The national election management body (EMB) has a most important role to play at the end of
the voting process: certification of the results. Depending on the system in operation, results
will have been declared at voting-station, constituency, and regional levels, and then the national
body needs to certify that they are correct and give the formal, official result for the country.
In the 'First Past The Post' system, or FPTP, used in the United Kingdom and the United States, there is a
gradual indication of the final result as the results from individual constituencies, or states, are
declared throughout election night. In other countries, where results are declared at the voting
station, it is not until all of the voting sites transmit their results to the regional election body and
the regions in turn notify the EMB that the results can be finally tabulated.
This process may take some time to complete. Depending on the remoteness of some of the
voting sites, road connections, and the acceptability of electronic communication, it may be a
couple of days or more before all the results are received by the national body. Once all results
are received, the sometimes complicated system of allocating seats to political parties begins.
Quick counts may be advisable if it is known that there will be a delay (see Results Reporting). The EMB
has an important role to play in ensuring that the public is kept informed of the progress of the
result tabulation in order to allay any fears of fraud.
Fraud is a real concern in democracies undergoing transition or where a particular political party
or leader has been in power for many years. Any delay may be seen as the ruling power fixing
the result to their advantage. Recent experience in Zanzibar and Guyana demonstrated the need
for transparency in the tallying process of the count.
The official result, with the seal of approval from the EMB, should be announced as soon as
possible, using media to facilitate the speedy transmission to the electorate. It is recommended
that there be a press conference and, if it is the case, the chairman of the EMB announces
satisfaction with the result. Depending on the circumstances, it may be the case that a
provisional result can only be announced at the press conference. In such case, it is critical that
the provisional nature of the results be explained and that voters be made aware that the final
results might differ from the provisional results. There may be delays with particular areas,
there may be outstanding challenges, or there may be an additional day's voting approved by the
EMB, where there have been specific problems in particular areas. Any challenges to results at
the local or regional level should be dealt with quickly in accordance with the election law and
details of known challenges should be communicated at the same time as the result.
In Romanian Law 68 1992, the Law on Election to the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate at
articles 65-69, an example is given of a tried and tested method of determining results at the
constituency level, onward transmission to the Central Election Bureau, and final publication of
the official result in the 'Monitorul Oficial'.
