Commentary on Sections Northern Ireland Section 3: Combination of polls
27.Section 3 enables a combined poll to be held in Northern Ireland.
28.Subsection (1) extends section 15 of the Representation of the People Act 1985 to Northern Ireland. This requires that the polls of two or more elections which are held on the same day must be combined. That is to say, the voters shall be able to attend the same polling place and use the same polling station to cast their votes for two or more elections at the same time. This extension also ensures that the power specified in section 15(5) to make amendments to the Representation of the People Acts in relation to combined elections are applicable to Northern Ireland.
29.Subsection (4) extends the power in section 84 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to make provision by Order in Council to include the power to make provision with respect to polls at local elections when those elections are combined with the polls at other elections in Northern Ireland.