be delayed
(3) The opening of a polling station shall not be
delayed for the purpose of initialling the ballots.
Ballots that are not initialled when the polling station
opens shall be initialled as soon as possible
and in all cases before being handed to electors.
Counting of ballots before opening of poll
139. Agents of registered referendum committees
or witnesses who are in attendance at
least 15 minutes before a polling station opens
are entitled to have the ballots intended to be
used at the polling station carefully counted in
their presence and to inspect the ballots and all
other documents relating to the vote.
Examining and sealing ballot box
140. When the polling station opens, the deputy
returning officer shall, in full view of the
agents of registered referendum committees or
witnesses who are present, open the ballot box
and ascertain that it is empty, and shall
(a) seal the ballot box with the seals provided
by the Chief Electoral Officer; and
(b) place the ballot box on a table in full view
of all present and ensure that the box remains
there until the polling station closes.
Admitting Voters
Calling electors
141. Immediately after the ballot box is
sealed, the deputy returning officer shall call on
the electors to vote.
Electors not to
be impeded
142. (1) The deputy returning officer shall
ensure that every elector is admitted into the polling
station and that the electors are not disturbed
when they are in or near the polling station.
One elector at a time
(2) A deputy returning officer may, if he or she
considers it advisable, direct that not more than
one elector for each voting compartment may at
any time enter the room where the voting is held.
Elector to declare name, etc.
143. (1) Each elector, on arriving at the
polling station, shall give his or her name and
address to the deputy returning officer and the
poll clerk, and, on request, to an agent of a registered
referendum committee or to a witness.
Proof of identity and residence
(2) If the poll clerk determines that the elector's
name and address appear on the list of electors or
that the elector is allowed to vote under section
146, 147, 148 or 149, then, subject to subsection
(3), the elector shall provide to the deputy returning
officer and the poll clerk the following proof
of his or her identity and residence:
(a) one piece of identification issued by a
Canadian government, whether federal, provincial
or local, or an agency of that government,
that contains a photograph of the
elector and his or her name and address; or
(b) two pieces of identification authorized
by the Chief Electoral Officer each of which
establish the elector's name and at least one
of which establishes the elector's address.
Clarification
(2.1) For greater certainty, the Chief Electoral
Officer may authorize as a piece of identification
for the purposes of paragraph (2)(b) any
document, regardless of who issued it.
Person registered as an Indian
(2.2) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(b), a
document issued by the Government of Canada
that certifies that a person is registered as an
Indian under the Indian Act constitutes an
authorized piece of identification.
Oath
(3) An elector may instead prove his or her
identity and residence by taking the prescribed
oath if he or she is accompanied by an elector
whose name appears on the list of electors for
the same polling division and who
(a) provides to the deputy returning officer
and the poll clerk the piece or pieces of identification
referred to in paragraph (2)(a) or
(b), respectively; and
(b) vouches for him or her on oath in the prescribed
form.
Proof of residence
(3.1) If the address contained in the piece or
pieces of identification provided under subsection
(2) or paragraph (3)(a) does not prove the
elector's residence but is consistent with information
related to the elector that appears on the
list of electors, the elector's residence is deemed
to have been proven.
Request to take an oath
(3.2) Despite subsection (3.1), a deputy returning
officer, poll clerk, agent of a registered referendum
committee or witness who has reasonable
doubts concerning the residence of an elector
referred to in that subsection may request that
the elector take the prescribed oath, in which
case his or her residence is deemed to have been
proven only if he or she takes that oath.
Voting
(4) If the deputy returning officer is satisfied
that an elector's identity and residence have
been proven in accordance with subsection (2)
or (3), the elector's name shall be crossed off
the list and, subject to section 144, the elector
shall be immediately allowed to vote.
Prohibition — vouching for more than one elector
(5) No elector shall vouch for more than one
elector at a referendum.
Prohibition — vouchee acting as voucher
(6) An elector who has been vouched for at a
referendum may not vouch for another elector
at that referendum.
