Legislation often determines the service and integrity principles and broad outcomes within which voting operations are to be administered.
It governs the administrative structures and functions which must be implemented during voting operations for an election to retain validity. It goes beyond principles and outcomes and defines minutely (often in regulations) each operation that must be undertaken and each form and system to be used by election administrators.
Such a comprehensive approach can be necessary to ensure that integrity, equity and other voting operations principles (see Guiding Principles of Voting Operations) are actually implemented in practice, particularly for transitional elections, or in societies racked by extreme political division.
Incorporating the details of voting operations procedures and practices in legislation may assist in preserving election integrity.
However it comes with some negative factors:
- there can be a lack of flexibility for election administrators to increase the appropriateness or effectiveness of voting operations procedures, forms or systems when these are all determined legislatively;
- conversely, legislatures may continually amend the details of voting operations in legislation and thus make administrators' planning and implementation functions much more difficult.
The greater the integrity, stability and professionalism of the election management body, the less the need for minutely detailed legislation on voting operations procedures and practices.
Electoral System
The electoral system defined in legislation will affect the administrative needs for voting operations.
For example:
- Qualifications and disqualifications for voter registration will affect the total number and distribution of registered voters, and hence voting site numbers and locations;
- Whether the system requires representatives to be elected from individual electoral districts, by proportional representation from a single all-encompassing electoral unit, or some combination, will affect the location and functions of central and regional or local voting operations administrative centres;
- Whether the electoral system requires elections to be held in one round or more than one round, on one day or multiple days affects quantities and time periods for which resources will be required, as will any requirements for support of candidate nominations by large numbers of qualified persons and methods of determining ballot paper positions for candidates;
- Whether voting requires single or multiple ballots, a single voter mark or multiple preferential marks will affect voter throughput and hence voting station staffing, number of voting locations and the types of mechanical or electronic voting systems that could be implemented;
- Legislatively prescribed ballot formats or allowable voting machines will determine paper stock supply needs and potential sources and time frames for ballot printing or equipment sourcing and investment requirements;
- Whether election dates are fixed or irregular will affect voting operations planning cycles, particularly in regard to development and introduction of new systems and procedures.
The electoral system elements of legislation may also affect the administrative structure for voting operations by defining the delegation of powers requiring appointment of specific bodies or persons to undertake certain tasks, such as electoral district managers (returning officers), voting station managers or election committees, and voting dispute resolution tribunals.
Provision of Voting Facilities
If provision for special voting facilities, such as absentee, advance, mail, mobile or out-of-country voting, are mandated by legislation, the complexity of voting operations planning, supply, logistics and training will be intensified. Such extension of accessibility will come at a financial cost.
Planning, supply and training lead times may be longer, the range of materials and logistics requirements will be increased and voting operations administrations will require a higher number of core skilled staff.
Time frames
Deadlines imposed by legislation provide inflexible time frames within which voting operations tasks must be completed. In regard to such issues as candidate nomination, availability of materials for advance voting or hours of voting, they are the focus of voting operations planning and a significant determinant of materials supply deadlines and staffing resource requirements.
Where legislative deadlines are unrealistic, voting operations administrators will need to determine what sacrifices in quality have to be made or additional costs incurred to meet them.
Terms of Legislature
Where representative bodies are not elected for fixed terms, electoral management bodies have to be in a state of readiness at all times to conduct an election. This will have a significant effect on planning cycles and may restrict the ability to introduce new systems or procedures, particularly within the last fifteen months of a government's term.
In fixed term systems, the voting operations planning and implementation cycle can be more secure and is more conducive to continuous improvement of services.
Transitional Elections
While in stable systems minimum time periods between election announcement and voting day are usually properly defined in legislation, in transitional environments this may not be the case. There will often be pressure for fast resolution of conflicts through conducting voting at the earliest possible date. In such circumstances an early election may compromise the ability to hold an election of acceptable integrity.
The time needed to conduct an acceptable election will vary (particularly according to whether new voters' registers have to be compiled). However, in most transitional situations it would be unreasonable to expect election administrators to conduct an election of acceptable quality without a period of at least five to six months between finalisation of the new principles, or legislative framework, for elections and voting day.
Timing of Legislative Change
The legal framework must be settled for voting arrangements to be planned effectively. Lead times for intensive organisation of voting operations (which, depending on the stability and capacities of the environment, could be between three and six months prior to the planned election date) mean that any significant or continuing legislative change during this period can have a negative effect on voting operations performance (see "Readiness" principle in Guiding Principles of Voting Operations).
Administrative Regulations
Generally, setting the more detailed voting operations parameters through administrative regulation will provide greater flexibility and opportunity for input and advice from the electoral management body. Administrative regulations can be seen as translating the principles of voting operations into standards that must be consistently achieved, though methods and detailed procedures may differ, throughout the area in which elections for a representative body are held.
Regulations governing such areas as maximum or minimum size of voting stations, materials required at voting stations, locations of ballot paper counts, and qualifications for electoral officers will set standards that voting operations administrators must adhere to in planning and resourcing.
However, it is important that a balance, appropriate for the environment, is achieved between necessary prescription and allowing sufficient flexibility for the electoral management body to initiate improvements and respond to technological or environmental changes.
For instance, where it is essential that information is collected in exactly the same manner at all voting locations, such as receipting and reconciliation of ballot material, the relevant form content could also be prescribed in regulations.
To extend this prescription of content to form design or method of data collection may unnecessarily inhibit improvements.
