Background and Electoral System
Ethiopia is located in the Horn of Africa (East Africa) and has a majoritarian first-past-the-post electoral system where members of the House of People’s Representatives are elected on the basis of the majority of votes cast in single-member constituencies.
In terms of the constitution Ethiopia has a bicameral parliamentary system; the House of People's Representatives (HPR) and the House of the Federation. Members of the HPR are elected for five year terms on the basis of universal suffrage by direct elections held by secret ballot. The Prime Minister is elected from among the members of the HPR.
The House of the Federation (HF) is the upper house and is composed of representatives of “Nations, Nationalities and Peoples”. Each Nation, Nationality and People is represented by at least one member, with each Nation or Nationality represented by one additional representative per each one million of its population.
Members of the HF are chosen by their respective Regional Councils. Alternatively, the Constitution provides for the Regional Councils to have direct elections to the upper house. This option has never been exercised and there is no legislation at regional level providing for direct elections of representatives of the HF.
The two federal level houses combine to choose the President of the Federation who is the Head of State. The President has mainly honorary powers and serves a six year term.
Elections for the Regional Councils of the nine regions are also conducted under a majoritarian system. These constituencies are multi-mandate. The National Electoral Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) conducts all government elections.
Establishment of Voting Stations
The law provides for the establishment of polling stations at locations suitable for security. Polling stations can be established at Office and Assembly Halls of Urban Dwellers Associations or Peasant Associations or Producer’s Cooperative Associations. Polling stations may not be established at military camps, police stations, places of worship, hospitals, places where alcohol is sold, buildings of political and religious organizations and places of residence.
When arranging the layout of the polling station provision must be made for a booth where the voter can vote in secret and cannot be observed by anyone else. The ballot box must be able to be observed for security reasons. Seven days before voting day each polling station must have a ballot box, electoral roll, ballot papers, ink and ink pads, ballot box seals, indelible ink, a box for storing ballot papers that have not been marked properly and report forms.
Voting Station Observers
Ethiopian electoral law provides for the election of five observers for each polling station. These observers must be independent and not affiliated to a political party and must be residents of the area where the polling station is situated. The role of the polling station observers is to observe the elections and report any irregularities in the voting process to the person in charge of the polling station. In Ethiopia presiding officers are called Chief Officers of the polling stations.
Provision is also made for candidate’s observers at each polling station.
At the Voting Station
Each polling station has three staff and a Chief Officer (the presiding officer). The Presiding Officer is responsible for all voting day activities at his or her polling station. They are assisted by the other staff that supports the voting process. The Presiding Officer also has the responsibility of security at the polling station. No one can come within a 500 metre radius of the polling station if they carry a weapon, are drunk or are disturbing the peace in any way. The Presiding Officer determines whether they require police to assist them in ensuring security of voters and can police assistance through the electoral commission offices.
Representatives from the media are permitted to be in the polling stations on condition that they present their credentials and do not interfere with the voting process.
The Presiding Officer must arrange the polling station to accommodate the following:
- seats for candidates' representatives,
- seats for public observers,
- a seat for Registrar No. I,
- a seat for Registrar No. II,
- a place for applying the voter marking-ink,
- a place for handing out ballot papers,
- a secret voting booth/shelter,
- a place for the ballot box,
- a place for giving briefings on the voting process to voters and observers at the entrance to the polling station.
Each polling station must be clearly marked and each stage of the voting process identified through placards or tags. Polling station should also contain posters with information on the candidates’ symbols, and a pictorial illustration of the voting process. Special consideration is given to the prevailing circumstances in each polling station. The Presiding Officer is required to find a secure space for election material that is free from pests and rodents, and from humidity.
Presiding Officers must give a full briefing on the voting process and all the tasks and functions that must be carried out on election day. All the officials who will be present at the polling station will receive this briefing.
Voting hours are from 6h00 – 18h00.
Before Voting Begins
The Presiding Officer opens the sealed bag received from the Constituency Electoral Office and counts out the election documents and materials inside and verifies that the quantity and the variety tallies with the checklist. The tag number of the ballot box and of the padlocks is recorded by the observers and the party and candidates' representatives. The sealed bag is opened in front of the observers and representatives.
