Home > 2.2 Polling station > TÜRKIYE - Law on Basic Provisions on Elections and Voter Registers with Amendments made by Laws 7062, 7102 and 7140
 
 
 
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Article 82
 

Ensuring Order in the Polling Station Base and Prohibitions (2):


(Amended by Article 13 of Law 5980 on 8 April 2010)


Ensuring public order around the polling station zone is the responsibility of the Polling station Committee Chairman. The measures to be taken in the polling station zone shall not be of a nature to prevent people who have the right to be present in the polling station zone from following up the election work and procedures.


(Amended on 13/3/2017 in accordance with Article 8 of Law 7102) No one shall be allowed in the polling station zone other than the chairman and members of the polling station, candidates, deputies, the voters registered in that polling station district, the observers assigned at that polling station and the people responsible for the premises and the assigned law enforcement officers who shall be present upon call or notification. However, persons who have the authority of objection and representatives notified to the electoral boards by political parties can be allowed in the polling station zone with the certificate issued in advance by the electoral boards. Members of the media shall be free to gather information and visual images for purposes of making news, provided that they do not pose an obstacle to the procedures being carried out at the polling station.


The chairman shall warn any person who attempts to prevent voters from casting their votes freely and in confidentiality or any person who attempts to prevent the polling station committee from doing their job as well as persons who attempt to disrupt any polling station work and procedures such as the casting of votes, the counting of votes, polling or the recording of votes in the protocols. Any person who fails to heed such a warning shall be removed from the polling station zone by means of calling in the law enforcement.


If the chairman of the polling station committee fails to perform the duty set forth in this article, the polling station committee shall make a decision and use the afore-mentioned authority against the person causing the disruption and shall immediately notify the president of the district electoral board of the situation.


(Amended on 13/3/2018 in accordance with Article 8 of Law 7102) Any person who attempts to disrupt the order in the polling station zone by means of employing coercion, violence or threats shall be immediately removed from the polling station zone and necessary legal actions should be taken by the law enforcement officers who shall immediately be called in by the chairman of the polling station committee or one of its members or upon the notice by the voters. The notification by the voters should be done in person to the law enforcement of that place. 



Any person who fails to comply with the above-mentioned measures in prisons and detention houses shall be removed from the polling station zone, upon receiving the opinion of the prison administration, through measures taken without compromising security.


(Amended on 13/3/2018 in accordance with Article 8 of Law 7102) Law Enforcements called in accordance with this article should comply the request of the president or the decisions of the committee. In accordance with this article, law enforcements should comply the request of the president or the decisions of the committee and they should leave the ballot box area after the notification reason is gone away.


(Annex article: annexed on 13/3/2018 in accordance with Article 8 of Law 7102) Except the law enforcement officials in charge for the election security, the persons carrying official uniforms and weapons, including officers such as special security officers and municipal police officers cannot enter the premises, buildings and extension of these areas, where ballot boxes are placed.


(Annex article : Annexed on 13/3/2018 in accordance with Article 8 of Law 7102) No person in the premises, buildings and extension of these areas, where ballot boxes are placed, shall carry any badges, emblems or similar signs or propaganda publications belonging to the political party or candidate as may be seen by others; cannot make any written, verbal or visual propaganda. Those who do not comply with the provisions of this paragraph are removed by law enforcement officials.


It is prohibited to talk on mobile phones in the location where the polling station committee is on duty.


However, this provision shall not apply in the case of calls to be made by the chairman and members of the polling station committee in the course of their duties. Any person who acts contrary to this provision shall be warned by the chairman of the committee. Any person who persists on continuing the phone call despite the warning shall immediately be removed from the zone.


In cases where an offense is committed in the polling station zone, the polling station committee shall record the situation in a protocol and call in the law enforcement to take action against the relevant person.


(Amended on 13/3/2018 in accordance with article 8 of Law 7102) The chairman of the district electoral board shall take measures to ensure the orderly performance of work and procedures around the ballot boxes and the security of premises, buildings and extension of these areas, where ballot boxes are placed. The chairman also take the necessary precautions to ensure the compliance of the prohibitions which are set up in this regulation and avoid all the acts which restrains or complicates the free entry of voters or the people who have the right to be present in these places. procedures in the polling station zone. In this scope, the polling station committees, civilian and administrative authorities shall be obliged to comply with the instructions given by the chairman of the district electoral board.


(2) The former heading of this article ‘The Authorizations of the Chairman’ was amended by article 13 of Law 5980 on 8 April 2010 and on 13 March 2018 in accordance with article 8 of Law 7102 (inclusion of prohibitions word at the end of the title) to read as currently indicated.