Electoral System and Electoral Management

1. The Constitution (Basic Law) provides for a government that is democratic and representative, based on political and party multiplicity. The National Authority President is directly elected by the people. The Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) is the parliament of Palestine. Presidential and PLC elections are held concurrently.

The West Bank and the Gaza Strip are divided into 16 electoral districts with multiple seats. Each electoral district has its representatives and candidates. The candidate who receives the highest number of votes wins the elections. In the constituencies in which seats are reserved for Christians (Jerusalem, Ramallah, Gaza,Bethlehem), the seats are taken by the Christian candidates who receive the most votes. There is a similar provision for Samaritans in the Nablus constituency.

The Central Elections Commission (CEC) has the overall responsibility for the management of elections. It responsibilities are:

• Supervising the polling and counting process.
• Approving all polling and counting procedures, forms, plans, ballots, and all polling and counting materials.
• Stopping, canceling, or repeating polling at one or more polling stations or districts if needed.
• Announcing final election results nationwide.
• Implementing the decisions of the Elections Appellate Court.

Recruitment and Training of Voting and Counting Workers

Recruited electoral officers are supplemented by school teachers from the Ministry of Education and Training.

Training of the electoral officers focuses on polling and counting procedures, filling in the relevant forms accurately and clearly, how to deal with voters and polling materials during and after the polling and counting procedures. It also provides guidelines for dealing with candidates’ agents and representatives, domestic and international observers and media representatives.

Each electoral officer is provided with a comprehensive training guide with practical steps for the functions that they perform and examples of the forms and codes of conduct for the various stakeholders. e.g. party and candidate representatives.

Domestic and International Observers

Domestic and international observers play an important role in Palestinian elections. In the 2005 Presidential elections over 22 000 international and local observers were accredited by the CEC. The CEC regards their presence as being an essential indicator of the integrity of the electoral process.

Political party and candidate representatives are also accredited by the CEC. Each party or/and candidate is entitled to one agent per polling station.

Journalists and representatives of the media may attend and cover the elections and are required to show their press cards. They have to adhere to a code of conduct.

The Role of Security Services

Palestinian police and security personnel guard and protect polling and counting centres and stations. Each venue is allotted a specific number of police personnel to maintain order. Security personnel and police are required to adhere to the following guidelines:

• Security personnel may not obstruct the polling process or interfere in procedures or in the choice of the voters or try to influence them in any way.
• Security personnel must be present in the vicinity of the polling and counting centre, near the polling centre manager in order to respond to his or her needs immediately.
• Security personnel are not allowed to enter the polling centre unless summoned by the polling centre manager to maintain order and only for the duration specified by the polling centre manager. They must leave as soon as they have achieved the purpose of their entry.
• Security personnel may not bring firearms into the centre unless requested to do so by the polling centre manager and only for the purpose of maintaining order. . Journalists and media representatives

Requirements for Voters

Voters participating in the election process must adhere to the following requirements:

• Voting must be done in the centre/station where the voter’s name appears on the voters’ list.
• Must have proof of identity. If a voter is unable to produce their registration slip they must determine where their name appears on the Final Voters List. The Final Voters List is available in each centre, outside the voting stations. - Follow all instructions provided by the polling station staff.
• People with special needs and people unable to read and/or write may be accompanied by only one person to help them fill the ballot.
• Voters must conduct their voting peacefully.
• Voters must leave the polling station immediately after voting. 4. Security and police

Supervising the electoral process- The responsibilities of the Electoral District Offices:

1. Training polling and counting staff.
2. Providing polling and counting centres with the necessary polling and counting materials.
3. Supervising polling and counting centres within each office’s jurisdiction by assigning one supervisor for every 12 centers in order to monitor work and cover needs.
4. Communicating with the National Elections Office and implementing its instructions without delay.
5. Handling problems that may arise on polling day at centres within the office’s jurisdiction and forwarding them to the Central Elections Office when necessary.
6. Receiving and handling the complaints and remarks of candidates and parties and/or their representatives and agents and forwarding them to the Central Elections Office where they will be handled by a permanent operations room responsible for receiving complaints and remarks and providing solutions to the district offices.
7. Retrieving all polling and counting protocols and materials from centres and stations at the close of the process and transporting them to the National Elections Office.

The Responsibilities of the Voting and Counting Staff:

1. Polling and counting staff are the polling centre manager and the polling station committees.
2. The polling station committees comprise the polling station presiding officer and four officials responsible for implementing polling and counting procedures at their station.
3. Their responsibilities are to facilitate the voting and counting process.

Their tasks are:

• Check the identity documents of voters, cross their names on the Final Voters List, and ink the voters’ finger to indicate that they have voted.
• Issue voters with ballots.
• Control the ballot box.
• Ensure the smooth flow of voting and control access to the polling station.

Before Election Day

On the morning of the day before polling, District Office officials distribute the polling and counting kits to polling centres and stations. Centre managers and polling station staff must be present at the centres/stations on the morning before polling day to:

1. Receive polling and counting materials
2. Finalise internal preparations to receive voters.
3. Prepare polling stations and remove any irrelevant materials.
4. Prepare the station to facilitate smooth running of the process.

At the Voting Station

Polling centres are located at the venues that were used for registration. Each centre has up to five polling stations. Voting is between 7h00 and 19h00. Five electoral officers work at each polling centre. They are the:

• Station Supervisor – responsible for overseeing the voting station.
• Registry Officer – accurately records the voters, enters their names on the list of voters, and applies the ink.
• Ballot forms officer –stamps the voting papers and hands them to voters, directs them to the polling booth.
• Box Officer – checks that the voters put their ballot papers in the ballot boxes.
• Queue officer – controls the entry of voters into the polling station.

Other People Who are allowed into the Voting Station

− Relevant employees of the CEC.

− Voters coming to cast their vote.

− Candidates, party representatives and their deputies.

− Domestic and international observers.

− Media representatives.

− Security officials, at the request of the station official only.

Special Security Measures for Voting Material and Equipment

Ballot Boxes

Semi-transparent ballot boxes are used.

Ballot Papers

Ballot papers have a unique watermark were used and the papers are not uniformly sized. The designated design for the paper is kept secret.

Voting Ink

The electoral ink cannot be wiped from the thumbs of voters for at least 24 hours.

Spoilt ballots

If a voter makes a mistake when marking their ballot, the voter returns the ballot paper to the electoral officer. The officer invalidates the ballot by writing “SPOILED” on the back, without opening the ballot, and places in the designated envelope for spoiled ballots.

The officer takes out a new ballot, stamps it on the back, and hands it to the voter.

Assistance for Special Categories of voters

Procedures for illiterate or blind people who are unable to vote without assistance are entitled to bring a person of their choice to assist them in casting their ballot.

The presiding officer must confirm that the voter is unable to mark their ballot without assistance. The companion must be chosen by the voter, and the presiding officer must confirm this by questioning the voter.

The centre manager, station officials, and accredited representatives and observers are not allowed to help voters or watch as they vote.

Complaints about the Voting Process

Party and candidate representatives and observers many submit written complaints and remarks about the electoral process. The presiding officer must address the complaints immediately and convey their decision to the complainant.

The presiding officer must attach the remarks or complaints form must be attached to the protocol at the end of voting day and sent to the district office.