58.
| (1)
| | (a) After the receipt of the documents referred to in section 53 the returning officer shall, from the statements under subsection (7) of section 51 furnished to him by all the counting officers, (including the counting officers of the counting centre or centers where postal ballot papers were counted) add up and determine the number of votes given for each recognized political party and independent group. The returning officer shall, before he opens a sealed packet referred to in paragraph (h) of section 53, upon a request made by an agent appointed under section 56, permit such agent to inspect the seals on such packet. | | |
| | (b) Every recognized political party and independent group polling less than one-eighth of the total vote polled at the election shall be disqualified from having any candidates elected as members of the Development Council. | | |
| | (c) The votes polled by the disqualified parties and independent groups, if any, shall be deducted from the total votes polled at the election and the number of votes resulting from such deduction is hereinafter referred to as the " relevant number of votes ". | | |
| | (d) The relevant number of votes shall be divided by the number of members to be elected. The whole number resulting from such division (any balance votes not being taken into account) is hereinafter referred to as the " resulting number ". | | |
| | (e) The number of votes polled by each recognized political party and independent group (other than those parties or groups disqualified under paragraph (b) ), beginning with the party or group which polled the highest number of votes, shall then be divided by the resulting number and the returning officer shall declare as elected from each such party and group in the order in which their names appear in the nomination paper such number of candidates as is equivalent to the whole number resulting from the division by the resulting number of the votes polled by such party or group. The remainder of the votes, if any, after such division, shall be dealt with, if necessary, under paragraph (f). | | |
| | (f) Where after the declaration of the election of members as provided in paragraph (e) there are one or more members still to be declared elected, such member or number of members shall be declared elected on the remainder of the votes referred to in paragraph (e) to the credit of each party or group after the declaration made under that paragraph and the votes polled by any party or group not having any of its candidates declared elected under paragraph (e), the candidate next in the order of priority in the nomination paper of the party or group having the highest of such votes being declared elected the next member and so on until all the members to be elected are declared elected. | | |
| | (g) After declaring elected all the members of a Development Council, the returning officer shall declare the candidate whose name appears first in the nomination paper of the recognized political party or independent group to which the highest number of votes has been given as the chairman of that development council. | | |
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| (2) Where the number of votes polled by each recognized political party or independent group contesting an election is less than the resulting number referred to in paragraph (d) of sub section (1), the party or group which has polled the highest number of votes shall be entitled to have the candidate whose name appears first in the nomination paper of that party or group declared elected and if there are one or more members yet to be declared elected, the party or group having the next highest number of votes polled shall be entitled to have the member whose name appears first in the nomination paper of that party or group to be declared elected and so on, until all the members to be elected for the Development Council are declared elected under the provisions of this subsection. |
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| (3) Where under subsection (1) or subsection (2) an equality of votes is found to exist between the votes polled by two or more recognized political parties or two or more independent groups or any combination of them and the addition of a vote would entitle the candidates of one such recognized political party or independent group to be elected, the determination of the party or group to which such additional vote shall be deemed to have been given shall be made by lot drawn in the presence of the returning officer in such manner as he may, in his absolute discretion, determine. |
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| (4) For the purposes of this section the number of votes polled at any election shall be deemed to be the number of votes actually counted and shall not include any votes rejected as void. |
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| (5) A recognized political party shall have the right, from time to time after all the members for a Development Council have been declared elected under the preceding provisions of this section, to change the order of priority of the persons whose names appear in the nomination paper submitted by it and to substitute the names of other persons in place of those who have died or have ceased to be members of such party. |
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Sri Lanka Consolidated Acts