Home > 1.3.2.2.4 Combating electoral fraud > UKRAINE - Law on Elections of the People's Deputies
 
 
 
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Article 90.
 

Procedure for Opening Ballot Boxes and Counting Ballot Papers


1. Upon completion of actions specified by Article 89 of this Law, the precinct election commission shall check the integrity of the sealing tape or seal on each ballot box.


2. If the precinct election commission discovers damage to the tape or seal, or any other damage that indicates that the integrity of ballot box has been violated, the precinct election commission shall write a report thereon in the form and under the procedure specified by Part 8 Article 35 of this Law, stating the nature of the discovered damage.


3. The precinct election commission shall open the ballot boxes one by one. The first ballot boxes to be opened shall be the mobile ones that were used for voting at voters’ place of stay; and the last ballot boxes to be opened shall be the ones with damaged seals or sealing tape or with other damage revealed during the voting (if there are any such boxes).


4. When an undamaged ballot box is opened, its contents shall be emptied on the table at which the members of the precinct election commission are sitting. The presence of a control sheet in the ballot box (or, in case of a mobile ballot box, of the control sheets) shall also be checked.


5. The ballot papers from a damaged ballot box shall be taken out one by one without mixing them. The precinct election commission shall count the numbers of ballot papers contained in such ballot box, separately for the nationwide election district and for the single-mandate election district. The presence of a control sheet in the ballot box, which shall be taken out of the ballot box last, shall be also checked. 6. The ballot papers for the nationwide election district and for the single-mandate election district shall be separated from each other. The election commission shall count the total number of the ballot papers separately for the nationwide election district and for the singlemandate election district in accordance with the procedure prescribed by Part 11 Article 82 of this Law.


7. All items found in the ballot boxes other than the ballot papers of the approved form shall be placed separately and not counted. Control sheets shall be also deemed as such items. In case of doubt as to whether an item is a ballot paper, the precinct election commission shall adopt a decision thereon by voting. Each member of the election commission shall have the right to personally examine such items. The counting of ballot papers shall be suspended while such items are being examined. Any items that are not deemed to be ballot papers shall be packed in one package under the procedure prescribed by Part 6 Article 87 of this Law. The inscription “Items” shall be made on the package.


8. If in an opened mobile ballot box the number of the ballot papers for the nationwide election district and for the single-mandate election district exceeds the numbers of the ballot papers indicated in the control sheet in such ballot box, the precinct election commission shall write a report on the discrepancy in accordance with the form and procedure prescribed by Part 8 Article 35 of this Law, in which it shall indicate the number of the ballot papers in the ballot box.


9. When drawing up the report specified in Part 8 of this Article, the commission shall check whether the nationwide district and single-mandate district ballot papers found in the mobile ballot box bear the indication of the election district (nationwide or single-mandate), the number of the single-mandate election district and of the respective election precinct, and the seal of the respective precinct election commission. Ballot papers with improper attributes shall not be counted during establishing, in the course of vote counting, the total number of voters who took part in the voting, as well as in the vote counting. If after their separation from the ballot papers that are subject to counting the discrepancy specified in Part 8 of this Article is eliminated, the ballot papers with proper attributes shall be counted during the establishment of the total number of voters who took part in the voting as well as in the vote counting at the election precinct. If no ballot papers with improper attributes are found, or if their separation from the ballot papers that are subject to counting does not eliminate the discrepancy specified in Part 8 of this Article, none of the ballot papers from the mobile ballot box shall be counted during the establishment of the total number of voters who took part in the voting or in the vote counting. 


10. If there is no control sheet in the ballot box (or, in case of a mobile ballot box, no control sheets), the precinct election commission shall draw up a report on the absence of the control sheet (or control sheets) in the ballot box in accordance with the form and the procedure prescribed by Part 8 Article 35 of this Law, in which the number of ballot papers contained in the ballot box shall be indicated. The aforementioned ballot papers shall not be subject to counting during the establishment of the total number of voters who took part in the voting or in the vote counting for the nationwide election district within the single-mandate election district or for in the single-mandate election district.


11. If the members of the commission have doubts as to the authenticity of a control sheet, or in other doubtful situations specified in Parts 8 and 10 of this Article, the precinct election commission shall adopt, by voting, a decision recognizing the ballot papers contained in the ballot box as ones that shall not be subject to counting during the establishment of the total number of voters who took part in the voting or in the vote counting for the nationwide election district within the single-mandate election district or for the single-mandate election district. The respective decision and the results of voting shall be entered in the minutes of the meeting of the commission.


12. The number of the nationwide election district ballot papers and the number of singlemandate election district ballot papers in the ballot boxes, except for the items and ballot papers which are not subject to counting, shall be announced by the head of the precinct election commission and entered by the secretary of the precinct election commission in the protocols on vote counting at the election precinct in the nationwide election district within the singlemandate election district and in the single-mandate election district as the numbers of voters who took part in the voting.


