Polling stations are an essential element
of an electoral process. They are the sites where voting takes place and where
votes are counted by the election administration. Therefore, it is essential to
ensure freedom and secrecy of the vote in the polling stations.
1. Establishment
In order to locate and create polling stations, it is
necessary to establish an electoral map. To this end, the location of polling
stations should be determined in each district according to the following
criteria:
- The distribution of
polling stations should be publicly announced, so that citizens
participating in the electoral process know in advance the location of the
polling station at which they are entitled to vote. With this in mind,
changes to the distribution and location of polling stations between
elections should be minimized;
- The distribution of
polling stations should take into consideration geographical criteria, so
that polling stations are as close as possible to the voters’ residence.
On the contrary, a distribution of voters on the basis of other criteria
(for instance, by name) implying mass transfers of citizens to polling
stations very far from their residence would discourage voter turnout;
- Polling stations
must have a minimum size, serving the need to maintain the secrecy of the
ballot, and a maximum size, serving the need to perform complex electoral
operations in a relatively short period of time. It is difficult to
establish general rules in this regard, given the wide variety of
geographical and communication conditions under which different electoral
processes are carried out. Normally, a polling station has a minimum
capacity of 300 voters and a maximum of 1500. Often the minimum and maximum
permitted sizes are fixed by law. Depending on the geographical
circumstances, it may be necessary to establish mobile polling stations
that fulfill the legal requirements. In this case, after all citizens have
voted, the mobile polling station moves to a suitable place for the vote
counting;
- The polling stations
must be accessible to all voters including the elderly and disabled
persons;
- The location of
polling stations must be in an ideologically neutral site in order not to
discourage the free expression of the vote. In this sense, polling
stations should not be located in police stations, army barracks,
headquarters of political parties, offices of religious groups and
government buildings in times of political transition. On the contrary, it
is appropriate to use schools as polling stations;
- The prospective location
must have adequate lighting and communications, transport and other
logistical considerations. This requirement may prove in some countries
more challenging in the rural areas than in urban areas given the sometime
imbalance between urban and rural infrastructure.[i]
- In some countries,
consideration may be given to the need to establish separate polling
stations for women in order to provide them with an opportunity to vote in
an environment free of intimidation and pressure and thereby increase the likelihood
of their participation”.[ii]
The hours for voting should be set in law and
uniformly applied[iii]
and should include some time outside regular working hours. It is also commonly understood that voters
arriving at a polling station prior to the official closing time, but are still
in line to vote as the polls close, will be allowed to vote.[iv]
2. Personnel and other Authorized Persons
The polling staff or Electoral Board is the key to the
proper conduct of the voting and counting processes. They organize and
supervise the voting procedure, count the ballots and prepare the minutes for
the central election administration that is in charge of the tabulation of votes
and allocation of seats. In this way, local boards and polling staff are
responsible for the key operations of the entire electoral process. More
specifically, they perform the identification of voters, decide on the validity
of ballots and may certify the results. In many cases, the decisions of the
Electoral Board cannot be challenged.
Thus, it is essential to achieve a suitable composition of the Electoral Board.
In particular, polling officers must be independent from the government and
political parties. With this in mind, polling officers are sometimes chosen by
lot amongst individual citizens and their appointment binding. This procedure,
if followed correctly, ensures the greatest likelihood that polling officers
will act independent of any political party or candidate, and greatly reduces
the possibility of fraud. The only drawback to this system is the lack of legal
knowledge of the appointed officers, as an inevitable consequence of their
largely non-professional character. Nevertheless, various measures may be taken
to ensure knowledgeable and effective polling officers:
- First, certain legal
orders impose specific education requirements for the appointment of
polling officers and presiding officers, so that the members of the
Electoral Board are chosen only amongst citizens that fulfill the
requirements;
- Most legal orders,
to a greater or less extent, offer specific training to polling officers,
either through courses or by giving them detailed instructions and manuals
on how to perform their duties and how to resolve the different problems
that may arise on election day;
- In certain northern
European countries the system is slightly modified, so that while members
of the Electoral Board are chosen by lot, its President is a permanent
municipal officer. This is probably the most effective system, given that
it combines the benefits of citizen participation and professionalism and
is a characteristic pattern used in consolidated democracies.
