ACT NO. 247
On Elections to the Parliament
of the Czech Republic, and on Amendments of Certain Other Acts
Dated September 27, 1995
Contents:
Part one: Elections to the Parliament of the Czech
Republic
Chapter I: General Provisions
Chapter II:. Election to the Chamber of Delegates
Chapter III: Elections to the Senate
Chapter IV: Provisions for Organization and
Facilitation of Elections
Chapter V: Judicial Review
Part two: Amendments to Act. No. 99/1963; Code of
Civil Procedure
Part three: Act. No. 152/1964 SB., On Elections to
Local Authority Councils and Boards, and on Amendments to Certain Other Acts
Part four: Joint Transitory and Final Provisions
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Parliament of the Czech
Republic enacted the following Act
PART ONE: ELECTIONS TO THE
PARLIAMENT OF THE
CHAPTER ONE GENERAL PROVISIONS
(1) Elections to the Parliament of the Czech
Republic shall be held by secret ballot, based on a universal, equal, and direct
right to vote. The Chamber of Delegates of the Czech Republic shall be elected
on the principle of proportional representation. The Senate of the Czech
Republic shall be elected on the principle of majority vote.
(2) Each and every citizen of the Czech Republic
(hereinafter "Citizen") who has attained the age of eighteen years no
later than on the second day of the elections shall qualify to vote.
(A) Citizen shall be prevented from exercising
his/her right to vote if:
his/her personal liberty is restricted by law on
the grounds of public health. 1)Article 5, Paragraph 2, Letter (b), and Article
9, Paragraph 4, letter (a) of Act No. 20/1966 Sb., on the Protection of the
Public Health, in he reading of Act of the Czech National Council No. 548/1991
Sb.
he/she/is incapacitated for the performance of all
legal acts. 2) 2) Article 10, and Article 855 of the Civil Code
Votes for members of Parliament of the Czech
Republic shall be cast within existing electoral wards as established in
accordance with a separate Act. 3)
3)Article 8 of Act No. 152/1994 Sb., on Elections
to Local Authority Councils and Boards, and on Amendments to Certain Other Acts
Voters shall be registered in permanent registers
of voters (hereinafter "Permanent Electoral Roll"), or, as the case
may be, in specific registers of voters unable to vote locally (hereinafter
"Register of Persons Unable to Vote Locally"). No voter shall be on
more than one of the above registers.
Article 5
Permanent Electoral Roll
The Permanent Electoral Roll shall be kept in
accordance with a separate Act. 4) Article 10, and Article 11 of Act No.
152/1994 Sb.
Article 6
Register of Persons Unable to Vote Locally [*note of the translator*]
(1) The Register of Persons Unable to Vote Locally
shall be kept by each municipality - [the country's smallest geo-political unit
and the most basic form of local government, which in may correspond to the
country's administrative subdivisions, and the authorities of which may be
empowered to exercise powers of the State administration if so stipulated by
law]. In the country's capital, Prague, and in certain statutory towns, that
are divided into geo-political/administrative subdivisions, such as municipal
districts, [neighbourhoods,] and/or municipal parts [which are part of the
municipality and may assume its functions, and in some cases cover the area of
an administrative district], the Register of Persons Unable to Vote Locally
shall be kept by each relevant municipal district, [neighbourhood,] or
municipal part (hereinafter "Municipality"). In the Register of
Persons Unable to Vote Locally, Municipalities shall list voters whose place of
permanent residence is outside their jurisdiction 5),
5) Act No. 135/1982 Sb., on Reporting and
Registering the Citizens' Address and who:
are not permanently residing within the Czech
Republic;
are doing a compulsory military service or some
alternative civilian service within the area of their jurisdiction;
are staying in the local hospital, maternity home,
sanatorium, residential-home, rest home, or any other facility or establishment
of a similar character operating and located in the respective local area;
have been taken into custody by the police, and
committed to a detention centre/prison situated in the respective local area;
vote in the respective area thanks to a non-local
voting permit entitling them to do so (see Article 30, Paragraph 2 below).
(2) Into the Register of Persons Unable to Vote
Locally, local authorities [in villages], municipal authorities [in towns and
statutory towns], municipal district authorities in Prague municipal districts
or neighbourhood authorities in Prague neighbourhoods, municipal district/part
authorities in statutory towns divided into geo-political subdivisions
(hereinafter "Local Authorities") shall list the voters as specified
in the above-mentioned Paragraph 1, Letter (b) based on information provided by
the chief officer in command of the relevant military unit, and voters as specified
in the above-mentioned Paragraph 1, Letters (c) and (d) based on information
provided by the administration of the respective institution, establishment or
facility. Such information shall be passed onto the Local Authorities no later
than seven days prior to the beginning of polling, and shall be updated if and
when necessary.
(3) The chief officer in command of the relevant
military unit, and the administration of the respective institution, facility,
or establishment, working with Local Authorities that are in charge of keeping
the local Register of Persons Unable to Vote Locally, shall send the Local
Authorities in the Municipality where the voter in question has been entered on
the Permanent Electoral Roll information, confirming that the said voter has
been reported for entry into the Register of Persons Unable to Vote Locally.
ELECTION BOARDS- GENERAL
PROVISIONS
Article 7
[*note of the translator*]
(1) The Central Election Board shall be in charge
of conducting elections to the Parliament of the Czech Republic.
(2) For the purpose of elections to the Chamber of
Delegates (a) regional election boards shall be established [in the
constituencies - namely,] in each electoral region while the country' capital,
Prague, shall be considered to be a separate electoral region; (b) district
election boards shall be established [within district electoral areas -
namely,] in each country's administrative district and in each of Prague
polling districts, the specifically defined boundaries of which shall be delineated
by Annex 1 which shall be integral part of this Act.
(3) For the purpose of elections to the Senate,
divisional election boards shall be established [in the constituencies -
namely] in each electoral division.
(4) Ward election boards shall be established in
electoral wards.
(1) Every voter may become a member of an election
board unless the said voter has been denied the right to vote. No candidate for
a seat in the Parliament of the Czech Republic shall be a member of an election
board.
(2) Regional, district, divisional, and ward
election boards shall consist of representatives delegated by a political
party, political movement (hereinafter "Political Party"), and their
coalition, each submitting a separate list of their candidates for registration
to stand for election to the Chamber of Delegates, or each applying separately
for the registration of their candidate to stand for election to the Senate.
Should a list of candidates be submitted, or should the registration of a
candidate be applied for by more Political Parties joined in a coalition, the
right to delegate election board members and their stand-ins shall belong to
the joint coalition, and not to the individual Political Parties of which the
said coalition consists. Names and surnames of the party/coalition
representatives and their stand-ins, along with their full addresses shall be
communicated by the Political Parties or the coalitions to the person calling
the election board to its first session. Should a list of candidates be
rejected by a regional election board or the Central Election Board, or should
a Political Party or a coalition retract its list of candidates, the
representation of the said Political Party or coalition on any election board
shall cease to exist. Should a divisional election board or the Central
Election Board reject an application for registration of a candidate, or should
such an application be retracted by a Political Party or coalition, the
representation of the said Political Party or coalition on any election board
shall cease to exist. Should a member of an election board fall ill, have more
urgent commitments, or should a member's office become vacant, the chairman of
the respective election board shall summon the first stand-in as delegated by the
Political Party or coalition whose representative is being replaced. The
stand-in shall become a member of the election board upon taking an oath (see
below, Paragraph 3 of this Article). Upon the stand-in's becoming a regular
member of the election board, the membership of the representative first in
office shall cease to exist.
(3) Members of election boards shall assume their
office upon taking an oath. The oath of a member of an election board shall be
as follows: "I swear on my honour to perform the rights and duties of my
office in an unbiased and assiduous manner, observing the Constitution, laws
and other legal statutes of the Czech Republic." A member of an election
board shall be considered to have taken the oath upon signing the oath in writing.
(1) An election board shall form a quorum when
fifty per cent or more of its members are present. The passing of a resolution
shall require the consent of an absolute majority of the members present. In
case of parity of votes, a proposal shall be deemed to be rejected.
(2) At its first session, the Central Election
Board, and regional, district, divisional, and ward election boards shall
choose their chairman and vice-chairman from among their members by drawing
lots. The chairman and the vice-chairman of an election board shall not be
representatives of the same Political Party or coalition. The drawing of lots
shall be conducted by the secretary of the election board in question.
(3) Should the chairman of an election board
retire from office, lots shall be drawn to choose a replacement. In such cases,
the vice-chairman of the election board shall not be eligible to be selected as
chairman. Should the vice-chairman of an election board retire from office, the
above procedure shall also apply.
(1) The secretary of the Central Election Board
shall be appointed and/or recalled by the Government. Secretaries of regional
and divisional election boards shall be appointed and/or recalled by the
Minister of the Interior. Secretaries of district election boards shall be
appointed and/or recalled by the head of the respective district State
administration office, however, in Prague and in the cities of Brno, Ostrava,
and Plzeć, secretaries of district election boards shall be appointed and/or
recalled by the mayor of each city. Secretaries of ward election boards shall
be appointed and/or recalled by the chairman of the local council or the mayor
of the respective Municipality; in Prague, and in certain statutory towns
divided into geo-political subdivisions, secretaries of ward election boards
shall be appointed and/or recalled by the chairman of the local council of the
municipal district or municipal part in question (hereinafter "Mayor").
Secretaries shall be appointed no later than twenty days prior to the day on
which the election boards shall have been incorporated pursuant to this Act.
(2) A secretary shall be a member of the election
board who shall have a voice, but not a vote on the board, and who may submit
proposals to the election board. Secretaries shall take an, the wording and
procedure of administration of which have been specified in Article 8,
Paragraph 3 abovementioned.
(3) Should a secretary cease to perform the rights
and duties of his/her office, a new secretary shall be appointed to the
election board no later than two days hereafter.
For the purpose of vote computations, the Central
Election Board, and regional, district, divisional, and ward election boards
shall set up a special body, a counting team, consisting of vote counters and
analysts, that shall be manned by specialists assigned to this task by the
Czech Bureau of Statistics. In addition to the counting team, the Central
Election Board shall establish a secretariat from among designated employees of
the Ministry of the Interior. The secretariat shall be assigned with
organization-related and administrative tasks, and shall assist the Central
Election Board in meeting the obligations arising from its office. Members of
counting teams operating within election boards, and members of the staff of
the Central Election Board secretariat shall take an oath, the wording and
procedure of administration of which have been specified in Article 8, Paragraph
3 above.
Article 12 The
Central Election Board
(1) Each Political Party and/or each coalition
that submits for registration a list of its candidates for the elections to the
Chamber of Delegates shall have the right to be represented on the Central
Election Board. Up to two party/coalition representatives and two stand-ins may
be proposed to the Minister of the Interior no later than sixty days prior to
the first election day to the Chamber of Delegates.
(2) If the delegated representatives (Paragraph 1
of this Article) meet the requirements stipulated by the provisions of the
above Article 8, Paragraph 1 herein, the Minister of the Interior shall appoint
them members of the Central Election Board, and shall grant them a membership
card.
(3) Upon the proposal of a Political Party or
coalition to dismiss its delegated representative, the Minister of the Interior
shall recall the member of the Central Election Board, and appoint a stand-in
to the vacant office. Should there be no stand-in available, the Minister shall
appoint a new member of the Central Election Board based on the proposal of the
Political Party or coalition in question.
(4) The term of office of the Central Election
Board shall have expired on the day on which a new Central Election Board in charge
of the following elections to the Chamber of Delegates shall be constituted.
(5) The Central Election Board shall be called to
its first session by the Minister of the Interior so that the session shall
commence no later than the third day following the final date stipulated in
Paragraph 1 of this Article.
(6) The Central Election Board shall:
ensure that electoral laws and statutes are
observed;
decide in the instance of complaints against
procedures taken by regional and divisional election boards, and in the
instance of appeals against decisions taken by such election boards. A decision
delivered by the Central Election Board shall be binding on any election board;
compute, scrutinize, ascertain, and declare
election results;
convey the election returns/results to the
respective Chamber of the Parliament of the Czech Republic;
issue Confirmation of Election to candidates who
were elected;
perform further duties and obligations arising
from this Act and other applicable laws and statutes.
