394 Results
Quotes
Quotes based on international documents, law, and treaties- "Methods of registration, therefore, may vary from country to country depending on local circumstances, but should always seek to minimize the potential obstacles for the voter to register."
- "The legal framework may provide that the responsibility to register lies either with the individual -- passive voter registration where the individual voter has the responsibility to approach registration authorities to get herself/himself registered -- or with the state -- active voter registration where the state, the EMB or other authorized body sends its official enumerators from house to house to register votes."
- "[Voter eligibility]...systems include: (1) no registration…(2) census registration or other national registry…or (3) inscription."
- "Voter registration can take many forms. It can be periodic (e.g. prior to each election), or it can be regular (e.g.) updated once a year or even on a monthly/rolling basis). It can also be individually initiated (people need to go to registration centers), state initiated (officials travel door to door), or state-created/automatic (names are taken from a civil/national identification register.)"
- "Countries have adopted a variety of means for registering voters. Active, or affirmative, registration systems require voters themselves to apply for registration at each election. In passive systems, the authorities compile the voter register automatically on the basis of residency, citizen registry or other records. Either type of system is acceptable if it produces a comprehensive, transparent and accurate voter register."
- "A voter registration system may be active or passive."
- "Voter registration can take many different forms: Periodic (e.g., prior to each election or every five years) or Continuous (all the time); Individual-Initiated (people must go to registration centers), State-Initiated (officials travel door-to-door), or State-Created/Automatic (names are taken from a separate database and no contact is required between people and election officials in order to register); and Compulsory (people must register to vote) or Voluntary (people have the choice to register or not)."
- "If advance registration of voters is proposed, the process must be carefully constructed to ensure fairness and effectiveness of provisions concerning elector qualifications, residence requirements, election lists and registers, and the means provided for challenging those documents."
- "Internally displaced persons, whether or not they are living in camps, shall not be discriminated against as a result of their displacement in the enjoyment of the following rights: (c) The right to associate freely and participate equally in community affairs; (d) The right to vote and to participate in governmental and public affairs, including the right to have access to the means necessary to exercise this right."
- "Internally displaced persons who have returned to their homes or places of habitual residence or who have resettled in another part of the country shall not be discriminated against as a result of their having been displaced. They shall have the right to participate fully and equally in public affairs at all levels and have equal access to public services."
- "In addition to the subjects mentioned above, voter information programmes should include reference to the procedures for voters to protect their electoral rights, including with respect to their voter registration."
- "Electors who are unable to vote unaided under standard procedures, e.g., blind or illiterate voters, have the right to be provided with assistance. Wherever possible, however, steps should be taken to enable them to vote without assistance. Procedures for assistance should be regulated and publicised before election day. Assistance in marking a ballot paper should only be provided to those who would not otherwise be able to cast a ballot. The assistance provided should be independent, honest and protect the secrecy of the voter’s choice. It is best practice that the person can choose who can assist them to vote, although there may be restrictions on the number of times an individual can provide assistance. Those providing assistance should be impartial and therefore should not be candidate or party representatives."
- "Military personnel should vote at their place of residence whenever possible. Otherwise, it is advisable that they be registered to vote at the polling station nearest to their duty station."
- "The legal framework must address a myriad of issues to ensure a genuine opportunity to exercise the right to vote on the basis of equal and universal suffrage. These issues concern conditions outside the polling sites, as well as inside it, before, during and after voting takes place. The provisions must ensure, among other things, that: ...Security protocols are provided that guarantee voting integrity, including preventing ballot box stuffing and irregularities and fraud in electronic voting."
- "States Parties shall take specific positive action to promote participative governance and the equal participation of women in the political life of their countries through affirmative action, enabling national legislation and other measures to ensure that: a) women participate without any discrimination in all elections."
- "Polling personnel will require clear guidance in admitting and identifying qualified voters. Permissible questions to be put to voters at polling places should be expressly set out by statute to prevent voter intimidation, abuse of discretion, or discriminatory application."
- "Ensuring that voting procedures, facilities and materials are appropriate, accessible and easy to understand and use."
- "E-voting systems shall be designed, as far as it is practicable, to maximise the opportunities that such systems can provide for persons with disabilities."
- "Voters with disabilities should not face obstacles in enjoying their political rights, and the authorities should take measures to ensure access to polling stations, assisted voting, and, if necessary, absentee voting."
- "Arrangements should be made for persons with disabilities to have access to their designated polling stations."
