In March 1879 the Elections and Qualifications Committee overturned the 1879 Mudgee by-election, in which Richard Rouse had been declared elected by a margin of 1 vote over David Buchanan.[1]

The committee declared that Richard Rouse had not been elected the member for Mudgee, however no by-election was conducted. Instead the committee declared that David Buchanan had been elected. No reasons were published however The Sydney Morning Herald stated that it appeared that the majority of Mr Rouse was created by illegal voting.[2]

Petition

Buchannan's supporters petitioned the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly against the return of Rouse, alleging that

  1. The returning officer illegally voted in the election and voted for Rouse;
  2. That a voter had left his vote for Rouse on the table and not placed it in the ballot box;
  3. The Poll Clerk at one booth did not appear until 10:00 am despite voting commencing at 9:00 am; and
  4. The electoral roll included two men under 21 years old who had voted for Rouse.

Result

1879 Mudgee election re-count
Thursday 20 March [2][3]
Candidate Votes %
David Buchanan (elected) N/A
Richard Rouse (defeated) N/A

See also

References

  1. ↑ Green, Antony. "1879 Mudgee by-election". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  2. 1 2 "The Committee of Elections and Qualifications". The Sydney Morning Herald. 21 March 1879. p. 5. Retrieved 10 October 2019 – via Trove.
  3. ↑ Green, Antony. "1879 Mudgee re-count". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
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