Article 13
Ward Election Board
(1) According to the number of voters in an
electoral ward, the Mayor shall determine the lowest permitted number of
officers who need to be on the ward election board so that the ward election
board has no less than five members. However, wards where the electorate does
not exceed three hundred voters shall be an exception; the election board of
such wards may consist of three members and a secretary.
(2) Each Political Party and coalition which has
duly registered its list of candidates running for a seat in the Chamber of
Delegates in the electoral region within which the respective electoral ward is
located, and each Political Party or coalition which has duly registered its
candidate running for a seat in the Senate in the electoral division within
which the respective ward is located shall have the right to delegate one
representative and one stand-in of his/her to be on the ward election board.
The ward election board member and the stand-in shall be delegated no later than
thirty days prior to the day of the elections. Should an insufficient number of
board members be delegated through the above procedure, the Mayor shall appoint
additional members so that the total number of members of the ward election
board complies with the provisions stipulated in Paragraph 1 of this Article.
(3) The ward election board shall be called to its
first session by the Mayor so that the session shall commence no later than the
twenty-first day prior to the day of the elections.
(4) The ward election board shall:
conduct the polling, supervise whether ballots are
cast appropriately, and make efforts to maintain order in the polling station;
count the votes cast, and draft a record of the
polling process and the vote count. The record shall, without delay, be
transmitted to the (bb) district election board in the case of election to the
Chamber of Delegates, and (bc) divisional election board in the case of
election to the Senate;
deposit all other election-related papers and
documents to the Local Authorities for safe-keeping.
Article 14 The
Day of the Elections
(1) The President of the Republic shall call the
elections to the Parliament of the Czech Republic no later than ninety days
before the elections are held. The call of the elections shall be published in
'SbĄrka z kon
', a collection of laws. The day on which the decision to call
the elections is published in the 'SbĄrka z kon
', the collection of laws,
shall be considered to be the day on which the elections were called.
(2) Two days shall be dedicated to the elections
to the Parliament of the Czech Republic. On the first election day, polling
stations shall open at 14:00 hours and close at 22:00 hours. On the second
election day, polling stations shall open at 07:00 hours and close at 14:00
hours. Should it be necessary for reasons of particular local circumstances,
the Mayor of the Municipality in question may modify the polling hours, and
decide that the polling station open as early as 12:00 hours on the first
election day, and 05:00 hours on the second election day.
Article 15
Sources of Public Information
1) Each Municipality shall issue a decree
informing the voters of the time and place of the elections to be held in the
respective Municipality. This decree shall be issued no later than fifteen days
prior to the day of the elections, and advertised in a manner usual in the
Municipality in question. Should a Municipality be divided into two or more
electoral wards, the decree shall provide information on which sections or
parts of the Municipality shall belong to which of the wards, and the decree
shall be made public within the area of each of the wards.
(2) Local Authorities shall also notify the
electorate of their obligation to prove their identity and show evidence that
they are Citizens of the Czech Republic, and shall furnish further pieces of
information required for a smooth process of polling.
Article 16 The
Election Campaign
(1) For the purposes of an election campaign, on
the sixteenth day prior to the day of the elections, the Mayor may allocate a
space suitable for election campaign posters and campaigning advertisements.
Such campaign allowance of space shall accommodate the right to equality of
Political Parties and coalitions nominating their candidates to stand for
election to the Chamber of Delegates or to the Senate, or, as the case may be,
of independent candidates standing for election to the Senate.
(2) Integrity and honesty shall be the rules
governing election campaigning and canvassing, and false information shall not
be distributed to the public concerning either candidate nor the Political
Parties nor coalitions that nominate the candidates in their list of
candidates.
(3) From the sixteenth day prior to the day of the
elections, until the forty-eighth hour prior to the opening of elections,
Political Parties and coalitions nominating candidates to stand for elections
to the Chamber of Delegates shall be allotted a total of fourteen hours of air
time on broadcasting channels on Czech Radio, and fourteen hours of air time on
broadcasting channels on Czech Television for the purpose of their election
campaign. The broadcasting time shall be allotted free of charge and
apportioned evenly among the Political Parties and coalitions involved. The
time and hour when each Political Party and coalition shall be on air shall be
determined by drawing lots. Liability and answerability for the contents of the
television and radio programmes broadcasted shall rest with the Political Party
and coalition that is canvassing.
(4) Neither any local radio station nor any public
address system shall be used for the purposes of any Political Party,
coalition, and independent candidate canvassing.
(5) In the course of the last forty-eight hours
prior to the opening of elections and on the election days, any campaigning and
canvassing in favour of Political Parties, coalitions and candidates shall be
prohibited; in buildings in which ward election boards have their headquarters,
and in their immediate vicinity, no facts that may cause prejudice of a
Political Party, coalition or candidate shall be made public whether in words,
writing, or in the form of a sound or picture. Election forecasts resulting
from public-opinion polls shall not be published after the seventh day
preceding the day of the elections. During the elections, no public preference
research shall be made in the building in which the polling station has been
located.
(6) Members of any election board and members of
the staff of any election board special team shall be prohibited from
disclosing any information in connection with the polling process and/or
partial voting results until the board's record of the election outcome has
been signed.
(7) No results of any election preference research
shall be released throughout the course of the voting until the closing of
polling stations.
(1) A polling station shall be furnished with a
regular ballot-box, a portable ballot-box, a sufficient amount of
ballot-papers, pens and pencils, copies of extracts from the Permanent
Electoral Roll, copies of extracts from the Register of Persons Unable to Vote
Locally, and a copy of this Act which shall be made available to voters for
inspection should they so request.
(2) To afford privacy and secrecy for the voters
to express their preferences in the ballots, polling stations shall be
furnished with voting booths. Depending on the size of the electorate in the
ward in question, the Mayor of the respective Municipality shall determine how
many enclosures shall be installed. Nobody shall accompany a voter inside the
voting booth, including any member of the ward election board, except as
otherwise provided for in this Act.
(3) A national flag shall be hoisted on the
building in which a polling station is located, and a large national emblem
shall, with due regard, decorate the polling station. 6)
6) Act of the Czech National Council No. 3/1993
Sb., on National Symbols of the
(4) Before the polling station opens, the chairman
of the ward election board shall be obliged to examine whether the polling
station is furnished as stipulated by the provisions of the foregoing
paragraphs, and, witnessed by the other members of the board, shall seal the
regular ballot-box and the portable ballot-box. Both the regular and portable
ballot-boxes shall be scrutinized and emptied before sealing.
(5) After the polling station has closed on the
first day of the election, the chairman of the ward election board shall have
the ballot-box and, if applicable, the portable ballot-box sealed so that
ballots can neither be inserted nor taken out. He shall also make sure that
other election-related documents are safeguarded. Before the polling station
opens on the second day of the election, the chairman of the ward election
board shall examine whether seals are in an intact, or untampered with,
condition and remove the seals.
Article 18
Opening of Elections, Beginning of Voting
Having completed the inspection pursuant to
Article 17, Paragraph 4 above, he chairman of the ward election board shall
declare the elections open. The Chairman of the ward election board followed by
the other members of the board shall have the right to cast the vote as the
first voter.
(1) A voter shall cast his/her vote in person. No
voting by proxy shall be admissible.
(2) Upon entering, voters shall approach the ward
election board first, and then cast their vote when their turn comes, one by
one, as they entered the polling station.
(3) Having entered the polling station, a voter
shall prove his/her identity and produce evidence that he/she is a Citizen of
the Czech Republic. 7)
7) Article 20 of Act No. 40/1993 Sb., on
Citizenship of the
After the voter's registration has been checked
and an entry into the relevant extract from the Permanent Electoral Roll or the
Register of Persons Unable to Vote Locally made, from a board official, the
voter shall receive an empty opaque envelope which shall be under an official
seal, and which shall be of identical size, colour and paper quality
(hereinafter "Formal Envelope"). Upon request by a voter, the ward
election board shall supply the voter with additional ballot-papers should one
or more be missing, or replace a ballot should it be crossed out or otherwise
marked.
(4) Should a voter fail to prove his/her identity
or the fact that he/she is a Citizen of the Czech Republic 7), the voter shall
not be allowed to vote.
(5) Having left a voting booth, a voter shall cast
his/her vote in front of the ward election board by inserting the Formal
Envelope into the ballot-box. A voter who fails to enter the voting booth prior
to casting the vote shall be disqualified by the election board from voting.
(6) A voter who is incapable of marking the ballot
by his/her own forces because of a bodily handicap, or because he/she is not
able to read or write shall have the right to be accompanied to a voting booth
by another voter who will mark and insert the ballot into the Formal Envelope
for him/her. Such service shall not be rendered by any member of the ward
election board.
(7) For material, and especially health-related
reasons, a voter shall have the right to ask the Local Authorities, and on the
day of the elections, the ward election board, for permission to vote outside
the polling station. In such a case, the ward election board shall send to the
voter two of its members with a portable ballot-box, a Formal Envelope, and
ballots. During voting, the board officials shall ensure that the principles of
a secret ballot be observed.
Article 20
Order in Polling Stations and their Immediate Vicinity
The chairman of the ward election board shall be
responsible for order in the polling station and its near vicinity. His/her
directions to enforce order that will allow for a dignified course of polling
shall be binding on every party present.
Article 21
Suspension of Voting
Should circumstances make the voting impossible to
commence, continue, or end, the ward election board, upon agreement with the
regional election board or with the divisional election board, shall have the
right to adjourn the commencement of voting to a later hour, or to extend
polling hours. If and when the voting is interrupted, the ward election board
shall deposit election-related documents in safe-keeping, and seal a regular
ballot-box and, as the case may be, a portable ballot box so that ballots can
neither be inserted nor taken out. When voting is resumed, witnessed by other
members of the ward election board the chairman shall examine whether seals are
in an intact, or untampered with, condition, and shall remove them. The
circumstances that had a bearing upon the interruption of voting shall be
stated by the board in its report.
When the polling hours have elapsed, the polling
station shall close. However, voters waiting to cast their vote both inside and
outside of the polling station shall be allowed to do so in spite of the fact
that the closing hour has passed. Only then shall the chairman of the ward
election board declare the voting closed.
Article 23 Members of
election boards of a superior authority, members of their counting teams,
members of the staff of the Central Election Board secretariat, and persons
authorized by the Central Election Board shall have the right to be present on
the premises where the ward election board has been in the process of the vote
counting.
CHAPTER TWO: ELECTIONS TO THE
CHAMBER OF DELEGATES
The Chamber of Delegates shall consist of two
hundred Delegates who shall be elected for a four-year term. 8)
8) Article 16, Paragraph 1 of the Constitution of
the
Each and every voter who has reached twenty-one
years of age no later than on the second day of the election may be elected a
Delegate in the Chamber of Delegates provided the voter is not prohibited from
exercising his/her right to vote at the time of the elections, on the election
days, with the exception of those prevented from exercising their right to vote
by reasons specified in Article 2, Letter (a) hereinbefore.
For the purpose of elections to the Chamber of
Delegates, the territory of the Czech Republic shall be divided into
constituencies - electoral regions in which the elections shall be held on the
principle of proportional representation.
Boundaries of electoral regions, shall be drawn up
in line with boundaries of geo-political divisions of the Czech Republic -
regions, as recognized on the day of the call of the elections. The
metropolitan region of Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, shall be a
separate electoral region.
Article 28
Regional Election Board
(1) Each Political Party or coalition that has
filed its list of candidates for registration may delegate no more than two
representatives and two stand-ins to be members of the regional election board
in the electoral region where the party/coalition registration was filed. The
regional election board members and their stand-ins shall be delegated no later
than sixty days prior to the day of the elections.
(2) The regional election board shall be called to
its first session by the Minister of the Interior so that the session shall
commence no later than the third day following the final date as stipulated in
the foregoing Paragraph 1 of this Article.
