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PROCEDURE FOR COMPILATION AND USE OF VOTERS’ LISTS IN THE COMMONWEALTH STATES MEMBER COUNTRIES

21.03.2023

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The Convention on Standards of Democratic Elections, the Voting Rights and Freedoms in the State Parties of the Commonwealth of Independent States (Chisinau, October 7, 2002) states that democratic elections are the basis of the will and power of the people, the foundation of elected state and local self-government bodies, other people's (national) representative bodies, elected officials.

The Convention also guarantees «the right of every citizen to receive information about his inclusion in the voter list, to determine it in order to ensure the completeness and reliability of this information, to appeal against the denial of inclusion in the voter list in the manner prescribed by law».

Citizens of Armenia, Belarus, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Russia, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, members of the Commonwealth of Independent States, who have reached the age of 18 have the right to vote.

The voter register in the Republic of Armenia is maintained and is a permanent document, which includes citizens of the Republic of Armenia who have the right to vote and are included in the state register of the population and registered in one of the municipalities.

Twice a year, in June and November (the first week), the authorized body submits the register of voters of the Republic of Armenia to the Central Election Commission in an electronic form by municipalities.

List of voters are compiled in the form of journals and lists of up to 1,000 voters are registered, yet each voter list provided to a polling station with more than 1,000 voters must include information on approximately equal numbers of voters. Each page of the voter list shall contain information about a maximum of 20 voters. Additional voter lists in inpatient facilities are not generated electronically and are not included in the technical equipment provided to the electoral precinct.

2 days prior to the voting day, the chairman of the precinct election commission shall post a copy of the voter list, including a copy of the additional list of inpatients, in a visible place in the polling station. These lists will be kept at the voting district until the seventh day after the vote.

In Belarus, the names of citizens on the voter list are displayed in a convenient order for voting. Citizens registered at the place of residence shall be included in the list only at the polling station at the place of residence.

A voter shall be registered only at one polling station. If a citizen is not registered in the territory of this polling station, the voter shall be registered on the basis of a passport of a citizen of the Republic of Belarus and a document confirming residence in the territory of the polling station. In this case, the electoral ward shall send a notification to the precinct election commission on the inclusion of the voter in the voter list at the place of residence or location.

The State Voter Register in the Republic of Moldova is the only integrated voter registration information system designed to collect, store, update and analyze information on citizens of the Republic of Moldova who have reached the age of 18 and are not disenfranchised.

Formation of voter lists is carried out by the Central Election Commission on the basis of the information of the state register of the population register of the responsible body. The responsible body shall provide the commission with the information and data necessary for the compilation and updating of the state register of voters no later than January 31 of each year and thereafter on a regular basis, and in the case of elections - after the election day is determined.

The voter list, compiled on the basis of the state voter list, shall include all citizens who have the right to vote and who are in the territory of any polling station where their place of residence or location is located. A voter may be included in only one voter list and in only one polling station.

Eligible voters who have changed their place of residence must notify the local public authority of their new location at least 30 days prior to the next election day in order to be included in the voter list.

The single voters’ list in Azerbaijan is maintained by the Central Election Commission. Each year, information related to the verification of the voter list is submitted by the polling place to the Central Election Commission through the district election commissions. A single voters’ list shall be maintained at polling stations, constituencies and in the Republic of Azerbaijan as a whole. The provisional voter list shall be included in the single voter list.

The permanent voter list shall be approved by the polling district for each polling station by May 30 of each year in the form established by the Central Election Commission and shall be updated at least 25 days prior to the voting day.

Any additions or changes to the voter list on election day and publication in print are prohibited, and the voter list will be posted on the relevant website of the Central Election Commission in the prescribed manner. The addresses of the voters are not indicated.

A voter certificate is a document confirming the inclusion of voters in the voter list.

If a voter is intentionally included in the list of several voters, the voter may be held administratively liable in accordance with the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The basis for inclusion of a citizen of the Russian Federation in the voter list for a particular polling station shall be the information on voter’s place of residence that the voter has been registered in the territory of that polling station by the citizens' registration bodies of the Russian Federation.

Voters who do not have a place of residence in the Russian Federation can use the Mobile Voter Mechanism to vote in the election of deputies to the State Duma in the Federal constituency. Voters registered by place of residence shall also vote in a single-mandate constituency if the place of residence is within the territory of that constituency.