Publication
(7) The Chief Electoral Officer shall publish
each year, and within three days after the issue
of a writ, in a manner that he or she considers
appropriate, a notice setting out the types of
identification that are authorized for the purpose
of paragraph (2)(b). The first annual notice
shall be published no later than six months after
the coming into force of this subsection.
Requirement before administering oath
143.1 If a person decides to prove his or her
identity and residence by taking the prescribed
oath, the person who administers the oath shall,
before doing so, orally advise the oath taker of
the qualifications for electors and the penalty
that may be imposed under this Act on a person
who is convicted of voting or attempting to vote at a referendum knowing that he or she is not
qualified as an elector.
Proof of qualification as elector
144. A deputy returning officer, poll clerk,
agent of a referendum committee or witness
who has reasonable doubts concerning whether
a person intending to vote is qualified as an
elector may request that the person take the
prescribed oath, and the person shall not be
allowed to vote unless he or she takes that oath.
Proof of identity, etc., or oath not required
144.1 Once an elector has been given a ballot,
no person shall require the elector to prove
his or her identity and residence in accordance
with subsection 143(2) or (3).
145. [Repealed]
Name and address corresponding closely to another
146. If a name and address in the list of electors
correspond so closely with the name and
address of a person who demands a ballot as to
suggest that it is intended to refer to that person,
the person shall not be allowed to vote unless
he or she takes the prescribed oath.
Person in whose name another has voted
147. If a person asks for a ballot at a polling
station after someone else has voted under that
person's name, the person shall not be allowed to
vote unless he or she takes the prescribed oath.
Name inadvertently crossed off list
148. If an elector claims that his or her name
has been crossed off in error from an official list
of electors under subsection 176(2) or (3), the
elector shall not be allowed to vote unless the
returning officer verifies that the elector's name
was crossed off in error or the elector takes the
oath referred to in section 147.
Failure to prove identity or residence
148.1 (1) An elector who fails to prove his or
her identity and residence in accordance with
subsection 143(2) or (3) or to take an oath otherwise
required by this Act shall not receive a
ballot or be allowed to vote.
When elector refuses to take improper oath
(2) If an elector refuses to take an oath because
he or she is not required to do so under this Act,
the elector may appeal to the returning officer. If,
after consultation with the deputy returning officer
or the poll clerk of the polling station, the returning
officer decides that the elector is not required
to take the oath, and if the elector is entitled to
vote in the polling division, the returning officer
shall direct that he or she be allowed to do so.
Elector not allowed to vote
149. An elector whose name does not appear
on the official list of electors in his or her polling
station shall not be allowed to vote unless
(a) the elector gives the deputy returning officer
a transfer certificate described in section
158 or 159 and, for a certificate described in subsection 158(2), fulfils the conditions
described in subsection 158(3);
(b) the deputy returning officer ascertains
with the returning officer that the elector is
listed on the preliminary list of electors or
was registered during the revision period; or
(c) the elector gives the deputy returning officer
a registration certificate described in subsection
161(4).
Voting Procedure
Delivery of ballot to elector
150. (1) Every elector who is admitted to vote
shall be given a ballot by the deputy returning
officer.
Instructions to elector on receiving ballot
(2) The deputy returning officer shall explain
to each elector how to indicate his or her choice
and fold the ballot so that its serial number and
the initials of the deputy returning officer are
visible and shall direct the elector to return the
marked and folded ballot.
Manner of voting
151. (1) An elector shall, after receiving a
ballot,
(a) proceed directly to the voting compartment;
(b) mark the ballot with a cross or other mark
in the circular space opposite the word "yes"
or "no" according to his or her choice;
(c) fold the ballot as instructed by the deputy
returning officer; and
(d) return the ballot to the deputy returning
officer.
Return of ballot
(2) The deputy returning officer shall, on
receiving the ballot from the elector,
(a) without unfolding the ballot, verify that
it is the same one that was handed to the
elector by examining its serial number and
the initials on it;
(b) remove and destroy the counterfoil in
full view of the elector and all other persons
present; and
(c) return the ballot to the elector to deposit
in the ballot box or, at the elector's request,
deposit it in the ballot box.
