74 The Constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (3) Any recognized political party or any group of persons contesting as independent candidates (hereinafter referred to as an “independent group”) may for the purpose of any election of Members of Parliament for any electoral district, submit one nomination paper setting out the names of such number of candidates as is equivalent to the number of members to be elected for that electoral district, increased by three. (4) Each elector whose name appears in the register of electors shall be entitled to only one vote notwithstanding that his name appears in the electoral register in more than one electoral district. (5) The recognized political party or independent group which polls the highest number of votes in any electoral district shall be entitled to have the candidate nominated by it, who has secured the highest number of preferences, declared elected. (6) (a) Every recognized political party and independent group polling 69 [less than one twentieth of the total votes] polled at any election in any electoral district shall be disqualified from having any candidates of such party or group being elected for that electoral district. (b) The votes polled by the disqualified parties and independent groups, if any, shall be deducted from the total votes polled at the election in that electoral district and the number of votes resulting from such deduction is hereinafter referred to as the “relevant numbers of votes”. (7) The relevant number of votes shall be divided by the number of members to be elected for that electoral district reduced by one, if the number resulting from such division is an integer, that integer, or if that number is an integer and fraction, the integer immediately higher to that integer and fraction is hereinafter referred to as the “resulting number”. (8) The number of votes polled by each recognized political party and independent group (other than those parties or groups disqualified under paragraph (6) of this Article) beginning with the party or group which polled the highest number of votes shall then be divided by the resulting number and the returning officer shall declare elected from each such party or group, in accordance with the preferences secured by 69 - Substituted by the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution Sec. 4(1) for "less than one eighth of the total votes".