(3) The regional election board shall:
ensure that electoral laws and statutes are
observed;
decide in the instance of complaints against
procedures taken by district election boards, and in the instance of appeals
against decisions taken by the election boards. A decision delivered by the
regional election board shall be binding on such election boards;
review and register lists of candidates filed for
registration in their respective electoral regions;
count the voting results, and ascertain the
outcome of the vote in the respective electoral region;
deposit election files to the Ministry of the
Interior for safe- keeping;
perform further duties and obligations arising
from this Act and other applicable laws and statutes as well as assignments
which it shall be committed to discharge by the Central Election Board.
Article 29
District Election Board
(1) Each Political Party or coalition which has
duly registered its list of candidates may delegate one member and one stand-in
to represent the party/coalition on a district election board in a district
within the region where its list of candidates has been registered. The
district election board member and his/her stand-in shall be delegated no later
than thirty days prior to the day of the election. The district election board
shall be called into its first session by the head of the district State
administration office, and in the cities of Prague, Brno, Ostrava, and Plzeć by
the Mayor of each city so that the session shall be commenced no later than on
the third day following the final date stipulated in the preceding clause.
(2) The district election board shall:
ensure that electoral laws and statutes are
observed;
decide in the instance of complaints against
procedures taken by ward election boards, and in the instance of appeals
against decisions taken by ward election boards. A decision delivered by the
district election board shall be binding on such election boards;
supervise its vote counters totalling the vote
count received in electoral wards;
have the right to request that ward election
boards provide further data and explanations should any doubt arise, and either
correct apparent errors after approval by the ward election board concerned or,
in less routine cases, ask the ward election board to call a new session and
rectify the deficiencies discovered;
deliver the aggregate number of the vote count
received in electoral wards falling within its district electoral area to the
respective regional election board;
perform further duties and obligations arising
from this Act and other applicable laws and statutes as well as assignments
which it shall be committed to discharge by the regional election board.
Article 30
Non-Local Voting Permit
(1) A qualified voter who is unable to vote in the
electoral ward where he/she is registered in the Permanent Electoral Roll shall
have the right to request that Local Authorities warrant a non-local voting
permit to him/her. Having issued the non-local voting permit to the voter, the
Local Authorities shall make a note in the Permanent Electoral Roll, and in an
extract from the Permanent Electoral Roll which shall be distributed for use by
the ward election board to which the said voter pertains.
(2) Before the day of the elections, the non-local
voting permit shall entitle the voter, who intends to participate in the
election to the Chamber of Delegates, to become registered in the Register of Persons
Unable to Vote Locally (see Article 6 above) of an electoral ward other than
the one where the voter has permanent registration, or to register
himself/herself in any extract from the Register of Persons Unable to Vote
Locally on the actual day of the election.
(1) Lists of candidates running for a seat in the
Chamber of Delegates may be proposed by coalitions, or by Political Parties
provided their party activities have not been suspended. 9)
9) Act No. 424/1991 Sb., on Affiliating with
Political Parties and Associating with Political Movements, as worded by later
legislation (full reading - No. 118/1994 Sb.)
No later than sixty days prior to the day of the
elections, two identical copies of the list of candidates shall be submitted
for registration by a party/coalition authorized agent to a secretary of the
regional election board in the electoral region to be represented by the Party
or coalition in the Chamber of Delegates.
(2) A list of candidates shall include:
the title of the Political Party or coalition;
names and surnames of the candidates, their birth
registration number, date of birth, occupation, and place of permanent
residence;
the candidate's ballot position, indicated on the
list of candidates in Arabic numerals.
(3) In addition to the data specified by the
foregoing Paragraph 2 of this Article, the list of candidates shall include an
indication by the Political Party or coalition, of the political affiliation of
each candidate or, if applicable, of the fact that a candidate has not been a
member of any political party and stands on the party list as a non- affiliated
candidate. When the sixtieth day prior to the day of the elections has elapsed,
no further candidates shall be added to the lists of candidates nor shall the
position of the candidates on any such list be altered.
(4) In Appendix to its list of candidates, the
Political Party or coalition shall name its agent, a person authorized to act
on behalf of the Political Party or coalition, and two other persons who may
become the agent's stand-ins. The name, surname, and full address of the agent
and the two stand-ins shall be given. No candidate shall have the right to act
as a party/coalition agent or the agent's stand-in. Actions of the agent on behalf
of the Political Party or coalition in matters related to the elections shall
be binding on such Political Party or coalition. The regional election board
shall be notified by the Political Party or coalition should a stand-in replace
the agent in the office.
(5) Should the secretary of the regional election
board find out that a list of candidates or its Appendices fails to meet the
requirements specified by the provisions of this Article in the foregoing
Paragraphs 2, 3, and 4, and Paragraph 7 below, he/she shall notify the agent of
the Political Party or coalition who submitted the list of
candidates/Appendices in question. The agent shall have the right to remove
such deficiencies prior to the final date defined in Paragraph 1 of this
Article. The agent of the Political Party or coalition shall receive
acknowledgement by the secretary, confirming that the list of candidates has
been filed.
(6) The greatest number of candidates that a
Political Party or coalition shall be allowed to nominate in the party-compiled
list of candidates contesting constituency seats in each single electoral
region shall be defined by Annex 2 which shall be integral part of this Act.
(7) Enclosed with the list of candidates must be a
statement, signed in ink by a candidate therein listed, declaring that the said
candidate has approved of his/her nomination, and that approval to be listed on
any other list of candidates has not been given by the undersigned candidate,
and that no fact disqualifying the undersigned candidate from eligibility to be
elected is known to him/her.
(8) Should a Political Party run for seats in the
Chamber of Delegates as part of a joint coalition, it may not run for election
as a separate, individual entity. A coalition shall have the right to compete
for the constituency seats in each electoral region provided the structure of
the coalition remains unchanged.
Article 32
Review of Lists of Candidates by Regional Election Board
(1) The regional election board shall complete a
review of the lists of candidates that have been filed no later than on the
fifty-fifth day prior to the day of the elections.
(2) The regional election board shall remove any
candidate:
whose statement pursuant to Article 31, Paragraph
7 above has not been enclosed;
who has been listed on several lists of candidates
filed by several different Political Parties or their coalitions. However, the
candidate shall be removed only from such list/lists of candidates with which
the candidate's statement pursuant to Article 31, Paragraph 7 above has not
been enclosed; should a candidate have signed statements to be attached to
several different lists of candidates, the candidate shall be removed from all
the lists of candidates on which he/she has been listed;
who shall be in excess of the greatest number of
candidates permitted to be nominated pursuant to Article 31, Paragraph 6 above;
who fails to be eligible to be elected (see
Article 25 above);
whose data fail to furnish the entire set of
information required by the provisions of Article 31, Paragraph 2, Letter (b)
hereinbefore.
(3) The regional election board shall reject a
list of candidates if filed at variance with Article 31, Paragraph 1
hereinbefore; or if lacking in the due essentials required by the provisions of
Article 31, Paragraphs 2, 3, and 4 hereinbefore in case such deficiencies
cannot be rectified by measures defined in Paragraph 2, Letter (e) of this
Article; or if the Appendix to the list of candidates provided for in Article
31, Paragraph 4 herein be missing. Any Political Party or coalition may appeal
against the decision of the regional election board to reject its list of
candidates to the Central Election Board. Such an appeal shall be lodged with
the Central Election Board by the Political Party or coalition no later than
twenty-four hours following the receipt of the decision. The decision rendered
by the Central Election Board shall then be binding on the regional election
board.
(4) After each list of candidates has been
scrutinized, the chairman of the regional election board shall without any
delay forward the Central Election Board one copy of the list of candidates,
along with candidates' statements approving of their nomination, and a protocol
on the conclusions on the review of the list of candidates. The conclusions of
the review shall be forwarded by the chairman of the regional election board to
each Political Party and coalition that has filed its list of candidates in the
electoral region in question.
Article 33
Review of Lists of Candidates by the Central Election Board
(1) The Central Election Board shall complete a
review of the lists of candidates no later than on the fiftieth day prior to
the day of the elections.
(2) Should a candidate be listed on several lists
of candidates, the Central Election Board shall remove the candidate from such
list of candidates with which the candidate's statement pursuant to Article 31,
Paragraph 7 above has not been enclosed; should a candidate have signed
statements to be attached to several different lists of candidates, such
candidate shall be removed from all the lists of candidates on which he/she has
been listed.
(3) Should, in several different electoral
regions, lists of candidates obviously submitted by the same Political Party or
coalition be filed under various different party/coalition titles, the chairman
shall invite the party/coalition representatives to announce one definitive
party/coalition title by which the Political Party or coalition shall be
recognized in each electoral region. The party/coalition title shall be
announced before the session of the Central Election Board has ended, and
should the representatives of the Political Party or coalition fail to do so,
the title of the Political Party or coalition shall be determined by the
Central Election Board.
(4) Should, in a list of candidates, the Central
Election Board discover deficiencies as per Article 31, Paragraphs 1, 2, 3, and
4, it shall proceed in compliance with the provisions stipulated in the first
clause of Article 32, Paragraph 3 above. The Central Election Board shall
refuse each and every list of candidates filed in each and every electoral
region should it be filed at variance with the provisions stipulated by Article
31, Paragraph 8, and such lists of candidates on which all the candidates have
been removed in pursuance of the provisions laid down in the foregoing
Paragraph 2 of this Article.
(5) The Central Election Board shall draw lots to
determine different numerical symbols that shall index the lists of candidates,
and each Political Party and coalition that has filed a list of candidates
shall be assigned a different numerical symbol by which all of its lists of
candidates contesting a seat in the Chamber of Delegates shall be
distinguished.
(6) Without any delay, the chairman of the Central
Election Board shall send a protocol on the conclusions of the review of the
lists of candidates both to the regional election boards and the Political
Parties and coalitions concerned. The numerical symbols assigned to each
Political Party and coalition shall be allowed enough publicity to become
generally known.
Article 34
Registration of Lists of Candidates
(1) Upon receipt of the protocol on the
conclusions drawn by the Central Election Board after its review of the lists
of candidates filed in electoral regions, each regional election board shall
register the approved lists of candidates, and notify the Political Parties and
coalitions involved of the fact in writing. Registration shall be completed no
later that forty-five days prior to the day of the elections. Should a list of
candidates be registered by implication of the Central Election Board decision
on appeal (see Article 32, Paragraph 3 above), or by implication of a court
decision as per a separate law 10), 10) Article 58 and Article 200m of Code of
Civil Procedure the relevant regional election board shall register the list of
candidates even after the above specified final date, however, no later than on
the thirtieth day prior to the day of the elections, and shall determine the
numerical symbol that shall index such a list of candidates (see Article 33,
Paragraph 5 above). Lists of candidates shall not be reproduced to become
ballots unless duly registered.
(2) Should, after the registration of a list of
candidates as per Paragraph 1 of this Article, the Central Election Board find
out that the Political Party whose list of candidates was duly registered has
been suspended or dissolved, it shall cancel its registration of the list of
candidates, and notify the agent of the Political Party in question of the
cancellation in writing (see Article 31, Paragraph 4 above).
(3) No further notice shall be taken of the list
of candidates the registration of which has been cancelled pursuant to the
provisions set forth in the foregoing Paragraph 2 of this Article.
(1) A separate bank account shall be established
in each electoral region by the district State administration office located in
the city or town where the electoral region shall have its headquarters, and
specifically in the case of the Central Bohemian electoral region the bank
account shall be established by the Prague-West district administration office,
in the case of the Prague electoral region the bank account shall be
established by the Prague municipal authorities, and in the case of electoral
regions having their headquarters in the cities of Brno, Ostrava, and Plzeć the
bank account shall be established by the municipal authorities of each city
(hereinafter "District State Administration Office in the Seat of
Electoral Region"). Such bank accounts shall be established no later than
the day on which the regional election boards shall have been constituted.
(2) Each Political Party or coalition whose list
of candidates was duly registered in the electoral region shall deposit a
security amounting to two hundred thousand K in the bank account specified in
the foregoing Paragraph 1 of this Article. This deposit shall be made within
three days following the notification of registration (Article 34, Paragraph 1
hereinbefore), and no later than two days following the deposit, the fact shall
be communicated by the Political Party or coalition to the regional election
board in the electoral region where the deposit was made. The deposit shall be
made by the Political Party or coalition in each electoral region in which the
party/coalition list of candidates was duly registered.
