There are different categories of national election management bodies throughout the world. An
election management body (EMB) may be a permanent body, an independent national election
commission, a government ministry responsible for elections, a decentralised body, or a
temporary commission established for a particular election. These types of bodies are
considered in detail in Regional and Local Election Bodies. Different types of EMBs exist throughout the world and can be
found in countries such as Australia, Bulgaria, Iceland, Israel, Kenya, Malawi, Malaysia, Nepal,
Portugal, Spain and New Zealand.
In South Korea, for example, Election Management Committees are established, with the
Central Election Management Committee being appointed for a six-year term. The nine
members of the Committee are selected as follows: three by the president, three by the National
Assembly, and three designated by the chief justice of the Supreme Court. In some countries,
the national electoral commission may not undertake all the duties detailed below. In Bulgaria
and Iceland, for example, the compilation of the electoral register is the responsibility of the
national census bureau or its equivalent. Electoral disputes may be left to the judiciary to
determine, particularly at the appeal stage.
It is interesting to read reports of western organisations following their observation missions or
technical assessments of a developing democracy's electoral process. Invariably, in drawing
attention to improvements that can be made in the country's electoral administration, these
organisations recommend the establishment of a permanent electoral commission. They suggest
that one way of reducing problems of registration, increasing voter turnout, and bringing
professionalism into the electoral process is to create a permanent election management body.
This recommendation is given despite the fact that the officials often come from countries where
there is no permanent national EMB. The argument offered is that permanent bodies can devote
more time and energy to training staff and to encouraging citizen awareness of and participation
in elections. It may also be easier for a permanent body to build on the achievements of a
previous election, rather than starting from the same point each time.
If it is agreed that there should be some form of EMB to ensure the achievement of democratic
goals, consideration must be given to the aims of such a body. The EMB should be a neutral and
balanced mechanism, able to carry out its duties in an impartial manner. The question then
arises whether it should be established under the constitution or by statute. There is a strong
argument for the EMB to be a constitutional body, rather than a mere statutory body, in order to
prevent the government of the day from changing the components of the EMB by parliamentary
procedures. This issue is particularly important in developing democracies. The duties of the
EMB can be split into two distinct categories: administrative and supervisory. The
administrative type of EMB carries out the election functions. The supervisory type oversees
and supervises the activities of the election administration process. The latter may be more of a
judicial EMB.
All EMBs should be impartial. But what should the administrative type do? What should the
supervisory body supervise ? According to G. Goodwin-Gill in Free and Fair Elections:
International Law and Practice (Geneva: Inter-Parliamentary Union, 1994, page 88), the
EMB's aims should be to:
- ensure that those responsible for the administration of the election are trained and act
impartially
- ensure that coherent voting procedures are established and made known to the voting
public
- ensure the registration of voters, updating of electoral rolls and balloting procedures, with
the assistance of national and international observers, as appropriate
- encourage parties, candidates and the media to accept and adopt a code of conduct to govern
the election campaign and the election period
- ensure the integrity of the ballot through appropriate measures to prevent double and
multiple voting and fraud
- ensure the integrity of the process for counting votes
- announce the election results and facilitate any transfer of authority
Functions of the administrative EMB could include the following:
- compilation and update of the voters register, or list
- delineation of constituency and other boundaries
- promotion of civic and voter education
- registration of political parties
- registration of candidates at elections
- organisation of elections
- training of election officials, political parties and candidates
- printing of ballots
- procurement of equipment, etc.
- monitoring expenditures of candidates
- determining complaints, disputes and challenges
