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are necessary. The effect of these sections is that the MUNICIPAL elections of chairmen, county aldermen, and county COUNTY councillors are subject substantially to the same provisions as those to which the election of mayors, aldermen and councillors are subject in municipal boroughs. In order to save needless repetition, express reference will only be made to county councils when the provisions applicable to them differ from those applicable to municipal councils. It must be understood, therefore, that the provisions expressed to be applicable to municipal elections apply also to county council elections, except where the contrary is stated; in applying such provisions to county council elections the necessary modifications and amendments must be made, as to which, see ante, p. 32.

ELECTION OF MAYOR.

Mayors and aldermen are elected by the council of the borough, and the proceedings are regulated by the Municipal Corporations Act, 1882 (45 & 46 Vict. c. 50). The election of mayor is to be the first business transacted at the quarterly meeting of the council on the day of election, i. e., the 9th of November or the day following: Ibid., ss. 61, 70. It has been decided, under a former Act, that when the election of aldermen was held before that of mayor, neither election was good: R. v. McGowan, 11 A. & E. 869.

The ordinary day of election of chairman and county aldermen is the 16th of March, or such other day within ten days of the 8th of March, as the county council may from time to time fix: 54 & 55 Vict. c. 68, s. 1 (3).

By sect. 22 of 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, it is enacted that the rules in the Second Schedule to the Act are to be observed. By rule 10 of that Schedule it is provided that all acts of the council, and all questions coming or arising before the council, may be done and decided by the majority of such members of the council as are

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MUNICIPAL present and vote at a meeting held in pursuance of the COUNTY Act, the whole number present at the meeting, whether voting or not, not being less than one-third of the number of the whole council.

COUNCILS.

The quorum of a county council is to be one-fourth instead of one-third: 51 & 52 Vict. c. 41, s. 75 (15).

By rule 9 the mayor is to be chairman of the meeting: see also section 67 of 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50.

An outgoing alderman is eligible to be elected mayor: 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, s. 15 (2).

Where a salary is attached to the office of mayor, a candidate for that office is disqualified under section 22 (3) from voting for himself, as he has a pecuniary interest in the matter: Nell v. Longbottom, [1894] 1 Q.B. 767; 63 L. J., Q. B. 490; 70 L. T., N. S. 499.

A chairman is given a casting vote in case of an equality of votes, by s. 61 (4), but this does not prevent his voting in the first instance, unless he is otherwise disqualified: S. C. See also rule 11, Schedule II.

A person who is a candidate for election must not act as chairman, because no man is to be judge in his own cause: R. v. Owens, 2 E. & E. 86; R. v. White, L. R., 2 Q. B. 557; R. v. Morton, [1892] 1 Q. B. 39; 61 L. J., Q. B. 39; 65 L. T., N. S. 611; 40 W. R. 109.

An outgoing alderman may vote in the election of mayor, although the person for whom he votes is an alderman 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, s. 61.

But an outgoing county alderman may not, as a county alderman, vote in the election of a chairman: 51 & 52 Vict. c. 41, s. 75 (10).

There are no specific directions as to the mode of election, which may be conducted in any way which ensures the accurate counting of the votes; it is frequently done by show of hands.

The mayor may not, until he has made and subscribed before two members of the council, or the town clerk, a declaration as in the eighth schedule of 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, act in the office, except in administering that declaration: Ibid., s. 35. As to the time within which

the declaration is to be made, see Ibid., s. 34; and for a MUNICIPAL chairman, see 51 & 52 Vict. c. 41, s. 75 (14), as amended by 54 & 55 Vict. c. 68, s. 5.

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COUNCILS.

ELECTION OF ALDERMEN.

Aldermen are to be fit persons elected by the council from the councillors or persons qualified to be councillors: 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, s. 14 (1) and (3).

The ordinary day of election of aldermen is the 9th of November in every third year, and the election is to be held at the quarterly meeting of the council, immediately after the election of mayor (b), or, if there is a sheriff, the appointment of sheriff: Ibid., s. 60. But the election may be held on the day following: Ibid., s. 70. And must be so held when the day of election falls on a Sunday, &c.: Ibid., s. 230. It has been decided under a former Act that where the election of aldermen was held before that of mayor neither election was good: R. v. M'Gowan, 11 A. & E. 869.

