In federal countries, the national- and provincial-level EMBs may each have separate, devolved structures. The nature of the relationship between such EMBs, and the powers and responsibilities of each, depend on the provisions of the law. There are a variety of approaches to this relationship.
- In Australia and Canada, the national EMB is responsible for national (federal) elections, while provincial EMBs are responsible for provincial and local elections.
- In Brazil, the state EMBs are generally responsible for running all elections, and the national EMB is involved in the tabulation and declaration of the results for national offices.
- In India, the national EMB exercises overall superintendence, control and direction over state elections. The conduct of these elections is the direct responsibility of the state chief electoral officer, who is a senior civil servant appointed by the national EMB.
- In Nigeria, the national EMB assumes responsibility for federal and state elections and referendums, while the provincial EMBs are only responsible for local elections.
- In the Russian Federation, a central EMB at the national level is responsible for all federal elections; regional EMBs are responsible for elections in the 89 regions that make up the federation; and lower-level EMBs are responsible to the central EMB for federal elections and to the regional EMB for republic, regional and local elections.
- In Switzerland, a national EMB is responsible for policy coordination, while local authorities manage elections.
While there are often rivalries between EMBs at the national and provincial levels in federal systems, there are examples of cooperation. For example, in Australia, state electoral laws specifically provide that the electoral registers for provincial and local elections are to be jointly maintained with the national EMB, rather than the provinces maintaining their own registers. Such coordination in electoral laws has significant cost-saving benefits.