«Mobile voters» system allows voters to cast their ballots on election day if their location does not correspond to their registered location and they are located in the constituency.

Voters who are at their temporary residence on the voting day(s) have the right to apply for inclusion in the voter list in accordance with the established Procedure. A voter may apply for inclusion in the voter list at the place of residence through the Public Services Portal or through the Territorial Election Commission or the Multifunctional Center for Public and Communal Services.

In Tajikistan, voter lists are compiled by the electoral precinct for each polling station and by the chairman and secretary of the election commission. Voter lists shall be gathered by place of residence on the basis of voter information provided by local state authorities.

To compile voter lists, election commissions shall involve, regardless of the form of ownership, representatives of state bodies, state institutions and organizations, as well as public associations.

Voter lists shall be drown up at least 15 days after the formation of election commissions, indicating the voters’ last, first and patronymic name, year of birth and address.

In order to exercise the rights of voters in Kyrgyzstan, provide voters with information about themselves, as well as conduct voting, a list of voters is drawn up for each polling station. Voters who have an active right to vote on election day and are biometrically registered in accordance with the legislation are included in the voter list for the elections of the President and deputies of the Jokargy Kenes in a single electoral district.

All citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic who have active suffrage, who are members of the local community and who have passed biometric registration on voting dayare included in the voter list for elections of deputies to the Jokargy Kenes in single-mandate constituencies.

Voter lists are compiled on the basis of personal data (including biometric data) entered in the Unified State Register of Population, taking into account the boundaries of polling stations. The formation, maintenance and updating of the Unified State Register of the Population is carried out by the authorized state body.

In the event of an error or inaccuracy in the initial voter list, each voter has the right to apply to the relevant precinct election commission with a copy of supporting documents at least 15 calendar days before voting day, during which the voter undergoes biometric identification.

The precinct election commission shall immediately forward this statement to the system administrator of the Central Election Commission of the relevant territorial election commission for registration and appropriate measures to correct errors or inaccuracies.

The Central Election Commission publishes the final numbered, bound and sealed final voter list in duplicate 7 calendar days prior to voting day and submits it to the relevant precinct election commissions. In this case, the second copy of the final list of voters on paper for each polling station, intended for hanging, must not contain information about the place of residence of voters included in the final list.

Disclosure of personal data contained in the final voter lists by correction, copying, publication entails liability in accordance with the law.

The basis for the inclusion of a citizen in the voter list in the Republic of Kazakhstan is the registration of voters at the place of residence on the territory of the polling station, is authorized to register citizens at the place of residence by judicial authorities.

The main condition for participation in elections is the inclusion of voters in the voter list. Voter lists by place of residence are compiled by the relevant Governor’s office (Khokimiyat). From the moment the elections are called, each voter has the right to register as a voter at the respective khokimiyat.

Twenty days before the start of voting, the relevant khokimiyat submits the list of voters to the precinct election commissions on the basis of an act. Voter lists are provided to voters for review at polling stations 15 days before voting day.

Not later than twelve o'clock local time on election day, if the voter cannot come to the vote: for health reasons; because of caring for a sick family member; If polling stations are located in unregistered precincts and are difficult to access, the voter has the right to apply in writing to the precinct election commission to organize voting at the place of residence. The precinct election commission organizes voting at the voter’s place of residence.

Comparing the experience of using the Unified Electronic Voter Register in our country with the experience of the Commonwealth of Independent States, we see that they have an exchange of experience.

First, the State Population Register or the Unified Electronic Voter List must be updated at least twice a year;

Second, there is a need to establish requirements for determining whether voters are on the voter list;

Third, in case of errors or inaccuracies in the voter list, it is necessary to establish the system administrator of the Central Election Commission in the respective territorial election commissions for immediate decision.

Fourth, there should be no information about the place of residence of voters included in the final list, which is supposed to be posted for public viewing.

Fifth, the wider use of digital technologies in the electoral process will make it possible to quickly include a voter on the voter list, even if he is not at his place of residence on election day.

In short, the further improvement of the Unified Electronic Voter Registration System in our country will play an important role in the exercise of the right to vote, the protection of personal data of citizens and the conduct of elections on democratic principles.

At the same time, outreach and advocacy among voters on the procedures for compiling voter lists and processes related to participation in elections will be effective in the electoral process.

 

Bakhodirjon Yunusov

Member of the Central Election Commission

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