Candidates at polling stations

philologos

Do many do this? Just when I was going in to vote I saw Derek Keating one of the candidates running for the Dáil in Dublin Mid West as Lucan Educate Together which is a polling station for the election waving and smiling at people as they were going in to vote.

Wishbone Ash

Jakkass wrote:

Do many do this? Just when I was going in to vote I saw Derek Keating one of the candidates running for the Dáil in Dublin Mid West as Lucan Educate Together which is a polling station for the election waving and smiling at people as they were going in to vote.

I think that they can "wave and smile" but it is illegal to canvass within 100metres(?) of a polling station.

Sierra Oscar

Wishbone Ash wrote:

I think that they can "wave and smile" but it is illegal to canvass within 100metres(?) of a polling station.

Yep, 50 as far as I know.

philologos

He was inside the building as well.

Wishbone Ash

Jakkass wrote:

He was inside the building as well.

Casting his ballot.

upmeath

Jakkass wrote:

He was inside the building as well.

They're allowed in the station too, they just can't actively persuade you to vote for them within a certain distance of the building on election day. My local FG candidate was in the same classroom as my booth was located in while I was voting, but he wasn't canvassing.

philologos

Wishbone Ash wrote:

Casting his ballot.

He was just standing and watching, I didn't personally see him voting himself at all.

upmeath

Jakkass wrote:

He was just standing and watching, I didn't personally see him voting himself at all.

There's nothing wrong with that. Once he didn't ask you to vote for him within 50 metres of the station it's all rosy.

Pherekydes

The distance is 100m.

delta_bravo

Yeh, i saw Pat Rabbite and Elizabeth Davidson inside my polling station.
Funnily enough, Conor Lenihan was outside having his photo taken by Al Jazeera TV on account of his overseas ministry

MoominPapa

I worked in a polling station years ago, covering for my ma, and all the candidates came around to press the flesh, so I guess they went to all the other stations in the constituency. Never forget the look on harneys face, bulldog + wasp = you get the picture. Chris Flood and Mervin Taylor were quite friendly though.

Agent J

The distance was 50m according to the presiding officers handbook today.

4 of the candidates in kildare north came into our polling station over the day.

16 hours in a station is draining to say the least...

TwoShedsJackson

Charlie O'Connor (FF) was ignoring the 'no canvassing materials within 50 metres' rule at Ard Mhuire school on Cookstown road anyway.

RainyDay

TwoShedsJackson wrote:

Charlie O'Connor (FF) was ignoring the 'no canvassing materials within 50 metres' rule at Ard Mhuire school on Cookstown road anyway.

If this does happen in future, just have a workd with the Garda in the polling station and they'll get it sorted.

0utshined

Agent J wrote:

4 of the candidates in kildare north came into our polling station over the day.

Snap! Hmmm, wonder if we were at the same station.