A Supreme Court ruling yesterday has paved the way for the continuation of the re-examination of the magisterial recount for the Eastern Hanover constituency.

Jamaica Labour Party candidate Barrington Gray had brought an application seeking leave to go to the Judicial Review Court to compel Resident Magistrate George Burton to count a number of ballots which he had rejected.

Final tally

The RM had ruled that he was not going to include, in his final tally of votes, the ballots on which the presiding officer's signature was absent.

Senior Puisne Judge Marva McIntosh heard Gray's application in chambers and ruled yesterday that if she granted leave for judicial review it would "in this court's view result in the court interjecting itself on the process before the magistrate".

She said the court was of the view that an error in the exercise of the Resident Magistrate's decision may be the subject of an election petition. The judge said that, based on arguments advanced before her, she found that the Resident Magistrate was not acting outside the powers conferred on him by the Representation of the People Act.