This section makes provision for filling regional member vacancies. If a seat is vacated by a member allocated from a registered political party list the vacancy will be filled by the next person on the list willing to serve. This will be notified to the Presiding Officer by the Regional Returning Officer. If the vacancy cannot be filled in that way (because, for example, the list is exhausted) or if the seat was previously filled by an independent individual member, the seat will remain vacant until the next general election.
Commentary Purpose and Effect