(3) The printing of ballots shall not be
undertaken unless the deposit, on which it is contingent, has been made, and
should a Political Party fail to pay the deposit, its lists of candidates shall
not be printed to become ballots.
(4) Regional election boards shall refund the
deposit to each Political Party or coalition no later than one month following
the declaration of the election results provided the Political Party or
coalition has accrued enough votes to qualify for the first scrutiny (Article
49 herein below). Deposits that shall not be refunded shall be deemed to be the
receipts of the national budget.
(5) The Ministry of Finance shall lay down
specific legal regulations providing for particulars in respect of the manner
in which the security deposited will be refunded.
Article 36
Resignation from Nomination, Recall of Candidate
(1) A candidate may resign from his/her nomination
provided the resignation statement be made in writing prior to the opening of
the election. The same procedure applies should a Political Party or coalition,
through the instrumentality of its agent, wish to recall a candidate whom the
party/coalition has nominated. Neither the resignation statement nor the recall
statement can be withdrawn. Two copies of the statement shall be delivered to
either the chairman or the secretary of the relevant regional election board.
Without any delay, the chairman of the regional election board shall forward
one of the two copies to the chairman of the Central Election Board, and
immediately thereafter, arrange for the statement to be made public in an
appropriate manner in polling stations provided that he/she has received the
statement no later than forty-eight hours prior to the beginning of the
election.
(2) Should such statement be made after the
registration of the list of candidates in which the resigned/recalled candidate
is listed, the name and other data related to the said candidate shall remain
on the list of candidates unchanged. However, no account shall be taken of this
person when seats shall be distributed.
Should a Political Party be dissolved, or should
its activity be suspended after the registration of its list of candidates by
the regional election board, no notice shall be taken either of the Political
Party or its candidates when Parliamentary seats are distributed after the
election.
(1) Through the District State Administration
Office in the Seat of Electoral Region, the chairman of the regional election
board shall arrange for ballots to be printed. Ballots shall include the
numerical symbol assigned to each set of party/coalition lists of candidates by
drawing the lots (Article 33, Paragraph 5 above), the title of the Political
Party or coalition, the name of each candidate as well as his/her surname, date
of birth, occupation, place of permanent residence, and the candidate's ballot
position indicated in Arabic numerals as well as his/her political affiliation
or, if applicable, the fact that the candidate is not a member of any political
party.
(2) In all electoral regions, ballots shall be
printed in an identical type-face and character-size, on paper of identical
quality, colour and size. Ballots shall be under the official seal of the
regional election board.
(3) Through district State administration offices
in the electoral region, and in case of the cities of Prague, Brno, Ostrava,
and Plzeć, through municipal authorities of each city, the chairman of the
regional election board shall send the ballots reproduced in the above manner
to the Mayors, who subsequently shall have the ballots distributed (a) to each
voter so that the electorate has received them no later than the third day
prior to the day of the elections, and (b) to each ward election board so that
the boards have received them on the day of the elections.
(1) Having received a Formal Envelope and if
necessary a set of ballots, a voter shall enter a voting booth (Article 17,
Paragraph 2 hereinbefore) where he/she shall insert no more than one ballot
into the Formal Envelope. The voter shall have the right to express his/her
preference by marking the ballot prior to inserting it into the Formal Envelope
so that he/she encircles the candidate's ballot position number. No more than
four candidates listed on one ballot form may be indicated, and no other ballot
editing can be accepted.
(2) A voter who will vote based on a non-local
voting permit outside his/her registered electoral area shall be under an
obligation to surrender his/her non-local voting permit to the ward election
board in the polling station where he/she happens to vote. The ward election
board in question shall enclose such non-local voting permit with the extract
from the Register of Persons Unable to Vote Locally.
Article 40
Vote Counting by Ward Election Board
(1) After the voting has finished, the chairman of
the ward election board shall arrange for the Formal Envelopes and ballots that
have not been used by voters to be put under seal. But several of the unused
ballots needed by the ward election board for the counting of votes (see
Article 42, Paragraph 3 below) shall not be sealed. Then, the chairman shall
have the regular ballot-box opened. Should certain voters have required the use
of a portable ballot-box, and should the ward election board have used it, the
portable ballot-box shall be opened, and the contents emptied shall be added to
the contents of the regular ballot- box.
(2) The ward election board shall remove the
Formal Envelopes containing ballots from ballot-boxes, count the number of
Formal Envelopes found, and compare the number arrived at with records entered
into extracts from both the Permanent Electoral Roll and the Register of
Persons Unable to Vote Locally. No envelopes other than the Formal Envelopes
shall be admitted by the ward election board.
(3) Having emptied Formal Envelopes, the ward
election board shall sort the ballots by Political Parties and coalitions voted
for, and separately add up the votes cast for each Political Party and
coalition, ruling out those ballots that fail to comply with the legal
requirements. Further on, the number of voters who have chosen one and the same
Political Party or coalition, and who have exercised their right to express
their candidate preferences shall be totalled separately for each Political
Party and coalition, and the number of the preferential votes cast for each
individual candidate on the party/coalition ballot shall then be summed up
separately for each Political Party or coalition.
(4) Each member of the ward election board shall
have the right to see the contents of any ballot-paper. The regularity of vote
counting shall be supervised by the chairman of the ward election board.
Article 41
Validity versus Invalidity of Ballots/Votes
(1) Ballots on which the names of candidates have
been crossed out, altered, or to which names of additional candidates have been
added shall be deemed valid and cast in favour of the Political Party or
coalition designated on such ballots. Such ballot modification shall not be
taken into account. Should a voter have expressed his/her preference by
indicating more than four candidates on a party/coalition ballot, the ballot
shall be deemed cast in favour of the Political Party or coalition in question
as a vote choosing the party/coalition 'straight ticket', and the preferential
votes on the ballot shall be disregarded.
(2) Choice expressed on ballot-papers other than
those having the legitimate prescribed printed ballot form shall be deemed
invalid. Should more than one ballot be found in a Formal Envelope, each
choosing a different Political Party or coalition, all such ballots shall be
deemed to be invalid votes. Should more than one ballot choosing the same
Political Party or coalition be found in a Formal Envelope, all such ballots
shall be deemed to be one valid vote cast in favour of the Political Party or
coalition chosen; moreover, should preferential votes be indicated on one
ballot out of several ballots electing the Political Party or coalition, the
ballot shall be taken into account, or as appropriate, should there be a ballot
indicating a larger number of preferences than the others among the ballots
showing preferential vote, this ballot shall be taken into account provided the
number of preferences indicated shall not exceed a total of four; should
several of the ballots cast in favour of the same Political Party or coalition
return equally high number of preferential votes, however, in favour of
different candidates, no such preferential vote shall be taken into account.
Article 42
Vote Count Report by Ward Election Board
(1) Each ward election board shall prepare two
identical copies of a report of the polling process and the vote count received
in its electoral ward. The report shall be signed by members of the ward
election board, and should any of the ward election board members deny such
signature, reasons for such denial shall be given.
(2) The report of the polling process and the vote
count received in the electoral ward drafted by each ward election board shall
include:
the hour of both the beginning and the end of
voting, and of any interruption of voting if applicable;
the total electorate in the electoral ward -
number of voters registered in the ward extract from the Permanent Electoral
Roll and in the ward extract from the Register of Persons Unable to Vote
Locally;
the number of voters to whom Formal Envelopes were
handed over;
the number of Formal Envelopes that have been
turned in;
the number, according to each Political Party and
coalition, of valid votes cast in favour of a party/coalition list of
candidates, and the aggregate of valid votes cast regardless of the political
choice;
the number, according to each Political Party and
coalition, of voters choosing the same Political Party or coalition who have
used the right to express their candidate preferences;
the total number, according to each Political
Party and coalition, of valid preferential votes cast for each party/coalition
candidate;
a brief account of the subject matter of
notifications and complaints submitted to the ward election board, and
decisions rendered by the ward election board accompanied by a brief
substantiation thereof.
(3) For the purpose of recording the vote count
totals pursuant to the foregoing Paragraph 2, Letter (g) of this Article, the
ward election board shall utilize the necessary number of unused ballots
explicitly designated for this purpose by the chairman of the ward election
board in the presence of the other members of the ward election board after the
voting has come to an end.
Article 43
Conclusion of Ward Election Board Operation
(1) After the votes have been counted, and after
the report of the polling process and the vote count has been signed by the
ward election board, its chairman shall report the vote count, and without any
delay forward one copy of the report to its district election board. Then
he/she shall wait for the district election board to direct him/her to
discontinue the board operations.
(2) Should any chairman of the ward election board
fail to meet the obligations arising from the provisions stipulated by the
foregoing Paragraph 1 of this Article within twenty-four hours after the end of
voting in spite of having been requested to do so by the district election
board, the district election board may compute the vote count received in the
other electoral wards, and communicate the outcome of the vote in its district
electoral area to the relevant regional election board. After the final date
stipulated, and after the district election board members have signed the
report (Article 45 herein below), no vote count that may arrive shall be taken
into account.
(3) The ward election board shall seal the ballots
and Formal Envelopes cast, and the ward extracts from Permanent Electoral
Rolls/Registers of Persons Unable to Vote Locally, and deposit them, along with
the other election-related documents, with the Local Authorities for safe-
keeping.
Article 44
Vote Totalling by District Election Board
(1) Each district election board shall total the
votes cast within its district electoral area based on reports of the polling
process and the vote count received from individual ward election boards in the
district.
(2) No persons other than members of the Central
Election Board, along with members of its counting team and secretariat staff,
members of the relevant regional election board, along with members of its
counting team, and persons authorized by the Central Election Board shall have
the right to be present on the premises where the district election board has
been in the process of the vote counting.
Article 45
District Election Board Report
(1) Each district election board shall prepare two
identical copies of the report of the vote count received in its district
electoral area. The report shall be signed by each and every member of the
district election board. Should any of the district election board members deny
such signature, reasons for such denial shall be given.
(2) The report of the vote count received in the
district electoral area drafted by each district election board shall include:
the number of electoral wards in the district
electoral area in question, and the number of ward election boards that have
delivered the vote count;
the total electorate in the district electoral
area - the number of persons registered in relevant extracts from Permanent
Electoral Rolls and relevant extracts from Registers of Persons Unable to Vote
Locally within the district in question;
the number of voters to whom Formal Envelopes were
handed over;
the number of Formal Envelopes that have been
turned in;
the number, according to each Political Party and
coalition, of valid votes cast in favour of a party/coalition list of
candidates, and the aggregate of valid votes cast regardless of the political
choice;
the number, according to each Political Party and
coalition, of voters choosing the same Political Party or coalition who have
used the right to express their candidate preferences;
the total number, according to each Political
Party and coalition, of valid preferential votes cast for each party/coalition
candidate;
a brief account of the subject matter of
notifications and complaints submitted to the district election board, and
decisions rendered by the district election board accompanied by a brief
substantiation thereof.
(3) After both of the two identical copies of the
report of the vote count received in the district electoral area have been
signed, the chairman of the district election board shall forward one copy of
the report to its regional election board without delay, and shall wait for the
regional election board to direct him/her to discontinue the board operations.
The remaining election-related documents shall be sent by the chairman to the
relevant district State administration office for safe-keeping. In the capital
of the Czech Republic, Prague, such election-related documents shall be
deposited for safe-keeping with municipal district authorities or with
neighbourhood authorities, and in the cities of Brno, Ostrava, and Plzeć with
municipal authorities of each city.
Article 46
Vote Computing by Regional Election Board
(1) Each regional election board shall count the
votes cast within its electoral region, ascertaining the outcome of the vote in
the electoral region, based on reports of the polling process and vote count
received from individual district election boards in its electoral region.
(2) No persons other than members of the Central
Election Board, members of its counting team and secretariat staff, and persons
authorized by the Central Election Board shall have the right to be present on
the premises where the regional election board has been in the process of
computing the votes and ascertaining the voting results.
Article 47
Regional Election Board Report
(1) Each regional election board shall prepare two
identical copies of the report of the polling outcome within its electoral
region. The report shall be signed by each member of the regional election
board. Should any of the regional election board members deny such signature,
reasons for such denial shall be given.