This composition is perfectly compatible with the fact
that, in most of the jurisdictions that use it, there is the possibility for
political parties and candidates to appoint representatives to each polling
station (prosecutors, auditors, attorneys). The representatives of parties and
candidates can be present at all operations, but usually without any decisive
powers. In general, they contribute to electoral transparency, providing an
important complement to the appointment of polling officers by lot. The
presence of party or candidate representatives during the voting and counting
operations should not be confused with national or international electoral
observation, as they are two entirely different mechanisms.
It is good practice for electoral management
bodies to institutionalize selection criteria for the recruitment of polling
staff and performance management processes.[v]
Finally, it is necessary to ensure that people
that do not play any role in the organization of the electoral process do not
remain in the polling station, as their presence may hinder or interrupt the
free conduct of elections. The legal framework usually grants to the President
of the Electoral Board the power to authorize or prohibit the presence of other
people in the electoral operations.
In addition to polling staff, other persons when
authorized may also be present in the polling station. This includes of course voters but only while
in the act of exercising their franchise, representatives of political parties
and candidates, domestic and international observers where allowed, and security
forces when necessary.
To facilitate the proper operation of a
polling station it is imperative that even those authorized to be present in
addition to polling station personnel clearly understand what they may and may
not do. Training and written materials are
useful and of course it is preferable if the legal framework also specifically
addresses this matter.
Political parties and candidate have a clear
vested interest in the conduct of an election and therefore their
representatives should be enabled to observe all aspects of the process
including the conduct of voting and the count.
The legal framework should stipulate both the rights and obligations of
party and candidate representatives while at the poll.[vi] In addition to the right to observe
proceedings it is good practice that the legal framework requires challenges to
voters or complaints about the operation of the polling place made by a
representative of a party of candidate to be recorded in writing in the
documentation for the voting place.[vii]
On the other hand, authorized political representative must not otherwise
disrupt the conduct of the voting place and of course, no campaigning,
political displays or intimidation are to be permitted. The President of the Electoral Board should have
the right to remove representatives for a breach of the regulations regarding
their presence.
To facilitate the important role of authorized
political representatives at the voting place and at the same time ensure that
they act within what are proper limits it may be useful that the legal
framework, including possibly a code of conduct, specify that at a minimum authorized
political representatives must declare that they will:
• maintain voting secrecy.
• follow the directions of polling officials.
• not interfere with election processes.
• be bound by the legal framework for elections.[viii]
The legal framework should otherwise specifically
prohibit the presence in the polling station of other than persons whose
presence is authorized under the law, such as local executive leaders.[ix]
3. Maintaining Order
The effective conduct of electoral operations during
polling day presupposes that the polling stations be sufficiently protected in
order to avoid disorders that may hinder the voting, and to ensure that the
right to vote is exercised under democratic conditions.
For this purpose, the electoral law often vests the presiding officer with
public authority, including the possibility to take the necessary measures for
the maintenance of law and order. This authority
often includes the ability to give precise instructions to whoever, in each
polling station, performs electoral police functions.
In consolidated democracies, these functions are
carried out by security, police or military forces. Sometimes however,” the presence of
security forces around polling station may intimidate and instil fear in voters”[x]
particularly in countries in political
transition where this option is sometimes looked at with suspicion, due to its
relation with the previous regime. This mistrust can lead to a very expensive
and likely unreasonable appointment of special civil police, which performs its
duties on polling day under the command of the electoral administration.
Experience has shown, however, that the use of the armed forces during voting
operations can present many advantages, not only because of its effectiveness
and low additional cost, but also because of its importance for the stability
of a country. Thus, armed forces may be attributed functions of cooperation and
democracy strengthening under the command of the electoral administration. It
is also very important for public opinion to see such collaboration between the
different public institutions for the purpose of strengthening democracy,
instead of the creation of an ephemeral and untrained electoral police. Where public security forces provide order at
voting stations, it is preferable that the legal framework set out a code of conduct.[xi]
[i] SADC and EISA, Principles for Election Management, Monitoring,
and Observation, 23.
[ii] UN, Women & Elections, 70.
[iii] European Commission, Handbook for European Union Election
Observation, 75.
[iv] DRI and The Carter Center, Strengthening International Law, 41.
[v] SADC and EISA, Principles for Election Management, Monitoring,
and Observation, 24.
[vi] International IDEA, International Electoral Standards, 83.
[ix] OSCE, Guidelines for Reviewing a Legal
Framework for Elections, 26.
[x] SADC and EISA, Principles for Election Management, Monitoring,
and Observation, 20.