Spoiled ballot
152. (1) If an elector has inadvertently handled
a ballot in such a manner that it cannot be
used, the elector shall return it to the deputy
returning officer who shall mark it as a spoiled
ballot, place it in the envelope supplied for the
purpose and give the elector another ballot.
Limit
(2) An elector shall not be given more than
one ballot under subsection (1).
No delay in voting
153. (1) Every elector shall vote without delay
and leave the polling station as soon as his or her
ballot has been put into the ballot box.
Electors present at close of voting hours allowed to vote
(2) An elector who is entitled to vote at a
polling station and who is in the polling station
or in line at the door at the close of voting hours
shall be allowed to vote.
Special Voting Procedures
Assistance by deputy returning officer
154. (1) The deputy returning officer, on
request by an elector who is unable to vote in
the manner prescribed by this Act because he
or she cannot read or has a physical disability,
shall assist the elector in the presence of the
poll clerk.
Template
(2) The deputy returning officer shall, on
request, provide a template to an elector who
has a visual impairment to assist him or her in
marking his or her ballot.
Assistance by friend or related person
155. (1) If an elector requires assistance to
vote, a friend, the spouse, the common-law
partner or a relative of the elector or a relative
of the elector's spouse or common-law partner
may accompany the elector into the voting
compartment and assist the elector to mark his
or her ballot.
Exception
(2) No person shall as a friend assist more
than one elector for the purpose of marking a
ballot.
Oath
(3) A person described in subsection (1) who
wishes to assist an elector in marking a ballot
shall first take an oath, in the prescribed form,
that he or she
(a) will mark the ballot in the manner
directed by the elector;
(b) will not disclose the answer to a referendum
question for which the elector voted;
(c) will not try to influence the elector in
choosing an answer to a referendum question;
and
(d) has not, during the current referendum,
assisted another person, as a friend, to mark
a ballot.
Prohibition — failure to maintain secrecy
(4) No person who assists an elector under
this section shall, directly or indirectly, disclose
the answer to a referendum question for which
the elector voted.
Use of interpreter
156. A deputy returning officer may appoint
and swear a language or sign language interpreter
to assist the officer in communicating to
an elector any information that is necessary to
enable him or her to vote.
Elector who is confined to bed
157. (1) At a polling station that has been
established in a home for the aged or in a
chronic care facility, when the deputy returning
officer considers it necessary, the deputy returning
officer and the poll clerk shall
(a) suspend temporarily the voting in the
polling station; and
(b) with the approval of the person in charge
of the institution, carry the ballot box, ballots
and other necessary referendum documents
from room to room in the institution to take
the votes of electors who are confined to bed
and ordinarily resident in the polling division
in which the institution is situated.
Procedure for taking the votes
(2) When the vote of an elector who is confined
to bed is taken, the deputy returning
officer shall give the elector the assistance necessary
to enable the elector to vote.
Transfer Certificates
158. (1) Not applicable.
Transfer certificate for referendum officer
(2) A returning officer or an assistant returning
officer shall issue a transfer certificate to
any person whose name appears on the official
list of electors for a polling station and who has
been appointed, after the last day of advance
polls, to act as a referendum officer for another
polling station.
Condition
(3) A transfer certificate issued under subsection
(2) authorizes the person to vote at the
polling station named in it only if, on polling
day, the person performs the duty specified
in the certificate at the place mentioned in the
certificate.
Transfer certificate for elector whose polling station has moved
(4) If an elector's polling station moves to
another location after the notice of confirmation
of registration has been sent, an elector
who attends at the polling station set out in the
notice is entitled on request to receive a transfer
certificate to vote at that polling station.
Transfer certificate for elector with a disability
159. (1) An elector who is in a wheelchair or
who has a physical disability, and who is unable
to vote without difficulty in his or her polling
division because it does not have a polling station
with level access, may apply for a transfer
certificate to vote at another polling station with
level access in the same electoral district.