- "Guaranteeing the free expression of the will of persons with disabilities as electors and to this end, where necessary, at their request, allowing assistance in voting by a person of their own choice."
- "The legal framework must address a myriad of issues to ensure a genuine opportunity to exercise the right to vote on the basis of equal and universal suffrage. These issues concern conditions outside the polling sites, as well as inside it, before, during and after voting takes place. The provisions must ensure, among other things, that: ...Access is provided to polling sites on a equal basis for all voters, including women, minorities, younger and older voters and persons with physical challenges and disabilities."
- "Assistance provided to the disabled, blind or illiterate should be independent. Electors should be fully informed of these guarantees."
- "If electors are confused and require assistance with voting, this should be given only by an accredited companion or by a member of the polling station staff."
- "Users shall be supplied, whenever required and possible, with additional facilities, such as special interfaces or other equivalent resources, such as personal assistance."
- "All necessary election materials (ballot boxes, ballot papers, voter registers, indelible ink, etc) should be distributed to all voting stations on time and in more than sufficient quantities"
- "The legal framework must address a myriad of issues to ensure a genuine opportunity to exercise the right to vote on the basis of equal and universal suffrage. These issues concern conditions outside the polling sites, as well as inside it, before, during and after voting takes place. The provisions must ensure, among other things, that: ...Polling sites are to receive election personnel, ballots, voting machines and other sensitive electoral materials on an equal basis, and prevent discrimination based on likely political support for certain electoral contestants by the population assigned to the polling site."
- "Sufficient quantities of voting materials must be available at each polling place."
- "The e-voting system shall contain measures to preserve the availability of its services during the e-voting process. It shall resist, in particular, malfunction, breakdowns or denial of service attacks."
- "E-voting should respect the principles of democratic elections and referendums and be at least as reliable and secure as democratic elections referendums which do not involve the use of electronic means."
- "29. All possible steps shall be taken to avoid the possibility of fraud or unauthorized intervention affecting the system during the whole voting process. 30. The e-voting system shall contain measures to preserve the availability of its services during the e-voting process. It shall resist, in particular, malfunction, breakdowns or denial of service attacks."
- "Only persons appointed by the electoral authority shall have access to the central infrastructure, the servers and the election data. There shall be clear rules established for such appointments. Critical technical activities shall be carried out by teams of at least two people. The composition of the teams shall be regularly changed. As far as possible, such activities shall be carried out outside electoral periods."
- "The e-voting system shall maintain the availability and integrity of the votes. It shall also maintain the confidentiality of the votes and keep them sealed until the counting process. If stored or communicated outside controlled environments, the votes shall be encrypted."
- "Ballot papers should be designed and printed under the management of the EMB and in conditions of strict security. The design of ballot boxes and all election materials should be consistent"
- "Election materials should be procured in a transparent manner"
- "Sensitive election materials such as ballot boxes and ballot papers should be stored and delivered under strict security in order to prevent electoral fraud."
- "Both software and hardware should include the best possible safeguards against any form of manipulation or hacking."
- "Furthermore, State authorities should ensure that the ballot is conducted so as to avoid fraud or other illegality, that the security and the integrity of the process is maintained, and that ballot counting is undertaken by trained personnel, subject to monitoring and/or impartial verification."
- "Take all necessary measures and precautions to prevent the perpetration of fraud, rigging or any other illegal practices throughout the whole electoral process, in order to maintain peace and security."
- "The system must be sufficiently secured against fraud. This is done by the representation in all bodies that handles votes by well respected, neutral authorities or by multi-party representation, by secure control systems for voters, by secure storing and transportation of ballots, and by results being published at all relevant levels."
- "The voter interface of an e-voting system shall be understandable and easily usable."
- "The maintenance and development of genuine democracy require the existence and strengthening of free, independent, pluralistic, and responsible journalism. This requirement is reflected in the need for journalism to: submit the exercise of the various types of powers to continuous and critical examination."
- "Ballots should be designed as simply as possible and should be easy for voters to understand and fill out. Complex ballot papers can cause confusion for voters and may also delay voting and counting."
- "The complexity or simplicity of the ballot directly affects the efficiency of the voting process."
- "The ballot should be easy to fill out for the voter..."
- "Voting procedures should not be cumbersome or complicated so as to hinder the voting process."
- "Ballots should be designed as simply as possible and should be easy for voters to understand and fill out."
- "Ballots should be worded with absolute clarity and be identical in all languages."
- "In countries with more than one official language, ballot papers should be available in all official languages."
- "In multilingual societies, ballots should be available in major minority languages."