The ordinary day of election of county aldermen is the 16th of March, or such other day within ten days of the 8th of March, as the county council may from time to time fix: 54 & 55 Vict. c. 68, s. 1 (3).

The number of aldermen is to be one-third of the number of councillors. One-half of the aldermen (being those who have been aldermen for the longest time without re-election, irrespective of casual vacancies) are to go out of office on the day of election, and their places are to be filled by election: 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, s. 14 (2), (6), and (7).

But in the administrative county of London the number of county aldermen is not to exceed one-sixth of the number of county councillors: 51 & 52 Vict. c. 41, s. 40 (5).

(b) The outgoing mayor acts as chairman, unless the mayor elect has accepted office and subscribed the declaration: Ibid., ss. 15, 67, and Sched. II., r. 9.

MUNICIPAL

AND COUNTY COUNCILS.

The term of office of an alderman is six years: 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, s. 14 (5).

Every person entitled to vote may vote for any number of persons not exceeding the number of vacancies, by signing and personally delivering at the meeting to the chairman a voting paper containing the surnames and other names, and places of abode, and descriptions of the persons for whom he votes: Ibid., s. 60 (4).

In two cases decided under former Acts, voting papers were upheld which had "Willm.," "Wm.," and "W." for "William;" there was in both these Acts a clause similar to section 241 of 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, post, p. 88, to prevent misnomers vitiating such papers, although in the former case the judgment did not proceed on this ground: Reg. v. Bradley, 30 L. J., Q. B. 180; Reg. v. Plenty, L. R., 4 Q. B. 346; 38 L. J., Q. B. 205. See, also, decisions upon nomination papers, post, p. 89.

The place of abode means the place of residence, not of business see Reg. v. Deighton, 5 Q. B. 896; 13 L. J., Q. B. 241; Northcote v. Pulsford, L. R., 10 C. P. 476, decided under a former Act.

At an election of aldermen for the borough of Wakefield a voting paper was delivered commencing "I, the undersigned Francis Milthorp," and ending with the signature "William Lee Sellars ;" and on a petition the commissioner received evidence showing that the town clerk had inserted Milthorp's name in order that the voting paper might be used by him, but by inadvertence it was handed to Sellars, who signed and personally delivered it to the chairman without discovering the mistake. Held, that the vote was valid, and that the commissioner was right in receiving such evidence : Summers v. Moorhouse, 13 Q. B. D. 388; 53 L. J., Q. B. 564.

An outgoing alderman, although mayor elect, shall not vote Ibid., s. 60 (3). In Hounsell v. Suttill, 19 Q. B. D. 498; 56 L. J., Q. B. 502, an alderman had been elected mayor, had made and subscribed the declaration, and had then voted in the election of aldermen.

Held, that he could not vote, as he had not ceased to be MUNICIPAL an outgoing alderman.

As regards county aldermen, 51 & 52 Vict. c. 41, s. 2, provides that a county alderman cannot as such vote in the election of county aldermen.

The chairman, as soon as all the voting papers have been delivered to him, is to openly produce and read them, or cause them to be read, and is then to deliver them to the town clerk to be kept for twelve months. In case of equality of votes, the chairman, although, as an outgoing alderman or otherwise, not entitled to vote in the first instance, is to have a casting vote: 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, s. 60 (6). Where the chairman refused to give a casting vote, the Court granted a mandamus for another election: R. v. Corporation of Winchester, Times Newspaper, July 12th, 1894. The persons, not exceeding the number of vacancies, who have the greatest number of votes, are to be declared by the chairman to be, and thereupon are to be, elected: Ibid., s. 60 (7).

See, as to the necessary declaration to be made by an alderman before acting, 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, ss. 34 and 35, and Sch. VIII. As to county aldermen, see further 51 & 52 Vict. c. 41, s. 75 (14), as amended by 54 & 55 Vict. c. 68, s. 5.

ELECTION OF COUNCILLORS.

The term of office of councillors is three years, and on the ordinary day of election one-third of the councillors (being those who have been longest in office without re-election, irrespective of casual vacancies) are to go out of office, and their places are to be filled by election: 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, s. 13. County councillors retire together at the end of three years: see 51 & 52 Vict. c. 41, s. 2 (2) (d).

The ordinary day of election of councillors is the 1st of November: 45 & 46 Vict. c. 50, s. 52.

The ordinary day of election of county councillors is such day between the 1st and 8th day of March as the

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