3619 Results
Quotes
Quotes based on international documents, law, and treaties- "Voting rights should be based on considerations that include: citizenship; legal age of majority (this may differ from country to country); residency requirements; any other additional grounds for disqualification (eg, prisoners in detention, persons with a criminal record... and so on)."
- "Invariably voters are required to prove their identity by showing a passport or ID or some form of identification."
- "Some countries...disqualify military personnel from voting, a practice particularly common in Latin America. Such limitations, provided they have a rational basis, remain proportional and are not used as a device to disenfranchise significant sections of the population, arguably fall within the margin of appreciation left to States. Discriminatory disenfranchisement, however, would violate general principles of international law."
- "It is common and acceptable for the electoral framework to provide for members of the military and the police to be able to exercise the right to vote while on active duty. Although protecting the right of a member of the military or the police is appropriate, the provisions must be written carefully to avoid abuse."
- "If conviction for an offence is a basis for suspending the right to vote, the period of such suspension should be proportionate to the offence and the sentence. Persons who are deprived of liberty but who have not been convicted should not be excluded from exercising the right to vote."
- "While limitations are allowed for persons convicted of electoral offences, such restrictions must be limited in time."
- "In a number of countries, convicts are disqualified from voting, but detained individuals who have not been convicted retain the right to vote."
- "States must take effective measures to ensure that all persons entitled to vote are able to exercise that right. Where registration of voters is required it should be facilitated and obstacles to such registration should not be imposed. If residence requirements apply to registration, they must be reasonable, and should not be imposed in such a way as to exclude the homeless from the right to vote. Any abusive interference with registration or voting as well as intimidation or coercion of voters should be prohibited by penal laws and those laws should be strictly enforced. Voter education and registration campaigns are necessary to ensure the effective exercise of article 25 rights by an informed community."
- "Voter information and education activities are necessary to ensure that all eligible citizens are aware of their political rights, including their right to vote and to be registered to vote."
- "In particular, States should: ...Initiate of facilitate national programmes of civic education, to ensure that the population are familiar with election procedures and issues."
- "The cumulative effect of all voter education in an election should be evaluated by the degree to which pertinent information is reasonably available to all eligible voters in a form that they can comprehend, and in a timely fashion (i.e.. allowing a reasonable time for the audience to make use of the information."
- "Funding and administration should be provided for objective, non-partisan voter education and information campaigns."
- "Governments should prioritise the funding of civic and voter education by providing for it in the state budget prior to the elections."
- "Elections cannot be genuinely democratic unless voters understand the differences among the electoral contestants so that they can cast an informed vote. Voters must also know when, where and how to register to vote, as well as when where and how to vote."
- "States must take effective measures to ensure that all persons entitled to vote are able to exercise that right. Voter information is one necessary measure to ensure the effective exercise of the right to vote by an informed community."
- "Voters should also be informed about specific election procedures, including how to fill in their ballots, find the correct place of voting, or obtain information on alternative methods of voting."
- "[Voter education] should be provided to all eligible voters, and special efforts should be made to target traditionally disaffected segments of the population."
- "...[I]nformation should be made available to all eligible voters including traditionally disenfranchised segments of the population (e.g. minorities)."
- "Monitoring voter-education and public information campaigns will also provide useful knowledge about the level of information that is made available to national minorities, whether this information is provided in minority languages and whether it includes any element of bias."
- "Voter education…should inform voters of when, how and where to register to vote and when, how and where to cast their votes."
- "Non-partisan civic education should aim to inform voters as to the ‘who, what, when, where and how’ of registration and voting."
- "An education program should “explain the registration procedure” and be “focused mainly on the voting procedure."
- "The cumulative effect of all voter education in an election should be evaluated by the degree to which pertinent information is reasonably available to all eligible voters in a form that they can comprehend, and in a timely fashion (i.e.. allowing a reasonable time for the audience to make use of the information...You should...attempt to assess whether this information adequately discusses essential facts, procedures, rights and issues."
- "Women shall be eligible for election to all publicly elected bodies, established by national law, on equal terms with men, without any discrimination."
- "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: b) women are represented equally at all levels with men in all electoral processes."
- "Every citizen shall enjoy the following rights and opportunities: (a) to take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly or through freely chosen representatives."
