{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/elections-northern-ireland-order-1996/article-2",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/elections-northern-ireland-order-1996/article-2.json",
  "legislation": "uksi/1996/1220",
  "legislation_title": "Elections (Northern Ireland) Order 1996",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/elections-northern-ireland-order-1996",
  "path": "article/2",
  "kind": "article",
  "number": "2",
  "heading": "Interpretation",
  "text": "Unless the context otherwise requires, in this Order and any provision applied by this Order:—\n“1983 Act” means the Representation of the People Act 1983;\n“1985 Act” means the Representation of the People Act 1985;\n“1996 Act” means the Northern Ireland (Entry to Negotiations, etc.) Act 1996;\n“1985 Order” means the Local Elections (Northern Ireland) Order 1985;\n“1986 Regulations” means the Representation of the People (Northern Ireland) Regulations 1986;\n“candidate” means, subject to article 3(6) (d) below, a person whose name is included in a constituency list or regional list which has been published by the Chief Electoral Officer under rule 14 of the elections rules;\n“constituency” means a constituency provided for in the Parliamentary Constituencies (Northern Ireland) Order 1995;\n“constituency list” has the meaning given in paragraph 6(1) of Part I of Schedule 1 to the 1996 Act;\n“delegate” means a person returned under Part I of Schedule 1 to the 1996 Act;\n“election” means an election under the 1996 Act;\n“election of a party” includes the return of a candidate included in that party’s constituency list or regional list;\n“elections rules” means the rules in Schedule 1 to the 1983 Act, as applied by article 3 of, and Schedule 1 to, this Order;\n“elector” means a person entitled to vote at an election under paragraph 4 of Part I of Schedule 1 to the 1996 Act;\n“party” means a party set out in Part II of Schedule 1 to the 1996 Act;\n“regional list” has the meaning given in paragraph 6(2) of Part I of Schedule 1 to the 1996 Act; and\n“register” or “register of electors” means a register of local electors.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f1",
      "text": "1983 c. 2."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f2",
      "text": "1985 c. 50."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f3",
      "text": "S.I. 1985/454."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f4",
      "text": "S.I. 1986/1091."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f5",
      "text": "S.I. 1995/2992."
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1996/1220/article/2",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T12:44:19.842556+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}