(2) The report of the polling outcome in the
electoral region drafted by each regional election board shall include:
the number of electoral wards in the electoral
region in question, and the number of ward election boards that have delivered
the vote count;
the total constituency in the electoral region -
the total number of persons registered in relevant extracts from Permanent
Electoral Rolls and relevant extracts from Registers of Persons Unable to Vote
Locally within the electoral region in question;
the number of voters to whom Formal Envelopes were
handed over;
the number of Formal Envelopes that have been
turned in;
the number, according to each Political Party and
coalition, of valid votes cast in favour of a party/coalition list of
candidates, and the aggregate of valid votes cast regardless of the political
choice;
the number, according to each Political Party an
coalition, of voters choosing the same Political Party or coalition who have
used the right to express their candidate preferences;
the total number, according to each Political
Party and coalition, of valid preferential votes cast for each party/coalition
candidate;
a brief account of the subject matter of
notifications and complaints submitted to the regional election board, and
decisions rendered by the regional election board accompanied by a brief
substantiation thereof.
(3) After both of the two identical copies of the
report of the polling outcome in the electoral region have been signed, the
chairman of the regional election board shall forward one copy of the report to
the Central Election Board without delay, and shall wait for the Central
Election Board to direct him/her to discontinue the board operations. The
remaining election-related documents shall be sent by the chairman to the
Ministry of the Interior to be deposited in safe-keeping.
Article 48
Apportionment of Representative Seats among Electoral Regions [*note of the
translator*]
(1) The Central Election Board shall review the
reports of regional election boards, and according to the data reported, shall
sum up all valid votes cast within all electoral regions for all
party/coalition lists of candidates. Such total popular vote shall be divided
by the prescribed number of Delegates in the Chamber of Delegates. The figure
obtained in the above manner, rounded off to the nearest whole number, shall
define [the average proportion of the population in the Czech Republic to be
represented by one legislative seat -] the national electoral quota.
(2) The total vote in the electoral region shall
then be divided by the national electoral quota, and as many legislative seats
shall be allocated to the electoral region as many times the full national
electoral quota is contained in the region's total vote count. The same
procedure shall be repeated until legislative seats have been allocated for all
electoral regions.
(3) If after the above procedure, several seats in
the Chamber of Delegates remain to be apportioned, the seats that were not
allocated by full national electoral quotas shall subsequently be allocated to
electoral regions with the largest remainder of votes after the quota has been
subtracted from each region's total vote for each seat it was allocated. The
legislative seats shall be allocated sequentially to the electoral regions with
the largest remainder until all the seats in the Chamber of Delegates have been
apportioned among electoral regions. Should there be several electoral regions
with equally highest remainder, lots shall be drawn to determine the winning
region.
Article 49
Qualification of Political Parties and Coalitions for the First Scrutiny
(1) The Central Election Board shall calculate the
total popular vote won by each distinct Political Party and coalition.
(2) Additionally, the Central Election Board shall
calculate:
which Political Party or Political Parties out of
the competing opponents has/have obtained less than five per cent out of the
total popular vote;
which coalition or coalitions in which two Political
Parties are joined has/have polled less than seven per cent out of the total
popular vote;
which coalition or coalitions in which three
Political Parties are joined has/have received less than nine per cent out of
the total popular vote;
which coalition or coalitions in which four and
more Political Parties are joined has/have accrued less than eleven per cent
out of the total popular vote.
(3) In the course of the subsequent scrutinies and
the resulting distribution of legislative seats among Political Parties and
coalitions, no further account shall be taken of either the above Political
Parties/coalitions or the votes such Political Parties and/or coalitions
accrued.
(4) Should the Central Election Board discover
that the vote percentage limit entitling the competing entities to qualify for
the first scrutiny has not been achieved by at least two coalitions, or one
coalition and one Political Party, or two Political Parties, it shall decrease:
the qualifying percentage limit from five per cent
down to four per cent in case of Political Parties;
The qualifying percentage limit from seven per
cent down to six per cent in case of coalitions defined by Paragraph 2, Letter
(b);
the qualifying percentage limit from nine per cent
down to eight per cent in case of coalitions defined by Paragraph 2, Letter
(c);
the qualifying percentage limit from eleven per
cent down to ten per cent in case of coalitions defined by Paragraph 2, Letter
(d).
Should such decreases fail to allow for a
sufficient number of competing entities to qualify for the first scrutiny
pursuant to the provisions of this Paragraph, the Central Election Board shall
decrease the qualifying percentage limit by one more per cent.
(5) The first scrutiny shall be instrumental in
the conversion of votes to political representation in each electoral region.
Article 50
First Scrutiny [*note of the translator*]
(1) The aggregate number of votes accrued in an
electoral region by all the Political Parties and coalitions which have
qualified for the first scrutiny shall be divided by the total number of
representative seats allocated for such electoral region, plus one; the number
arrived at by means of the aforementioned formula, and rounded off to the
nearest whole number, shall define [the average number of votes required in the
region for a party/coalition to win one of the representative seats allocated
to that region -] the regional vote quota.
(2) The total vote that the Political Party or
coalition accrued in the electoral region shall be divided by the regional vote
quota, and a seat shall be awarded to the Political Party or coalition as many
times as the party/coalition total contains the full regional vote quota.
(3) If in the above manner, one seat is
distributed in excess of the number of representative seats allocated to the
electoral region, the seat that is awarded in excess of the limit shall be
subtracted from the seats assigned to the Political Party or coalition with the
smallest remainder of votes after the quota has been subtracted from each
party's/coalition's total vote for each seat it is awarded in the electoral
region. Should there be several Political Parties or coalitions with equally
smallest remainder, then the seat shall be subtracted from the seats awarded to
the Political Party or coalition which has accrued the smallest number of votes
in the electoral region; should there be more Political Parties or coalitions
with equally smallest party/coalition totals, then lots shall be drawn to
determine the losing Political Party or coalition.
(4) The seats that a Political Party or coalition
wins shall be allocated to its candidates in the order in which they appear on
the party/coalition list. Should, however, one tenth or more voters out of the
total number of voters choosing the same Political Party or coalition in the
electoral region have exercised the right to a preferential vote, the candidate
who received the number of preferential votes which equals or exceeds ten per
cent of the total vote obtained in the electoral region by the Political Party
or coalition the candidate represents shall be awarded a seat first. If a
Political Party or coalition is entitled to more than one seat, and if more
than one candidate of that Political Party or coalition complies with the provisions
of the foregoing clause, seats shall be awarded to such candidates sequentially
according to the total of preferential votes they polled, the formula being the
higher the number of
preferential votes received, the first in turn to
be awarded the seat. If the number of preferential votes polled by the
candidates who represent one Political Party or coalition, and who comply with
the above provisions is equal, the candidates' positions as they appear on the
party list shall then be determining.
(5) Should a Political Party or coalition have
nominated fewer candidates than the total number of seats the Political Party
or coalition has secured in the first scrutiny, the Political Party or
coalition shall be entitled only to so many seats as it has nominated
candidates.
(6) The chairman of the Central Election Board
shall declare the first scrutiny closed, and communicate its outcome to the
representatives of the Political Parties or coalitions which have qualified for
the first scrutiny.
Article 51
Second Scrutiny [*note of the translator*]
(1) The legislative seats that remain to be
distributed shall be allocated by the Central Election Board in the second
scrutiny. All the votes remaining of each party's/coalition's total vote after
the first scrutiny shall be transferred to the second scrutiny as well as the
total vote accrued by Political Parties and coalitions that failed to receive
any seat in the first scrutiny.
(2) No later than twelve hours following the
conclusion of the first scrutiny, chairmen of Political Parties, and/or persons
authorized to act on behalf of coalitions shall tender their lists of
candidates who will contest a legislative seat in the second scrutiny to the
chairman of the Central Election Board. The number of candidates listed in the
lists of candidates nominated for the second scrutiny shall not be limited,
however, Political Parties and coalitions shall have the right to list only
those candidates who had already been nominated to run for election in one of
the electoral regions and who failed to secure a legislative seat in the first
scrutiny. After the lists of candidates contesting a legislative seat in the
second scrutiny have been delivered to the board, neither may the candidates be
substituted, nor their position on the list be altered. Should the chairmen of
Political Parties, and/or the persons authorized by coalitions fail to deliver
their list of candidates within the above defined period of time, the Central
Election Board shall select the candidates for the second scrutiny for them
according to the number of preferential votes each particular candidate of the
party/coalition in default accrued.
(3) In the second scrutiny, the Central Election
Board shall add up all the party/coalition votes remaining from the first
scrutiny. The total thus obtained shall then be divided by the number of
legislative seats yet to be distributed, plus one. The number arrived at by the
aforementioned formula, and rounded to the nearest whole number, shall define
[the average number of votes required for a party/coalition to win one of the
representative seats yet to be allocated in the second scrutiny -] the country
vote quota. Each Political Party or coalition shall then be awarded as many
seats as many times the full country vote quota shall be contained in the sum
of the remaining party/coalition vote transferred from the first scrutiny.
(4) If after the above procedure, several seats
still remain undistributed, the seats that were not won by full country vote
quotas shall subsequently be awarded to Political Parties and coalitions with
the largest remainder of votes after the quota has been subtracted from each
party's/coalition's total of remaining votes for each seat it was awarded in
the second scrutiny pursuant to Paragraph 3 of this Article. The legislative
seats shall be awarded sequentially to the Political Parties and coalitions
with the largest remainder until all the remaining seats have been assigned.
Should there be several Political Parties or/and coalitions with equally
highest remainder of remaining votes, a legislative seat shall be awarded to
the Political Party or coalition with the largest total of remaining votes
transferred from the first scrutiny to the second scrutiny. If such vote
remainder totals is equally highest in the case of several Political Parties or
coalitions, a representative seat shall be awarded to the Political Party or
coalition which has accrued the highest popular vote of these competitors; should
the total popular vote accrued by several Political Parties and/or coalitions
be equally highest, lots shall be drawn to decide. The procedure hereinbefore
described shall apply should a Political Party or coalition have nominated a
smaller number of candidates for the second scrutiny than the number of
representative seats awarded to such party or coalition.
(5) If in the above manner, one seat was
distributed in excess of the number of representative seats to be distributed
in the second scrutiny, the seat that was awarded in excess of the limit shall
be subtracted from the seats assigned to the Political Party or coalition with
the smallest remainder of votes after the quota has been subtracted from each
party's/coalition's total of remaining votes for each seat it was awarded in
the second scrutiny. Should there be several Political Parties or coalitions
with equally smallest remainder of remaining votes, then the seat shall be
subtracted from the seats awarded to the Political Party or coalition which has
accrued the smallest total popular vote of these competitors; should there be
more Political Parties or coalitions with equally smallest party/coalition
totals, then lots shall be drawn to determine the losing Political Party or
coalition.
(6) The seats that a Political Party or coalition
wins shall be allocated to its candidates in the order in which they appear on
the party/coalition-compiled list of candidates for the second scrutiny.
(7) Candidates who have succeeded in securing a
legislative seat in neither the first scrutiny nor the second scrutiny shall
become stand-ins.
Article 52
Central Election Board Report and Declaration of Election Results
(1) Following the conclusion of the seat
distribution process of the first and the second scrutiny, the Central Election
Board shall prepare its report of the final result of the election. The report
of the Central Election Board shall be signed by its members, and should any of
the Central Election Board members deny his/her signature, reasons for such denial
shall be given.
(2) The Central Election Board report of the final
result of the election shall include:
(a) the total number of persons registered in
extracts from Permanent Electoral Rolls and in extracts from Registers of
Persons Unable to Vote Locally;
(b) the total number of voters to whom Formal
Envelopes were handed over;
(c) separate numbers for the total vote obtained
by each and every party/coalition-compiled list of candidates in each and every
electoral region;
(d) names and surnames of candidates who, in the
first scrutiny, were elected Delegates out of the party/coalition
candidate-column on each list of candidates, along with conclusions of
preferential voting; and names and surnames of candidates elected Delegates in
the second scrutiny as well as the names and surnames of candidates who have
become stand-ins.
