Home > 1.3.2.4 Aggregation procedure and election results > KAZAKHSTAN - Constitutional Act On Elections
 
 
 
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Article 43
 

Vote count at the polling station


1. Vote count at elections of the President, deputies of Mazhilis of Parliament to be elected on the basis of the party list and maslikhats, members of local self-government bodies of the Republic of Kazakhstan in all electoral districts shall begin at 8 pm of local time if in the given polling station the time of voting has not been changed according to the order established by this Constitutional Act. In case of a change of the time for voting, vote count shall begin upon the end of voting.


The members of the election commission shall conduct the vote count without interruption until the establishment of voting results and shall notify about it the persons who in the compliance with this Constitutional Act are eligible to be present during the vote count. The time for vote count shall not exceed twelve hours from the beginning of counting.


The tables at which vote count takes place at the polling station shall be arranged in such a way that all persons who are present in the premise shall have a good view of the actions of the precinct election commission’s members. The proxies and observers present at vote count shall watch vote count at a distance and under the conditions providing visibility of marks in the ballots.


During the count of ballots, the chairperson of the commission or an assigned member of the commission shall demonstrate a ballot to persons, who are present at polling station, and shall announce the will the voter.


In this case the ballots shall be stacked in a pile per each candidate or a political party which has nominated the party list and in a pile for null and void ballots.


2. The vote count at elections of the deputies of the Senate of the Parliament and deputies of the Mazhilis of the Parliament to be elected by the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan shall begin without delay upon the end of voting.


3. Vote count shall be done separately by each candidate, each political party. The ballotboxes shall be opened by the corresponding election commission after the announcement by the chairperson of the commission of the end of voting. Opening the ballot-boxes before the end of voting shall be forbidden.


3-1. In the end of the voting, before the ballot-boxes with the ballot papers are opened, the precinct election commission on the basis of voter registers shall count the number of the voters who have received the ballot papers and shall define their total number. The chairperson of the precinct election commission or a member of the commission replacing him/her shall announce the results of the counting and shall write them in the protocol on voting results.


The portable ballot-boxes are the first to be opened. The number of the ballots in a portable ballot-box should correspond in quantity to the number of written applications to vote outside the polling station. If the number of the ballots of an established format in a portable ballot-box exceeds the corresponding number of written applications, all ballots from this box shall be recognized null and void. In such a case, it shall be required to issue an act on invalidation of all ballots taken from the portable ballot-box, with indication of the surnames, given names of the members of the commission who conducted voting outside the polling station with the help of the given portable ballot-box. The stationary ballot-boxes shall be opened after opening of the portable ballot-boxes.


4. Before opening of ballot-boxes all the unused ballot papers shall be counted and cancelled by the corresponding election commission. The election commission on the basis of the voter registers shall determine:


1) the total number of voters (electors) at the polling station;


2) the number of the voters (electors) who have received ballots;


3) the number of the ballots issued by each member of the commission.


4-1. After opening of the ballot-boxes, the election commission on the basis of the number of the ballot papers shall determine:


1) total number of the voters (electors) who have taken part in voting;


2) number of votes cast for each candidate, per each political party;


3) number of the ballots recognized as null and void;


4) number of the ballots received by the precinct election commission;


5) number of the cancelled ballots.


In case the number of the ballots taken from the ballot-boxes exceeds the number of the ballots given on the basis of voter registers and applications for voting outside the polling station, it shall be required to determine the quantity of the ballots given by each member of the election commission.


5. The following ballots shall be recognized as null and void:


1) of not established format;


2) with no signature of the member of the corresponding election commission;


3) where more than one candidate, more than one political party have been marked, except for voting at elections of members of local self-government bodies other than maslikhats;


4) which has been marked with a pencil, have traces of erasure or any other way of forgery have been detected as well as where it is impossible to determine the will of voters.


During a direct vote count the null and void ballots shall be excluded from the number of the ballots of the voters (electors) who have taken part in voting.


6. (The clause is excluded by Constitutional Act of the RK of 6 May 1999 No 375-I).


7. In case of dispute concerning the validity of ballots, the issue shall be solved by the election commission through voting. In this case the decision shall be taken by more than half of votes of the total number of the commission’s members.


7-1. At election of deputies of the Senate and deputies of the Mazhilis of the Parliament to be elected by the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan the precinct election commission (territorial election commission) on demand of the proxy shall conduct a recount of votes only once within the term established by clauses 1 and 2 of this Article.


8. The results of vote count shall be considered by the election commission and shall be specified in the protocols signed by the chairperson and members of the election commission. In the case of absence of the chairperson of the election commission, the protocols shall be signed by the deputy chairperson or the secretary of the election commission.


It shall be inadmissible to fill in the protocols on the voting results with a pencil and in ink of different colors as well as to make any corrections in them. In this case the numerical values of the voting results must be duplicated in words.


The copy of the protocols shall be immediately hung out in the premise of the polling station in a specially designated place for a public familiarization and shall be kept in the premise within two days.


By the request of a person who according to this Constitutional Act shall be present during vote count, he/she can be issued with a copy of the protocols certified with the signatures of the chairperson and the secretary of the commission and the seal of the election commission.


8-1. The election results in the electoral district shall be determined at the meeting of the district election commission and shall be conducted in one of the polling stations determined by the  district election commission not later than ten days before Election Day, with publication of the data about the place and time of the meeting in the mass media. The results shall be determined on the basis of the protocols of the precinct election commissions which shall be delivered to the given polling station.


Copy of the protocol on the election results in the given electoral district shall be hung out in the premise of the polling station for public familiarization and shall be kept in the given premise for three days.


At the request of a person who according to this Constitutional Act can be present during vote count, the named person shall be issued with a copy of the protocol certified by signatures of the chairperson and the secretary of the commission and the seal of the election commission.


8-2. The district election commission not later than five days after the day of voting shall draw up and post up in its office, where its meeting was held, a summary sheet on the results of vote count in the corresponding electoral district for public familiarization.


A summary sheet on the results of vote count shall be compiled on the basis of protocols of the precinct election commissions on the results of vote count, shall be signed by the chairperson and the secretary of the district election commission and shall be posted up for the public familiarization.


9. In case of revealing by the corresponding superior election commission of mistakes, nonconformities in the protocols of precinct election commissions (at elections of deputies of the Senate and deputies of the Mazhilis of the Parliament to be elected by the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan – protocols of territorial election commissions) as well as doubts of the correctness of the vote count, the given commission shall be eligible to take a decision to recount the votes by the corresponding precinct (territorial) election commission. The vote recount shall be conducted in presence of a member of the superior election commission as well as the applicants, who have presented the facts of the wrong vote count.


The vote recount shall be conducted on the basis of the decision of the election commission and shall be carried out before an official publication of the election results.