What's an election petition?

Published in the Jamaica Gleaner : Wednesday | September 5, 2007

If the People's National Party chooses to challenge the results of Monday's general election, it will have to go the route of filing election petitions. An election petition is an appeal complaining of an undue return or undue election of a member of the House of Representatives or a councillor.

A petition may be presented to the Supreme Court by any elector in the constituency or a constituted authority.

The petition is to state the grounds on which the petitioner relies for challenging the election, concluding with a statement of the relief sought.

# Reasons to file for a petition include: more votes than those on the list in the constituency
# stolen ballot boxes
# tampered ballot boxes