COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

South Dublin County Council Crest

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, February 09, 2015

QUESTION NO. 21

QUESTION: Councillor C. O'Connor

To ask the Chief Executive to confirm if he plans any additional initiatives to encourage residents of the County to apply for inclusion on the voting registers in advance of the proposed referendums in May?

REPLY:

The Register of Electors 2015/16 was published on 1st February 2015 and comes into force on 15th February. This Register will be used for any elections/referendums that will take place between 15th February 2015 and 14th February 2016. The total electorate is 186,402, of this number 175,965 will be entitled to vote in the upcoming referendums. A supplement to the Register will also be prepared in advance of the referendums.

The Council website will be updated with the new register details and people will have the opportunity to check online to ensure their details are correct. The register will also be available for checking at local post offices, garda stations, libraries and council offices.

If a person finds that they are not registered they can apply for inclusion on the Supplement to the Register.

To be included you must be:

(a)       18 years of age (up to and including polling day);

(b)       ordinarily resident at the address at which you wish to be registered; and

(c)       not already registered as an elector (except in the case of change of address).

If a person is not already on the Register, they can apply to be included in the supplement by filling out the green form (RFA2).  

If a person is on the Register and they have moved from one Dáil or local authority constituency to another they may also apply for entry on the supplement by filling out the pink form (RFA3 – change of address).

A separate form must be completed and signed by each person applying for inclusion in the supplement. The form must be witnessed, signed and stamped by a member of An Garda Síochána. Completed application forms must reach our offices before the fourteenth day (Sundays, public holidays and Good Friday excluded) before polling day.

These forms will be available online at www.sdcc.ie and www.checktheregister.ie and where the register is available for checking.

An extensive national promotional and awareness raising campaign is usually undertaken by the DECLG in advance of referendums and elections.  A selection of the national papers will also carry notices indicating the date of the referendums and closing dates for inclusion on the Register of Electors 2015/16. Local advertising campaigns would be duplication of this effort and therefore wasteful of resources.