Application requirements
(2) The application shall be in the prescribed
form and shall be personally delivered to the
returning officer or assistant returning officer
for the elector's electoral district by the elector,
his or her friend, spouse, common-law partner
or relative, or a relative of his or her spouse or
common-law partner.
Issue of transfer certificate to disabled elector
(3) The returning officer or assistant returning
officer shall issue a transfer certificate in
the prescribed form, and hand the certificate to
the person who delivered the application to the
officer, if the officer is satisfied that
(a) the elector's name appears on a list of
electors for the electoral district; and
(b) the polling station established for the polling
division in which the elector resides does
not have level access.
Signing, numbering and recording transfer certificate
160. The returning officer or assistant returning
officer by whom a transfer certificate is
issued shall
(a) fill in and sign the certificate and mention
on it the date of its issue;
(b) consecutively number the certificate in
the order of its issue;
(c) keep a record of the certificate in the order
of its issue on the prescribed form;
(d) not issue the certificate in blank; and
(e) if possible, send a copy of the certificate
to the deputy returning officer for the polling
station on whose list of electors the name of
the person to whom the certificate has been
issued appears.
Polling Day Registration
Registration in person
161. (1) An elector whose name is not on the
list of electors may register in person on polling
day if the elector
(a) provides as proof of his or her identity
and residence the piece or pieces of identification
referred to in paragraph 143(2)(a) or (b), respectively, which piece or one of which
pieces must contain an address that proves
his or her residence; or
(b) proves his or her identity and residence
by taking the prescribed oath, and is accompanied
by an elector whose name appears on
the list of electors for the same polling division
and who
(i) provides the piece or pieces of identification
referred to in paragraph 143(2)(a)
or (b), respectively, which piece or one
of which pieces must contain either an address that proves his or her residence or
an address that is consistent with information
related to him or her that appears on
the list of electors, and
(ii) vouches for him or her on oath in the
prescribed form, which form must include a
statement as to the residence of both electors.
Place of registration
(2) Where subsection (1) applies, the registration
may take place before
(a) a registration officer at a registration desk
established under subsection 39(1); or
(b) a deputy returning officer at a polling
station with respect to which the Chief
Electoral Officer determines that the officer
be authorized to receive registrations.
(3) Not applicable.
Registration certificate
(4) Where the elector satisfies the requirements
of subsection (1), the registration officer
or deputy returning officer, as the case may be,
shall complete a registration certificate in the
prescribed form authorizing the elector to vote
and the elector shall sign it.
List deemed to be modified
(5) When a registration certificate is given
under subsection (4), the list of electors is
deemed, for the purposes of this Act, to have
been modified in accordance with the certificate.
Prohibition — vouching for more than one elector
(6) No elector shall vouch for more than one
elector at a referendum.
Prohibition — vouchee acting as voucher
(7) An elector who has been vouched for at a
referendum may not vouch for another elector
at that referendum.
Requirement before administering oath
161.1 If a person decides to prove his or her
identity and residence by taking the prescribed
oath, the person who administers the oath shall,
before doing so, orally advise the oath taker of
the qualifications for electors.
