In
determining the eligibility rules for external electors, it is important to
consider whether the same eligibility rules should apply to candidates for
election. Particularly where the right to vote is extended to all citizens who
are resident abroad, regardless of intention to return, it may be desirable to
have stricter eligibility rules for candidates. This would usually take the
form of a residence requirement.
In some
cases where political players may be in exile from their home country it might
be desirable to allow persons resident outside the country to be candidates.
This could be appropriate where a country is undergoing a transition to a new,
democratic form of government, as in South Africa in 1994.
Considerations
of dual or multiple citizenship may be more important for candidates than for
voters. It may be desirable to prevent holders of dual citizenship from
standing as candidates. For example, Australia’s constitution does not
allow ‘a citizen of a foreign power’ to sit in its national parliament. Such a
provision is intended to ensure that elected members do not have divided
loyalties that could lead to conflicts of interest. In practice, dual
citizenship is so common that this type of provision can lead to candidates and
elected members being ruled ineligible for what is arguably a technicality.
