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returning officer

American

noun

British.

a public official appointed to conduct and preside at an election.

returning officer British

noun

(in Britain, Canada, Australia, etc) an official in charge of conducting an election in a constituency or electoral district, who supervises the counting of votes and announces the results

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of returning officer

First recorded in 1720–30

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Proceedings were informally suspended early on Monday after the returning officer was allegedly subjected to "obstruction, intimidation, and unwarranted hostility by a number of representatives", a notice said.

From BBC • Oct. 21, 2025

Jean-Claude Nguyen, the returning officer in Nunavut, is responsible for conducting the election in the district.

From BBC • Apr. 27, 2025

It added that if only one person is nominated, the returning officer will confirm that person as party leader.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2024

The proposed polling day of 5 October was then confirmed by South Lanarkshire's returning officer.

From BBC • Sep. 8, 2023

If they have the hustings, we have the returning officer, and they can do nothing without us.

From Chippinge Borough by Weyman, Stanley J.

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023