(3) Immediately after the signature of the report
of the election results has been signed, the Central Election Board shall
declare the final election results. Indicative data defined in Paragraph 2,
Letters (a), (b), and (c) may also be announced.
Article 53
Confirmation of Election
No later than one month following the declaration
of the results of the elections, the Central Election Board shall issue a
Confirmation of Election to the Delegate-elects, authenticating their election
to a seat in the Chamber of Delegates.
Article 54
Filling Vacancies by Stand-Ins
If a mandate of a Delegate ceases to exist, and
his/her seat becomes vacant, a stand-in shall fill the vacancy who was nominated
for election by the same Political Party or coalition as the Delegate first in
office, and who was on the list of candidates registered in the same electoral
region as the Delegate first in office. The said stand-in who is next in
succession according to the election results after the first scrutiny shall
assume the office, and should there be no such stand-in, the stand-in who is
next in succession according to the position in which he/she appears on the
party/coalition list of candidates for the second scrutiny shall assume the
office.
Should there be no stand-in from the Political
Party or coalition whose seat has become vacant, the seat shall remain vacant
until the electoral term has expired.
If a Political Party is dissolved, no stand-in shall
fill the vacancy, and the seat shall remain vacant until the electoral term has
expired.
No later than the fifteenth day following the day
on which the mandate of a Delegate ceased to exist, the Chamber of Delegates
shall pronounce the stand-in to assume the office of the Delegate first
elected, and deliver the Certificate of Election to this new Delegate,
affirming him/her in office and stating the date as of which the Delegate is in
office.
(5) If activities of a Political Party are
suspended, for the duration of the suspension no vacancies in seats held by the
party shall be filled by stand-ins.
Should the Chamber of Delegates be dissolved, the
periods of time defined inArticle 12, Paragraph 1, Article 13, Paragraphs 2 and
3, Article 14, Paragraph 1, Article 28, Paragraph 1, Article 29, Paragraph 1,
and Article 31, Paragraphs 1 and 3 shall be abridged by one third. Periods of
time defined in Article 32, Paragraph 1, Article 33, Paragraphs 1, and Article
34, Paragraph 1 shall be abridged by twenty days.
CHAPTER THREE: ELECTIONS TO THE
SENATE
The Senate shall consist of eighty-one Senators
who shall be elected for a six-year term. One-third of the Senators shall be
elected every other year.
11) Article 16, Paragraph 2 of the Constitution of
the
Each and every voter who has reached forty years
of age no later than on the second day of the election may be elected a Senator
provided the voter is not prohibited from exercising his/her right to vote at
the time of the elections, on the election days, with the exception of those
prevented from exercising their right to vote by reasons specified in Article
2, Letter (a) hereinbefore.
In the Czech Republic, elections to the Senate
shall be held on the principle of majority vote in electoral divisions.
(1) For the purpose of elections to the Senate the
territory of the Czech Republic shall be divided into eighty-one constituencies
- electoral divisions, each returning one Senator. Boundaries of the electoral
divisions shall be delineated by Annex 3 which shall be integral part of this
Act.
(2) Should, the population in any electoral
division either decrease or increase by fifteen per cent compared to the
average number of inhabitants represented in the Czech Republic by one
constituency seat, the boundaries of electoral divisions shall be revised. This
revision shall not take effect in years other than those in which elections to
the Senate have been called.
Article 60 Divisional
Election Board
(1) Each Political Party or coalition that has
filed the registration of its candidate, or each independent candidate whose
registration has been filed may delegate no more than two representatives and
two stand- ins to be members of the divisional election board in the electoral
division in which the registration of the candidate has been filed. The
divisional election board members and their stand-ins shall be delegated no
later than sixty days prior to the day of the elections.
(2) The divisional election board shall consist of
no fewer than ten members. Should an insufficient number of board members be
delegated, additional members to the required board complement shall be
appointed by the head of the district State administration office in the place
where the particular electoral division has its seat, and in the cities of
Prague, Brno, Ostrava, and Plzeć by the Mayor of the respective city. The
additional members shall be appointed no later than fifty- eight days prior to
the day of the elections.
(3) The divisional election board shall be called
into its first session by the head of the district State administration office
in each place where the electoral division has its seat, and in the city of
Prague, Brno, Ostrava, and Plzeć by the Mayor of each city so that the session
shall commence no later than on the third day following the final date
stipulated in the preceding Paragraph 1 of this Article.
(4) The divisional election board shall:
ensure that electoral laws and statutes are
observed;
decide in the instance of complaints against
procedures taken by ward election boards, and in the instance of appeals
against decisions taken by the election boards. A decision delivered by the
divisional election board shall be binding on the ward election board;
register candidates contesting a seat in the
Senate;
compute and ascertain the results of the election
in its electoral division, and report the results to the Central Election
Board;
deposit election-related files for safe-keeping
with the district State administration office located in the place where the
electoral division has its seat, or as the case may be, with the municipal
authorities should the electoral division have its seat in the city of Prague,
Brno, Ostrava, or Plzeć (hereinafter "District State Administration Office
In the Seat of Electoral Division");
perform further duties and obligations arising
from this Act and other applicable laws and statutes as well as assignments
which it shall be committed to discharge by the Central Election Board.
Article 61
Application for Candidate's Registration
(1) Candidates contesting a seat in the Senate may
be nominated by Political Parties and coalitions that shall file their proposal
for registration by the party/coalition authorized agent. An independent
candidate shall apply for registration by himself/herself. Any Political Party
and/or coalition may file an application for registration of no more than one
candidate in each electoral division. Should a Political Party have filed the
application for registration of its candidate as a constituent of one joint
coalition, it may not file another registration application as a constituent of
another coalition or as a separate entity.
(2) A candidate may stand for election in no more
than one electoral division.
(3) No later than sixty days prior to the day of
the elections, two identical copies of the registration application shall be
submitted to the divisional election board secretary in the electoral division
to be represented by the party/coalition nominee, or by the independent
candidate to the Senate.
(4) The registration application shall include:
the name and surname of the candidate, his/her
birth registration number, date of birth, place of permanent residence,
occupation, and evidence supporting the fact that the candidate is a Citizen of
the Czech Republic 7);
the title of the Political Party or coalition
applying for registration of its candidate, along with a signature attached by
a party/coalition statutory body, or an information that the applicant is
running for election as an independent candidate;
information as to whether the candidate is
politically affiliated, and if so then his/her party affiliation;
the identification number and [seat] of the
electoral division in which the candidate intends to compete for a
representative seat;
a statement, signed in ink by the candidate,
declaring that the undersigned candidate has approved of his/her nomination,
and that no approval to be registered as a candidate in any other electoral
division has been given by him/her, and that no fact disqualifying the
undersigned candidate from eligibility to be elected is known to him/her. The
undersigned candidate shall also indicate his/her party affiliation or, as the
case may be, the fact that he/she is non-party;
should a candidate be nominated for registration
by a Political Party or coalition, in an Appendix enclosed with the candidate's
registration application, the Political Party or coalition shall name its
agent, a person authorized to act on behalf of the Political Party or
coalition, and two other persons who may become the agent's stand-ins. The
name, surname, and the full address of the agent and the two stand-ins shall be
given. No candidate shall have the right to act as the party/coalition agent or
the agent's stand-in. Acts of the agent on behalf of the Political Party or
coalition in matters related to the elections shall be binding on the Political
Party or coalition. The divisional election board shall be notified by the
Political Party or coalition should a stand-in replace the agent in the office.
(5) Should the secretary of the divisional
election board find out that a registration application fails to meet the
requirements specified by the provisions of this Article in Paragraph 4 above
and Paragraph 6 below, he/she shall notify the agent of the Political Party or
coalition, or the independent candidate in question. Before the final date
stipulated in Paragraph 3 of this Article, the party/coalition agent or/and the
independent candidate may remove such deficiencies. On the request of the
party/coalition agent and/or the independent candidate, the secretary shall
produce confirmation that the application for registration has been filed.
(6) Enclosed with the application for registration
of an independent candidate shall be a petition in support of the candidate.
This petition must be signed by no fewer than one thousand voters qualified to
vote in the electoral division where the candidate is contesting the
constituency seat. Persons signing the petition shall furnish their name,
surname, birth registration number, and address. A signature under such
petition cannot not be withdrawn.
Article 62
Review of Applications for Candidate Registration by Divisional Election Boards
(1) The divisional election board shall complete a
review of all the applications for registration that have been filed no later
than on the fifty-fifth day prior to the day of the elections.
(2) The divisional election board shall reject any
application for registration should:
the nominated candidate fail to be eligible to be
elected (see Article 57 hereinbefore);
the application for registration contain incorrect
and/or incomplete data;
the independent candidate applying fail to produce
a petition with signatures in his/her favour, or should the petition contain
incorrect or/and incomplete pieces of information or forged signatures.
(3) Any candidate may appeal against the decision
of the divisional election board to reject his/her application for registration
to the Central Election Board. Such an appeal shall be lodged with the Central
Election Board by the candidate no later that twenty-four hours following the
receipt of the decision, and the Central Election Board shall have no more than
two days to render a decision on such appeal.
Article 63
Review of Applications for Candidate Registration by the Central Election Board
(1) No later than on the fifty-first day prior to
the day of the elections, each divisional election board shall deliver to the
Central Election Board a complete roll of candidates applying for registration
in its electoral division.
(2) The Central Election Board shall complete its
review of the applications for registration no later than on the forty-ninth
day prior to the day of the elections.
(3) The Central Election Board shall reject an
application for candidate's registration on the grounds specified in Article
62, Paragraph 2 hereinbefore. Should one candidate be proposed for registration
in more than one electoral division, the Central Election Board shall reject
all such applications proposing to register the candidate in question.
(4) The chairman of the Central Election Board
shall send a protocol on the conclusions of the applications review without
delay to divisional election boards, and to each candidate that has applied for
the registration.
Article 64
Candidate's Registration
(1) After the receipt of the Central Election
Board's protocol on the conclusions on the review of applications for
candidate's registration, no later that forty-five days prior to the day of the
elections, each divisional election board shall register each candidate whose
application has been duly filed in its electoral division, draw lots in order
that numerical symbols denominating candidates' ballots may be determined, and
notify the independent candidates and/or party/coalition authorized agents
about such facts in writing. Should a candidate be registered by implication of
the Central Election Board decision on appeal (see Article 62, Paragraph 3
above), or by implication of a court decision as per a separate law 10), the
relevant divisional election board shall register the candidate even after the
above specified final date, however, no later than on the thirtieth day prior
to the day of the elections, and subsequently, shall assign each of these
candidates the numerical symbol which shall index the candidate's ballot. For
the purpose of assigning a numerical symbol to the candidates, lots shall be
drawn as well, and the result shall be communicated in writing to the
respective independent candidate and/or agent acting on behalf of the Political
Party and/or coalition.
(2) No ballots shall be reproduced for any
candidate unless the candidate has been duly registered.
(3) Should, subsequent to registration of a
candidate, the Political Party which applied for his/her registration be forced
to suspend its activities or be dissolved, the candidate shall be deemed an
independent candidate who then shall not be under obligation to produce any
petition retroactively.
(1) In each electoral division, the District State
Administration Office In the Seat of Electoral Division shall establish a
separate bank account. This bank account shall be established no later than the
day on which the divisional election board in the electoral division shall have
been constituted.
(2) Each entity that has filed an application for
registration of a candidate shall deposit a security amounting to twenty
thousand K in the bank account specified in the foregoing Paragraph 1 of this
Article. This deposit shall be made within three days following the
notification of the candidate's registration (Article 64, Paragraph 1
hereinbefore), and the entity shall inform the relevant divisional election
board about the fact no later than two days after the deposit has been made.
(3) The printing of ballots shall not be
undertaken unless the deposit, on which it is contingent, has been made.
(4) Divisional election boards shall refund the
deposit to the depositors no later than one month following the declaration of
the election results provided the candidate for whom the deposit was made has
accrued no less than six per cent of the total vote in the electoral division.
Deposits that shall not be refunded shall be deemed to be receipts of the
national budget.
(5) The Ministry of Finance shall lay down
specific legal regulations providing for particulars in respect of the manner
in which the security deposited will be refunded.
