Clause 25

Each voter entitled to vote shall be given one ballot paper and shall have one vote.

The ballot paper shall be delivered to the voter by the presiding officer or a person acting under his authority.

Immediately before any ballot paper is delivered to a voter, the ballot paper shall be stamped on the back or perforated with the official mark or initialled by the presiding officer; and the number, name and description of the voter, as stated in the copy of the register of electors, shall be called out, and the number of the elector shall be marked on the counterfoil, and a mark shall be placed in the register against the number of the elector to denote that he has received a ballot paper but without showing the particular ballot paper which he has received.

The voter shall, on receiving the ballot paper, forthwith proceed to such place in the station as may be indicated by the presiding officer or by any person acting under that officer’s authority, and shall there secretly mark the paper as near as may be in accordance with the directions given for the guidance of voters under this Act. The voter shall then fold the paper so as to conceal his vote, and shall put the paper so folded up into the ballot box.

Every voter shall vote without undue delay and shall quit the polling station as soon as he has put his ballot paper into the ballot box.

The presiding officer or any person authorised by him may ask any voter if the voter understands the method of voting in accordance with this Act and may, if he thinks fit, on the application of any voter, explain to the voter, in the presence of the polling agents of the candidates if present, the method of voting in accordance with this Act; but in so doing he shall carefully abstain from any action which might be construed by the voter as advice or a direction to vote for any candidate.

The presiding officer, on the application of a voter who is incapacitated by blindness or other physical cause from voting in the manner prescribed by this Act, shall mark the ballot paper of the voter in the manner directed by the voter, and shall cause the ballot paper to be placed in the ballot box.

The presiding officer may, at any time while a poll is proceeding, take such steps as may be necessary to ensure that no voter delays unduly in any place reserved for the marking of ballot papers.

During the taking of the poll, the presiding officer shall cause to be exhibited outside his polling station a notice in English, Malay, Chinese and Tamil, substantially in the prescribed form, giving directions for the guidance of voters in voting.