Summary
The rules should provide clear grounds upon which complaints and appeals are allowable.
Obligations
Election Parts
Quotes
- All candidates and all voters registered in the constituency concerned must be entitled to appeal. A reasonable quorum may be imposed for appeals by voters on the results of elections.
- Where higher-level commissions are appeal bodies, they should be able to rectify or annul ex officio the decisions of lower electoral commissions.
- 40. The electoral law should lay down the grounds upon which complaints and appeals are admissible. Any complainant should be duly notified in writing of the decision as to whether his/her petition was considered admissible or not, with reasons given. 41. Grounds for appeal should be strictly defined in the law, preferably for each phase involving an election dispute mechanism, so that courts and electoral bodies are not burdened with irrelevant or frivolous challenges. 42. The parties authorized to bring election-related complaints or appeals before a court or an electoral body should be strictly identified by the electoral law. 43. Time-limits and procedures governing the admissibility of complaints and appeals should be designed so as to preserve the right of aggrieved parties to seek redress.
- If the electoral law provisions are to be more than just words on a page, failure to comply with the electoral law must be open to challenge before an appeal body. This applies in particular to the election results: individual citizens may challenge them on the grounds of irregularities in the voting procedures. It also applies to decisions taken before the elections, especially in connection with the right to vote, electoral registers and standing for election, the validity of candidatures, compliance with the rules governing the electoral campaign and access to the media or to party funding.
- Additionally, the law must be clear as to what circumstances require a recount or new election in any or all polling stations. The law must be clear as to who can request a recount or new election, the deadline for the request, all necessary procedures to make the request, the deadline for adjudicating the request, and the date and procedures that will govern a recount or new election.
- Standing in such appeals must be granted as widely as possible. It must be open to every elector in the constituency and to every candidate standing for election there to lodge an appeal. A reasonable quorum may, however, be imposed for appeals by voters on the results of elections.
- "[States should] strengthen supervision by ensuring an effective, transparent and accessible complaints and appeals system in order to put an end to the culture of impunity for election-related offences and enhance public confidence in the electoral process."