{Part 12 Article 90 as amended pursuant to the Law № 709-VII dd. 21.11.2013}


13. Ballot papers from the ballot boxes that contain an election district indication (nationwide or single-mandate), a single-mandate election district number, or an election precinct number not corresponding to the actual number of the respective election precinct or the respective election district, as well as ballot papers without the seal of the precinct election commission or affixed with the seal of another election commission or with any other seal, shall be deemed not to be subject to counting when establishing the total number of voters who took part in the voting and during the vote counting for in the nationwide election district within a single-mandate election district and for the single-mandate election district.


14. The ballot papers that, in accordance with Parts 9, 10, 11, and 13 of this Article, are not to be counted when establishing the total number of voters who took part in the voting and when counting votes for the nationwide election district within a single-mandate election district and for a single-mandate election district, shall be separately counted, entered in the protocols on vote counting at the election precinct for the nationwide election district within the singlemandate election district and for the single-mandate election district, and packed in separate packages in accordance with the procedure prescribed by Part 6 Article 87 of this Law. The inscriptions “Ballot papers not subject to counting in the nationwide election district” and “Ballot papers not subject to counting in the single-mandate election district” shall be made on the packages.


15. The nationwide election district ballot papers shall be put on the places marked with special plates bearing, on both sides, the name of the party or the inscription “Invalid ballot papers in the nationwide election district.” After that, the single-mandate district ballot papers shall be put on the places marked with special plates bearing, on both sides, the last name of the MP candidate included in the ballot paper for voting in the respective single-mandate election district or the text “Invalid ballot papers in the single-mandate election district.” When sorting out the ballot papers, a precinct election commission member selected by the commission shall show each ballot paper to all the members of the election commission, announcing the result of the expression of the voter’s will. If the members of the election commission have doubts as to the content of a ballot paper, the election commission shall resolve the doubts by voting. Each member of the election commission shall have the right to personally examine the ballot paper. For the time of examination of the ballot paper, the work with the other ballot papers shall be suspended.


16. A ballot paper shall be deemed invalid if: 1) it has not been amended as required by Part 7 Article 81 of this Law, or it has been amended without a decision by the Central Election Commission or amended in a way that fails to comply with the decision of the Central Election Commission; 2) more than one mark has been placed next to the names of the parties or to the last names of MP candidates; 3) no mark has been placed; 4) the counterfoil of the ballot paper has not been separated therefrom; 5) it is impossible to identify the result of the expression of the voter’s will for any other reason.


17. If any members of the election commission have doubts about the validity of a ballot paper, the precinct election commission shall resolve the doubts by voting. Before the start of the voting, each member of the election commission shall be allowed to personally examine the ballot paper in question. During the examination of the ballot paper, the counting of other ballot papers shall be suspended. The respective decision and the results of voting shall be entered in the minutes of the meeting of the precinct election commission.


18. Invalid ballot papers shall be counted separately for the nationwide election district and for the single-mandate election district, in accordance with the procedure prescribed by Part 11 Article 82 of this Law. The numbers of invalid ballot papers for the election of MPs in the nationwide and single-mandate election districts shall be announced by the head of the precinct election commission separately and shall be entered by the secretary of the election commission in the respective protocols on vote counting at the election precinct for the nationwide election district within the single-mandate election district and for the single-mandate election district. The invalid ballot papers shall be packed separately into [two] different packages in accordance with the procedure prescribed by Part 6 Article 87 of this Law. The inscriptions “Invalid ballot papers in the nationwide election district” or “Invalid ballot papers in the single-mandate election district” shall be made on packages.


19. The precinct election commission shall, in accordance with the procedure prescribed by Part 11 Article 82 of this Law, separately count the number of votes cast for MP candidates included in the electoral list of each party in the nationwide election district and the number of votes cast for each MP candidate in a single-mandate election district. During the vote counting each member of the commission shall be allowed to examine or re-count the respective ballot papers. The results of the vote counting at the election precinct for the nationwide election district within the single-mandate election district and for the single-mandate election district shall be announced and entered, respectively, in the protocols on vote counting at the election precinct for the nationwide election district within the single-mandate election district and for the singlemandate election district.


20. When counting votes at an election precinct, the precinct election commission shall check, separately for the nationwide district and for the single-mandate district, whether the number of voters who took part in the voting at the precinct is equal to the sum of the numbers of invalid ballot papers and of ballot papers with votes cast for MP candidates included in each party’s electoral list or, respectively, for MP candidates running in the single-mandate district. In case of data discrepancy, the election commission shall be allowed to re-count the respective ballot papers. If the aforementioned discrepancy is confirmed, the precinct election commission shall write a report, in accordance with the form and procedure prescribed by Part 8 Article 35 of this Law, indicating the reason for such discrepancy, which reason shall be established by a decision of the commission.


21. Ballot papers with the votes cast for MP candidates included in the electoral list of each party in the nationwide election district and for MP candidates in the single-mandate election district shall be packed separately in accordance with the procedure prescribed by Part 6 Article 87 of this Law. The name of the respective party and the last name of the MP candidate shall be inscribed on the packages.


22. The Central Election Commission shall issue clarifications for the procedure of vote counting at the election precincts.