Article 66
Resignation from Nomination, Recall of Nominee
(1) Any candidate may resign from his/her
nomination provided the resignation statement be made in writing prior to the
opening of the election. The same procedure applies should a Political Party or
coalition, through the instrumentality of its agent, wish to recall the
candidate whom the party/coalition has nominated.
(2) Two copies of this statement shall be
delivered to either the chairman or the secretary of the relevant divisional
election board. Neither the resignation statement nor the recall statement can
be withdrawn.
(3) The chairman of the divisional election board
shall forward one of the two copies to the chairman of the Central Election
Board without delay, and immediately thereafter, arrange for the statement to
be made public in an appropriate manner in polling stations provided that
he/she has received the statement no later than forty-eight hours prior to the
beginning of the election.
(4) Should a resignation/recall statement be made
after the distribution of ballots among voters has taken place, no account
shall be taken of votes cast in favour of the candidate who has resigned or has
been recalled when the vote count is computed.
(1) Through District State Administration Office
In the Seat of Electoral Division, the chairman of each divisional election
board shall arrange for ballots to be printed.
(2) Ballots shall include the name of the
candidate as well as his/her surname, date of birth, occupation, place of
permanent residence, and the title of the Political Party or coalition which
has nominated the candidate, or information that the candidate in question is
running for election as an independent candidate. Each registered candidate shall
have a separate ballot which shall be indexed by the numerical symbol assigned
to him/her by drawing the lots. An identification number of the respective
electoral division shall be printed at the head of the ballot as well as the
candidate's party affiliation or where applicable the fact that the candidate
is non-party.
(3) In all electoral divisions, ballots shall be
printed in an identical type-face and character-size, on paper of identical
quality, colour and size. Ballots shall be under the official seal of the
Central Election Board.
(4) Through District State Administration Office
In the Seat of Electoral Division, the chairmen of divisional election boards
shall send the ballots reproduced in the above manner to Mayors who
subsequently shall have the ballots distributed (a) to each voter so that the
electorate has received them no later than on the third day prior to the day of
the elections, and (b) to each ward election board so that the boards have
received them before voting commences.
(1) Having received a Formal Envelope and if
necessary a set of ballots, a voter shall enter a voting booth (Article 17,
Paragraph 2 hereinbefore) where he/she shall insert no more than one ballot
into the Formal Envelope. Such ballot shall not be edited in any manner
whatsoever.
Article 69
Vote Counting by Ward Election Board
(1) After voting has finished, the chairman of the
ward election board shall arrange for the Formal Envelopes and ballots that
have not been used by voters to be put under seal. Then, he/she shall have the
regular ballot-box opened. Should certain voters have required the use of a
portable ballot-box, and should the ward election board have used it, the
portable ballot-box shall be opened, and the contents emptied shall be added to
the contents of the regular ballot-box.
(2) The ward election board shall remove the
Formal Envelopes containing ballots from ballot-boxes, count the number of
Formal Envelopes found, and compare the number arrived at with records entered
into extracts from both the Permanent Electoral Roll and Register of Persons
Unable to Vote Locally. No envelopes other than the Formal Envelopes shall be
admitted by the ward election board. Ballots found in the ballot-box bare of
the Formal Envelope shall also be invalidated.
(3) Having emptied the Formal Envelopes, the ward
election board shall sort the ballots with the distinct candidates, and add up
the votes cast in favour of each candidate separately.
(4) Each member of the ward election board shall
have the right to see the contents of any ballot. The regularity of vote
counting shall be supervised by the chairman of the ward election board.
Article 70
Validity versus Invalidity of Ballots/Votes
(1) Ballots to which various marks and/or editing
have been added by voters shall be deemed to be valid and cast in favour of the
candidate chosen by the ballot.
(2) Choice expressed by ballots other than those
having the legitimate prescribed printed form of a ballot shall be deemed
invalid. Ballots that have been torn in two or more pieces shall also be deemed
invalid. Should more than one ballot be found in a Formal Envelope, each
choosing a different candidate, all such ballots shall be deemed to be invalid
votes. Should more than one ballot choosing the same candidate be found in a
Formal Envelope, all such ballots shall be deemed to be one vote cast in favour
of the candidate.
(3) Validity/invalidity of a ballot shall be
ultimately decided upon by the ward election board.
Article 71
Vote Count Report by Ward Election Board
(1) Each ward election board shall prepare two
identical copies of a report of the polling process and the vote count received
in its electoral ward. The report shall be signed by members of the ward
election board, and should any of the ward election board members deny such
signature, reasons for such denial shall be given.
(2) The report of the polling process and the vote
count received in the electoral ward drafted by each ward election board shall
include:
the hour of both the beginning and the end of
voting, and of any interruption of voting if applicable;
the total electorate in the electoral ward - the
number of persons registered in the ward extract from the Permanent Electoral
Roll and in the ward extract from the Register of Persons Unable to Vote
Locally;
the number of voters to whom Formal Envelopes were
handed over;
the number of Formal Envelopes that have been
turned in;
the number of valid votes cast in favour of each
individual candidate, and the aggregate of valid votes cast regardless of the
candidate choice;
a brief account of the subject matter of
notifications and complaints submitted to the ward election board, and
decisions rendered by the ward election board accompanied by a brief
substantiation thereof.
Article 72
Conclusion of Ward Election Board Operation
(1) After the votes have been counted, and after
the report of the polling process and the vote count has been signed by the
ward election board, its chairman shall relate the vote count to superior authorities,
and forward one copy of the report to the divisional election board without
delay. Then he/she shall wait for the divisional election board to direct
him/her to discontinue the board operations.
(2) Should any chairman of the ward election board
fail to meet the obligations arising from the provisions stipulated by the
foregoing Paragraph 1 of this Article within twenty-four hours after the end of
voting in spite of having been requested to do so by the divisional election
board, the divisional election board may compute the vote count received in the
other electoral wards. After the stipulated final date, and after the
divisional election board members have signed the report (Article 74
hereinafter), no vote count that may arrive shall be taken into account.
(3) The ward election board shall seal the ballots
and Formal Envelopes cast, and the ward extracts from the Permanent Electoral
Roll/Register of Persons Unable to Vote Locally, and deposit them, along with
the other election-related documents, with the Local Authorities for safe-
keeping.
Article 73
Vote Computing by Divisional Election Board
(1) Each divisional election board shall compute
the votes cast within its electoral division, ascertaining voting results in
the electoral division, based on reports of the polling process and the vote
count received from individual ward election boards.
(2) No persons other than members of the Central
Election Board, along with members of its counting team and secretariat staff,
and persons authorized by the Central Election Board shall have the right to be
present on the premises where the divisional election board and its counting
team have been in the process of computing the votes and ascertaining the
voting results.
Article 74
Divisional Election Board Report
(1) Each divisional election board shall prepare a
report of the polling outcome within its electoral division. Members of the
divisional election board shall sign the report, and should any of the
divisional election board members deny such signature, reasons for such denial
shall be given.
(2) The report of the polling outcome in the
electoral division drafted by each divisional election board shall include:
the number of ward election boards in the
electoral division in question;
the number of ward election boards that have
delivered the vote count;
the total constituency in the electoral division -
the total number of persons registered in relevant extracts from Permanent
Electoral Rolls and relevant extracts from Registers of Persons Unable to Vote
Locally within the electoral division in question;
the number of voters to whom Formal Envelopes were
handed over;
the number of Formal Envelopes that have been
turned in;
the number of valid votes cast in favour of each
individual candidate, and the aggregate of valid votes cast regardless of the
candidate choice;
the rate of electoral participation in the
electoral division, the total percentage being rounded and correct to two
decimal places;
a list, ranking the candidates according to the
total vote each of the candidates accrued, and data on the winning candidate;
a brief account of the subject matter of
notifications and complaints submitted to the divisional election board, and a
record of decisions rendered by the divisional election board.
(3) Each divisional election board shall
scrutinize the election reports delivered by ward election boards, and based on
the vote count from electoral wards shall ascertain the vote percentage each
candidate accrued out of the total popular vote returned in its electoral
division. According to the figure rounded and correct to two decimal places,
the divisional election board shall compile a list in which the competing
candidates shall be arranged in descending order. Should the vote percentage won
by several candidates be equally high, the number of valid votes cast in favour
of the candidate shall be decisive; should, however, the total vote accrued by
several candidates be also equally high, the position of the candidate in the
final list shall then be determined by drawing lots.
(4) After the report of the polling outcome in the
electoral division has been signed, the chairman of the divisional election
board shall dispatch its copy immediately via a technical device capable of
transmitting information to the Central Election Board counting team.
Immediately thereafter, the chairman shall forward the original paper copy of
the report, along with its attachments to the Central Election Board, and wait
for the Central Election Board to direct him/her to discontinue the board
operations. The other election-related documents shall be deposited with the
District State Administration Office In the Seat of Electoral Division for
safe-keeping.
The candidate who secures an absolute majority of
the popular vote shall be declared the winner.
(1) Should no candidate secure the amount of votes
required for his/her election (Article 75 hereinbefore), the divisional
election board shall make a note of this electoral deadlock in its report of the
polling outcome, and notify the Central Election Board. The divisional election
board shall arrange for the second round of elections to be held on the sixth
day following the day on which the voting in the first round of elections
ended.
(2) In each electoral division in which the second
round of elections shall take place, only the two strongest candidates who
accrued the highest and the second highest number of votes in the first round
shall stand for election, however, if several candidates received equally
highest number of votes in the first round, all such candidates shall qualify
for the second ballot.
(3) For the ballot printing procedure, provisions
of Article 67, Paragraphs 1, 2, and 3 hereinbefore shall apply. Through
District State Administration Office In the Seat of Electoral Division,
chairmen of divisional election boards shall send the ballots to Mayors who
subsequently shall have the ballots distributed to ward election boards before
the voting commences. Voters shall receive ballots in the polling stations on
the very day of the election.
(4) The candidate who secures a majority of the
popular vote if there are two competitors, or a plurality if there are more
than two competitors shall be declared winner. Should both/all the candidates accumulate
equivalent numbers of votes, the winning candidate shall be decided by drawing
lots.
(5) Provisions stipulated in this Act that are
applicable for the elections to the Senate shall have due pertinence to the
second round of elections to the Senate.
Article 77
Declaration of Election Results
Based on the reports of the results of the
elections prepared by divisional election boards, the Central Election Board
shall declare the final results of the elections to the Senate.
Article 78
Confirmation of Election
No later than one month following the declaration
of the results of the elections, the Central Election Board shall issue a
Confirmation of Election to the Senator-elects, authenticating their election
to a seat in the Senate.
If no Senator be elected in an electoral division
as a consequence of a court ruling to nullify the election, or due to grave
deficiencies in the electoral procedure, the President of the Republic shall
call new, special elections to be held in the electoral division. Final dates
and time allowances defined in this Act may be shortened accordingly.
(1) Should the mandate of a Senator cease to exist
during the Senator's electoral term for any reason, the President of the
Republic shall call by-elections to fill such a vacancy. The by-elections shall
be held in the electoral division the constituency mandate of which the Senator
first elected was conferred with. The President shall determine the day of the
by-election so that it shall be held no later than ninety days following the
day on which the mandate of the Senator ceased to exist.
(2) By-elections shall be governed by the
provisions stipulated in this Act, and wherein periods of time defined by
Article 13, Paragraphs 2 and 3, Article 14, Paragraph 1, Article 60, Paragraphs
1 and 2, and Article 61, Paragraph 3 may be abridged by no more than one third.
Periods of time defined by Article 62, Paragraph 1, Article 63, Paragraphs 1
and 2, and Article 64, Paragraph 1 may be abridged by no more than twenty days.
(3) No by-elections shall be held to fill a
vacancy during the last year receding the end of the electoral term of the
Senator whose mandate ceased to exist.
(4) By-elections shall choose a Senator who shall
fill the vacancy which occurred after the mandate of the incumbent has ceased
to exist, and who shall be in office until the end of the electoral term of the
Senator first elected.
CHAPTER FOUR: PROVISIONS FOR
ORGANIZATION AND FACILITATION OF ELECTIONS
Article 81
Provision of Prerequisites and Aids
(1) Ward election boards shall be supplied with
all prerequisites required by the elections, such as polling stations and their
furnishings, Formal Envelopes, and necessary personnel by the Local Authorities
in whose jurisdiction the ward election boards shall be established.
