A POLLING CLERK allegedly tried to deny a black Irish person a vote in last week’s referendums.
The voter, whose name was on the register at the polling station, was told that they ‘didn’t look Irish’ and that they would not be allowed to vote.
A spokesperson for the Dublin City Returning Officer Joseph Burke, who is responsible for managing the election in the Dublin City Council area, said that they are opening an investigation into what happened and statements are currently being compiled from all staff involved in the incident.
“We are treating this complaint with the utmost urgency,” the spokesperson said.
The black person, who wishes to remain anonymous, told The Journal that they went to a polling station close to their home in Dublin and one of the clerks said they wouldn’t be able to vote.
They told The Journal that the incident was “shocking and felt like racial profiling”.
“He didn’t even ask for my ID or anything, he just said ‘you cannot vote, you’re not born here, you don’t look Irish, only Irish can vote in the referendums’.”
The voter then took out their Irish passport and showed it to the clerk, but the clerk allegedly repeated the same thing.
“I told him that you can’t say that to someone, especially in the current climate, and I asked if he wanted to check if my name was on the list,” said the voter.
One of his colleagues then checked and found the name of the voter, but it is claimed that the polling clerk still attempted to deny a vote.
“At that stage, I just stood my ground and said I wasn’t leaving until I got to vote, I’ve got a constitutional right to vote.”
The voter then asked for a supervisor to intervene, and it’s said that the supervisor took the polling clerk aside and then made a phone call.
“The supervisor came to me and apologised and said I could vote,” said the voter.
When the voter left the polling station, the supervisor again apologised and it is claimed the supervisor said the issue was due to the clerk not receiving enough training and only receiving online training the night before polling.
“It took around 10 to 15 minutes for them to allow me to vote, I had to stand my ground in protest.”
The voter then sent an email in complaint to Dublin City Council.
They told The Journal that they received an apology and was told that the clerk will have to be removed.
The voter raised the issue with Fianna Fáil TD Seán Haughey, who told The Journal that he emailed the Dublin City Returning Officer and the Electoral Commission on Friday with the details of this incident.
Haughey said he is still awaiting a response.
He added: “What happened was disgraceful and I will continue to actively pursue this matter with the authorities.”
The voter also contacted Sinn Féin councillor Mícheál Mac Donncha, who also has yet to receive a reply from the Dublin City Returning Officer.
In a statement to The Journal, Mac Donncha said that while he hopes this is a one-off incident, “it raises serious questions about the training and suitability of staff at polling stations”.
Mac Donncha added that he wants to “ensure that safeguards are in place to prevent a recurrence”.
Meanwhile, the voter told The Journal that they were “left wondering if other people have faced the same situation as I did, but weren’t able to stand their ground”.
“I stood my ground, I am aware of my rights and I wasn’t going to leave until I got to vote.
“I want to share my story so that it hopefully never happens to anyone else.”
In a statement to The Journal, the Electoral Commission said “this is a matter for the Returning Officer for the relevant area who is responsible for the hiring, training and management of polling staff”.
The Dublin City Returning Officer is on leave until next week and will progress the investigation once they are back.
“The Returning Officer will deal with this on his return next week,” said the spokesperson in a statement to The Journal.
“No statements will be issued until the matter is fully investigated.”
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