Hong Kong Ordinances

VILLAGE REPRESENTATIVE ELECTION ORDINANCE - SECT 31

System of voting and counting of votes

(1) At every election that is contested-

   (a)  a poll shall be taken of the electors for the Village for which the
        election is held;

   (b)  the voting at the poll shall be by secret ballot; and

   (c)  the election shall be conducted in accordance with this Ordinance and
        the EAC Regulations.

(2) The Returning Officer for a Village is responsible for supervising an
election for the Village in accordance with this Ordinance and the EAC
Regulations.

(3) The votes shall be given and counted in accordance with the simple or
relative majority system of election (otherwise known as the

"first past the post" system of voting).

(4) At an election for a Village, an elector for the Village may vote for not
more than the number of Village Representatives to be returned for the Village
at the election.

(5) Where an election for a Village is contested by more candidates than the
number of Village Representatives to be returned for the Village at the
election-

   (a)  if one Village Representative is to be returned for the Village at the
        election, the candidate to be elected as the Village Representative
        for the Village is the one who obtains the greatest number of votes at
        the election; and

   (b)  if more than one Village Representative is to be returned for the
        Village at the election, the candidates to be elected as the Village 
        Representatives for the Village are those who obtain the greatest
        number of votes at the election and then the next greatest and so on
        until the required number of Village Representatives is elected.

(6) If, after the counting of votes in respect of an election for a Village is
finished, a Village Representative is still to be returned for the Village at
the election and the most successful candidates or the most successful
candidates remaining (as the case may be) have an equal number of votes, the
Returning Officer for the Village shall determine the result of the election
by drawing lots. The person on whom the lot falls shall be returned for the
Village at the election.

(7) As soon as practicable after determining the result of an election for a
Village, the Returning Officer for the Village shall, in accordance with the
EAC Regulations, publicly declare the candidate who was successful at the
election to be duly elected as a Village  Representative for the Village.

(8) Despite subsection (7), if, before declaring the result of an election for
a Village, it comes to the knowledge of the Returning Officer for the Village
that the candidate who was successful at the election has died or is
disqualified from being elected, the Officer-

   (a)  shall not declare that candidate as elected; and

   (b)  shall publicly declare under section 30(3) that the election-

        (i)    has failed; or

        (ii)   (where more than one Village Representative is to be returned
               for the Village at the election and there is another candidate
               returned for the Village) has failed to the extent that the
               number of candidates returned for the Village at the election
               was less than the number of Village Representatives to be
               returned for the Village at the election.