(2) District election boards shall be supplied
with all prerequisites and necessary personnel required by the elections by the
responsible district State administration offices, and in the case of the
cities of Prague, Brno, Ostrava, and Plzeć by the municipal authorities, along
with the authorities of each municipal district/part.
(3) Regional election boards shall be supplied
with all prerequisites and necessary personnel required by the elections by the
District State Administration Office in the Seat of Electoral Region.
(4) Divisional election boards shall be supplied
with all prerequisites and necessary personnel required by the elections by the
District State Administration Office in the Seat of Electoral Division.
Article 82 The
Right of Election Board Members to Compensation
A member of an election board shall have the right
to claim compensation for his/her services provided in office. An entitlement
of a member of an election board to leave of absence from employment or duty
during which time remuneration is not normally affected shall be determined by
specific rules and regulations governing legal relations in this field. 12)
12) (a) Decree of the Federal Ministry of Labour
and Social Security, No.18/1991 Sb., on Other Services in the Public Interest
(b) Article 17, of the Decree of the Government,
No. 108/1994 Sb., implementing the Labour Code and Certain Other Laws
Article 83
Rights of Candidates
(1) A candidate shall have the right to seek leave
of absence of his/her employer or the person/entity with which the candidate
has an analogous type of service agreement. Any candidate running for election
to the Chamber of Delegates shall have the right to seek leave of absence as of
the day following the registration of the list of candidates by a regional
election board, and any candidate running for election to the Senate shall have
the right to seek leave of absence as of the day following the registration of
the candidate by a divisional election board. Such leave of absence shall cease
on the day preceding the elections. During leave of absence from employment or
duty the candidate shall not be entitled to any remuneration. All activities of
the candidate whilst on leave shall be considered to be other activities in the
public interest.
(2) The fact that a person is running for a
Parliamentary seat shall not be detrimental to that person's employment or
other similar relations. The time of leave of absence defined in the foregoing
Paragraph 1 of this Article shall be considered as time spent in the discharge
of duties arising from regular professional engagement.
Expenses incurred on bodies of the State
administration, Municipalities, and election boards whilst discharging of their
duties in relation to the Parliamentary elections in the Czech Republic shall
be covered by the national budget.
Article 85
Government Financial Assistance in Covering Election-Related Costs
Financial assistance in covering election-related
costs shall be granted only in case of elections to the Chamber of Delegates,
and only to those Political Parties and coalitions which accrued enough votes
to qualify for such assistance. Having verified the election of Delegates, the
Chamber of Delegates shall communicate the party/coalition totals to the
Ministry of Finance, and the Political Party or coalition which obtained three
per cent or more out of the total number of valid votes cast shall receive from
the national budget a payment of ninety K per each vote it received.
CHAPTER FIVE: JUDICIAL REVIEW
A Political Party or coalition may seek a judicial
review of the decision of the Central Election Board to reject its list of
candidates running for election to the Chamber of Delegates, or to remove a
candidate from its list of candidates. Within twenty-four hours, the Political
Party or coalition may refer the matter to a court of justice, and demand that
the court decide in this matter under a separate rule of law 13).
13) Article 200m of Code of Civil Procedure
An entity that applied for the registration of a
candidate running for election to the Senate may to seek a judicial review of
the decision of the Central Election Board to reject the application for
registration. Within twenty-four hours, the said entity may refer the matter to
a court of justice, and demand that the court decide in this matter under a
separate rule of law13).
(1) Each Citizen may file a complaint against the
issuance of Confirmation of Election to a candidate elected Delegate or to a
candidate elected Senator provided the said Citizen has been on the list of
voters which is pertinent to the election ward in which votes were cast for the
Delegate or the Senator. The same right may be enjoyed by each Political Party
or coalition which filed its list of candidates in the electoral region, or
which applied for registration of a candidate. No later than ten days of the
declaration of the election results by the Central Election Board, the
petitioner may refer the matter to a court of justice, and demand that the
court decide in this matter under a separate rule of law 14).
14) Article 200n of Code of Civil Procedure
(2) The opinion of the court upon which its
resolution is so based shall be forwarded by the court to the Chamber of
Delegates in the case that a Delegate is contested, or to the Senate in the
case that a Senator is contested.
The Supreme Court shall be the court with
jurisdiction in regard to proceedings under Articles 86, 87, and 88 above.
PART TWO: AMENDMENTS TO ACT NO.
99/1963 SB., CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE, AS WORDED BY LATER LEGISLATION
Article 90
Act No. 99/1963 Sb., Code of Civil procedure, as
worded by Act No. 36/1967 Sb., Act No. 158/1969 Sb., Act No. 49/1973 Sb., Act
No. 20/1975 Sb., Act No.133/1982 Sb., Act No. 180/1990 Sb., Act No. 328/1991
Sb., Act No. 519/1991 Sb., Act No. 263/1992 Sb., Act of the Czech National Council
No. 24/1993 Sb., Act No. 171/1993 Sb., Act No. 117/1994 Sb., Act No. 152/1994
Sb., Act No.216/1994 Sb., Act No. 84/1995 Sb., Act No. 118/1995 Sb., and Act
No. 160/1995 Sb. shall hereby be amended as follows:
1.Articles 200f and 200g shall hereby be omitted,
inclusive of their titles.
2.Article 200j, Paragraphs 1 and 4 shall read as
follows:
"(1) Should a relevant body of State
administration fail to remove deficiencies or errors from the Permanent
Electoral Roll or from the Registers of Persons Unable to Vote Locally on its
own initiative, the Citizen thereby affected may resort to a court with the
venue jurisdiction, and motion that a decision is delivered, ruling an
amendment or supplement be made to the register in question.
(4) District courts shall be the courts with the
venue jurisdiction in regard to proceedings on errors and deficiencies in
Permanent Electoral Rolls and Registers of Persons Unable to Vote
Locally.".
3.Article 200l shall be succeeded by Articles 200m
and 200n which including their title and Footnote No. 34d) shall have the
following wording:
"Proceedings in Respect of Election-Related
Matters
Article 200m
(1) If an election board specified in a separate
Act 34d) as the authority endowed with powers to render a final decision, has decided
to:
34d) Act No. 247/1995 Sb., on Elections to the
Parliament of the Czech Republic, and on Amendments to Certain Other Acts
(a) reject a list of candidates running for
election to the Chamber of Delegates, the political party, political movement or
coalition which has filed the list of candidates may refer the matter to a
court of justice, and motion that a decision is delivered, ruling that the list
of candidates be registered;
(b) remove a candidate from a list of candidates
running for election to the Chamber of Delegates, the political party,
political movement or coalition which has filed the list of candidates may
refer the matter to a court of justice, and motion that a decision is
delivered, ruling that the candidate be retained;
(c) reject an application for registration of a
candidate running for election to the Senate, the applicant may refer the
matter to a court of justice, and motion that a decision is delivered, ruling
that the candidate be registered.
2) the election board in question and the
petitioner shall be the parties to such proceedings.
(3) the resolution of the court shall be delivered
within three days without the court calling a hearing.
(4) There is no right of appeal against the
decision of the court.
(1) A complaint against the issuance of
Confirmation of Election to a candidate elected a Delegate or a Senator 34e)
shall be decided by the court without the court calling a hearing no later than
the tenth day of the complaint. 34e) Act No. 247/1995 Sb., on Elections to the
Parliament of the Czech Republic, and on Amendments to Certain Other Acts
(2) The petitioner, the election board in
question, and the Delegate or Senator whose Confirmation of Election is
contested shall be the parties to such proceedings.
(3) There is no right of appeal against the
decision of the court.
PART THREE: ACT NO. 152/1964
SB., ON ELECTIONS TO LOCAL AUTHORITY COUNCILS AND BOARDS, AND ON AMENDMENTS TO
CERTAIN OTHER ACTS
Act No. 152/1994 Sb., on Elections to Local Authority
Councils and Boards, and on Amendments to Certain Other Acts shall hereby be
amended as follows:
Article 14, including Footnote No. 8a) shall read
as follows:
"Article 14
(1) The Central Election Committee shall be
constituted in compliance with a separate Act 8a).
8a) Act No. 247/1995 Sb., on Elections to the
Parliament of the Czech Republic, and on Amendments to Certain Other Acts
(2) The Central Election Board shall be called
into its first session by the Minister of the Interior so that the session
shall commence no later than the fifty-seventh day prior to the day of
elections to local authority councils and boards.".
PART FOUR: JOINT, TRANSITORY
AND FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 92
Enabling Provisions
(1) The Ministry of the Interior shall lay down
legal regulations providing for:
(a) the particulars with respect to duties with
which Municipalities and district State administration offices shall be
commissioned while
making up and keeping Registers of Persons Unable
to Vote Locally as well as drawing extracts from the Registers of Persons
Unable to Vote Locally;
providing and equipping polling stations;
safe-keeping ballots and other election-related
documents;
(b) specimen forms of a ballot, Register of
Persons Unable to Vote Locally, Confirmation of Election of a Senator/Delegate
and, as the case may be, also of other election-related documents and forms;
(c) particulars in respect of the interaction of
State administration bodies in verifying the information stated by Political
Parties and coalitions filing their lists of candidates for registration, or by
independent candidates applying for their registration;
(d) the rules of the proceedings of the Central
Election Board;
(e) the amount and other details of payment of a
non-recurring compensation to which election board members shall be entitled
for services provided in office. Such particulars shall be defined by the
Ministry of the Interior, based on consultations with the Ministry of Labour
and Social Security, and the Ministry of Finance.
(2) The Ministry of Finance shall lay down
specific legal regulations providing for particulars with respect to the manner
in which the security deposited will be refunded.
Measures for the preparation of the execution of
this Act taken by the relevant bodies of the State administration already
before the effectiveness of this Act shall be deemed measures taken after the
effective date of this Act provided, however, that such measures have complied
with the provisions of the law.
The first election to the Senate shall be held in
each of the eighty-one electoral divisions specified in Annex 3. Senators who
represent electoral divisions No. 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25, 28, 31, 34,
37, 40, 43, 46, 49, 52, 55, 58, 61, 64, 67, 70, 73, 76, and 79 shall be elected
for a two-year electoral term. Senators who represent electoral divisions No.
2, 5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 23, 26, 29, 32, 35, 38, 41, 44, 47, 50, 53, 56, 59,
62, 65, 68, 71, 74, 77, and 80 shall be elected for a four-year electoral term,
and Senators who represent the remaining electoral divisions shall be elected
for a six-year electoral term.
(1) Should elections to the Chamber of Delegates
be held on the same day as the elections to the Senate, ward election boards
shall serve jointly for convenience in both the elections to the Chamber of
Delegates and the elections to the Senate. In such a case, ward election boards
shall not discontinue operations unless directed to do so by both its district
election board and divisional election board.
(2) If one regional election board is of a
different opinion to that of another regional election board, and/or if one
divisional election board is of a different opinion to that of another divisional
election board, then upon the request of any of the election boards, the issue
shall be decided by the Central Election Board.
Should elections to the Chamber of Delegates
and/or to the Senate be held jointly with the elections to local authority
councils and boards, neither ward election boards nor district election boards
shall discontinue operations unless directed to do so by each and every
election board of a superior authority which shall have been established for
convenience in each type of election that will then be held.
(1) Any reference which may appear in this Act as
to numbers of population shall be construed as having referred to the numbers
of population known on the first day of the first month of the year in which
elections are held.
(2) The first day of the elections shall be
considered to be the day of the elections referred to in this Act, except as
otherwise provided for in this Act.
Article 98
Rescinding Provisions
Act of the Czech National Council No. 54/1990 Sb.,
on Elections to the Czech National Council, as worded by Decree of the
Presidium of the Czech National Council No. 221/1990 Sb., Act of the Czech
National Council No. 435/1991 Sb., Act of the Czech National Council No.
94/1992 Sb., and Act No. 117/1994 Sb.are hereby repealed.
Article 99
Effectiveness of this Act
This Act becomes effective on January 1, 1996.