- "Every citizen has the right: 3. To stand for election... 4. To the opportunity to gain access, on an equal footing with others, to public office in his country in accordance with the principle of equality of opportunity."
- "Every citizen should have equal legal possibilities to propose him/herself as a candidate in elections."
- "Article 25 of the Covenant recognizes and protects the rights of every citizen to take part in the conduct of public affairs…. Whatever form of constitution or government is in force, the Covenant requires States to adopt such legislative and other measures as may be necessary to ensure that citizens have an effective opportunity to enjoy the rights it protects."
- "To ensure that the will of the people serves as the basis of the authority of government, the participating states will: (7.5) respect the right of citizens to seek political or public office, individually or as representatives of political parties or organizations, without discrimination."
- "The right to be elected does not mean that all citizens would have a subjective right to become a member of an elected body. Rather it means that all citizens that qualify under the provisions of the law should have not only the right but also the opportunity to stand as a candidate."
- "Everyone has the right to take part in the government of their country and shall have an equal opportunity to become a candidate for election. The criteria for participation in government shall be determined in accordance with national constitutions and laws and shall not be inconsistent with the State's international obligations."
- "International human rights law explicitly proclaims the right of citizens to equal access to public office."
- "All candidates who wish to run should be able to do so."
- "The nomination process has been a vulnerable stage in election preparation. Prospective candidates have been prevented from submitting their nomination papers due to violence, procedural deficiencies and inadequate role of the courts...it is therefore recommended that technical requirements/rules should be kept to the absolute minimum."
- "The right to vote and to be voted for should be accepted as a birth right in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women."
- "SADC Member States shall adhere to the following principles in the conduct of democratic elections: Equal opportunity to exercise the right to vote and be voted for."
- "Civil society capacity such as NGOs, Community Based Organisations (CBOs), faith based organisations (FBOs) and other institutions should harness and support civic and voter education to ensure effective distribution throughout the country...Political parties should provide their supporters with civic and voter education and information about the voting process which should be consistent with the voter education and information provided by the EMB."
- "The legal framework should also provide that citizen organizations are free to conduct voter education as long as it accurately describes the positions of electoral contestants and accurately describes voter registration and voting procedures."
- "The national election commission, certain government ministries, government-controlled media, the political parties and civic organizations typically assume responsibility for providing voter education"
- "The participating States consider that the presence of observers, both foreign and domestic, can enhance the electoral process for States in which elections are taking place."
- "Measures that should be identified, implemented and monitored for effectiveness include, under article 7, paragraph (a), those designed to: (b) Ensure that women understand their right to vote, the importance of this right and how to exercise it."
- "Where women are underrepresented on voter lists, observers should determine if election administrators, local authorities, community leaders, or NGOs are conducting any special programmes designed to reach out to women and to encourage and facilitate their participation."
- "With a view to realizing this right without discrimination and on the basis of equal opportunity, States Parties shall ensure an inclusive education system at all levels and lifelong learning directed to: Enabling persons with disabilities to participate effectively in a free society."
- "States Parties shall guarantee to persons with disabilities political rights and the opportunity to enjoy them on an equal basis with others, and shall undertake: Ensuring that voting procedures, facilities and materials are appropriate, accessible and easy to understand and use; Protecting the right of persons with disabilities to vote by secret ballot in elections and public referendums without intimidation, and to stand for elections."
- "Where appropriate, special attention should be devoted to the steps to be followed by disabled voters, for example, the blind, and disadvantaged voters, that is to say, illiterates."
- "Multimedia methods should be employed to provide effective civic education to people with various levels of literacy."
- "Voter education campaigns should extend throughout the territory of the country, including to rural and outlying areas."
- "Voter information should be accessible to all members of society, regardless of their language or level of literacy."
- "Freedom of expression, assembly and association are essential conditions for the effective exercise of the right to vote and must be fully protected. Positive measures should be taken to overcome specific difficulties, such as illiteracy, language barriers, poverty or impediments to freedom of movement which prevent persons entitled to vote from exercising their rights effectively. Information and materials about voting should be available in minority languages. Specific methods, such as photographs and symbols, should be adopted to ensure that illiterate voters have adequate information on which to base their choice. States parties should indicate in their reports the manner in which the difficulties highlighted in this paragraph are dealt with."