Duties of Poll Clerk
Duties of poll clerk
162. Each poll clerk shall
(a) make, on the prescribed form, the entries
that the deputy returning officer directs under
this Act;
(b) as soon as the elector's ballot has been
deposited in the ballot box, indicate, beside
the name of the elector on the list of electors,
that the elector has voted;
(c) indicate, if applicable, on the prescribed
form that the elector has voted under a transfer
certificate issued under section 158 or 159
and give the number of the certificate;
(d) indicate, if applicable, on the prescribed
form that the elector has voted, under paragraph
149(b), without his or her name being
on the official list of electors;
(e) indicate, if applicable, on the prescribed
form that the elector has voted under section
146;
(f) indicate, if applicable, on the prescribed
form that the elector has taken an oath and
the type of oath;
(g) indicate, if applicable, on the prescribed
form that the elector refused to comply with
a legal requirement to provide the piece or
pieces of identification referred to in paragraph
143(2)(a) or (b), respectively, or to take
an oath;
(h) indicate, if applicable, on the prescribed
form that the elector has been allowed to vote
under subsection 148.1(2);
(i) indicate, if applicable, on the prescribed
form that an elector has voted in the circumstances
described in section 147, that the prescribed
oath has been taken or that any other
oath that was required to be taken was taken,
note any objection that was made on behalf
of a registered referendum committee and
indicate the committee's name;
(i.1) on request, and at intervals of no less
than 30 minutes, provide to an agent of a
registered referendum committee, on the
prescribed form and as directed by the
Chief Electoral Officer, the identity of
every elector who has exercised his or her
right to vote on polling day, excluding that
of electors who registered on that day;
(i.2) on request, after the close of the
advance polling station, provide to an agent
of a registered referendum committee,
on the prescribed form and as directed by
the Chief Electoral Officer, the identity of
every elector who has exercised his or her
right to vote on that day excluding that of
electors who registered on that day; and
(j) indicate, if applicable, on the prescribed
form, that an elector has voted under a registration
certificate issued under subsection
161(4).
Secrecy
Secret vote
163. The vote is secret.
Secrecy during and after poll
164. (1) Every referendum officer, agent of
a registered referendum committee, witness
or other person present at a polling station or
at the counting of the votes shall maintain the
secrecy of the vote.
Secrecy at the poll
(2) Except as provided by this Act, no elector
shall
(a) on entering the polling station and before
receiving a ballot, openly declare for which
answer to a referendum question the elector
intends to vote;
(b) show his or her ballot, when marked, so
as to allow the answer to a referendum question
for which the elector has voted to be
known; or
(c) before leaving the polling station, openly
declare for which answer to a referendum
question the elector has voted.
Procedure in case of contravention of secrecy
(3) It is the duty of each deputy returning
officer to draw the attention of any elector to
an offence that the elector commits in contravening
subsection (2) and to the punishment to
which the elector is liable, but the elector shall
be allowed to vote in the usual way if he or she
has not already done so.
Prohibitions
Prohibition — use of loudspeakers on polling day
165. No person shall use a loudspeaking
device within hearing distance of a polling
station on polling day for the purpose of
promoting or opposing an answer to a referendum
question.
Prohibitions — emblems, etc., in polling station
166. (1) No person shall
(a) post or display in, or on the exterior surface
of, a polling place any referendum literature
or other material that could be taken as
an indication of support for or opposition to
an answer to a referendum question;
(b) while in a polling station, wear any
emblem, flag, banner or other thing that indicates
that the person supports or opposes an
answer to a referendum question; and
(c) in a polling station or in any place where
voting at a referendum is taking place, influence
electors to vote or refrain from voting
or vote or refrain from voting for a particular
answer to a referendum question.
(2) Not applicable.
Prohibitions re ballots, etc.
167. (1) No person shall
(a) apply for a ballot in a name that is not his
or her own;
(b) use a forged ballot;
(c) knowing that he or she is without authority
under this Act to do so, provide a ballot to
any person; or
(d) knowing that he or she is without authority
under this Act to do so, have a ballot in
his or her possession.
Other prohibitions
(2) No person shall wilfully
(a) alter, deface or destroy a ballot or the initials
of the deputy returning officer signed on
a ballot;
(b) put or cause to be put into a ballot box a
ballot or other paper otherwise than as provided
by this Act;
(c) take a ballot out of the polling station; or
(d) destroy, take, open or otherwise interfere
with a ballot box or book or packet of ballots.
Prohibitions — deputy returning officers
(3) No deputy returning officer shall
(a) with the intent of causing the reception of
a vote that should not have been cast or the
non-reception of a vote that should have been
cast, put his or her initials on the back of any
paper purporting to be or capable of being
used as a ballot at a referendum; or
(b) place on any ballot any writing, number
or mark, with intent that the elector to whom
the ballot is to be, or has been, given may be
identified.