The Presiding Officer sorts the ballot papers into piles for the different types of elections and signs on the reverse side of each ballot paper. He/she then counts out ballot papers equal to the number of registered voters and places then in sight of the observers. The remaining ballot papers are kept aside as reserve ballots.
The ballot box is checked and sealed in the presence of the observers and representatives.
The Voting Process
Before voters enter the polling station the Presiding Officer takes them through a briefing on the voting process. He/she waits until a group of voters is gathered and gives these briefings throughout election day. The briefing includes an explanation of the ballot papers and an explanation of who is contesting the elections without showing any favouritism for or bias against the candidates or parties. The briefing also contains information on how a ballot should be marked and what constitutes a spoilt ballot.
After prospective voters receive their briefing they enter the polling station and produce their elector’s card. This card was issued to them at registration and identifies them as people who have registered to vote. Their card is checked to see if they are at the correct polling station and to identify which voters’ roll they are on. Both the elector’s card and their identification document are checked against the voters’ roll.
Once they have been checked against the voters’ roll and their fingers have been examined for voter’s ink, their elector’s card is destroyed and their identity document is returned.
The voter is required to sign, or in the case of illiterate voters make a thumb mark, in a column of the voters’ roll that is designated for this purpose.
The left hand thumb of the voter is inked to prevent double voting.
The voter is handed the ballot papers and directed to a voting booth. In the voting booth the voter marks his or her ballot by placing an X next to his or her choice or, if the voter is illiterate, places a thumb mark next to the preferred choice.
The voter folds the ballot paper and places it in the ballot box and leaves the polling station.
Voters who are blind or physically disabled may be accompanied by a person of their choice to assist them in casting their ballot.
If a voter inadvertently spoils their ballot paper they can return this ballot and request another ballot. The spoilt ballot will be marked by the electoral official with the words "spoilt and returned" and be kept in a special box.
People who are not allowed to vote are those:
- without an electors card and whose name is not on the voters’ roll,
- who are not willing to have their thumb inked, and
- whose thumb is already inked.
At the end of the voting process
At 18h00 the gate of the polling station must be closed. People who are at the gate and in the queue at the time of closing will be allowed to cast their vote if they meet all the legal requirements for voting.
Election wardens are stationed at the gate to ensure that no further people try and enter the area.
After the last voter has cast his or here vote the ballot box/es are sealed with a special seal in front of all the observers and party and candidate representatives The tag number of the padlock of the ballot box is recorded by the election officers, observers and party and candidates' representatives.
The Grievance Hearing Committee
Grievance Hearing Committees (GHC) are established at each electoral office and polling station. Their role is to make administrative decisions on complaints and grievances received about the electoral process.
The Polling Station Grievance Hearing Committee is chaired by the Chief Officer of the Polling Station and has two of the polling station observers as it’s members. All decisions made must be majority decisions.
Complaints to the GHC can be made by:
- a person who has been denied registration,
- a person who request cancellation of registration, and
- a person who is prohibited from voting.
A complaint may be submitted in writing or orally. A complaint made in writing must be made in triplicate and provide all the information related to the complaint including:
- the name of the GHC to which the complaint is brought;
- the date on which the complaint is made;
- full name and address of the complaint;
- the facts constituting the cause for complaint and the remedy requested;
- list of evidence and documents;
- where there is witness evidence, the list of witness.
The complainant is required to produce the witnesses.
Oral complaints are recorded by the GHC. Where a complainant is illiterate the record of his or her complaint is read to them in the presence of the committee members and the complainant verifies the complaint with their signature or thumb mark.
The GHC examines each complaint and makes a decision which is conveyed to the complainant. The decision of the GHC is made in triplicate; one copy goes to the complainant, one copy to the party or body that needs to execute the decision and the third copy is kept on record.
A person who complains that their right to vote has been denied has five hours to make the complaint to the GHC or they forfeit the right. The GHC has five hours to respond to the complaint and if they do not do so within five hours it is assumed that the person has a right to vote and may proceed with voting.
An appeal to the decision is made to the Appellate Committee and on further appeal to the courts.
