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 94
 

(6th Article of Law 6304, amended on 18 May 2012; amended on 25/4/2018 in accordance with the article 1 of Law 7140)


Voters registered in the overseas electoral registry can cast their votes according to the voting calendar within the framework of principles and procedures determined by the Supreme Election Council at the ballot boxes to be established at our foreign missions and other sites deemed to be suitable by local authorities, if needed; during the period starting from forty five days prior to the election date until 05:00 pm on the third day prior to the election day. However, the number of days for voting can be decreased by the Supreme Election Council by taking the number of voters in the foreign country into consideration and consulting the opinion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The voting times are between 08:00 am and 05:00 pm in local time. Considering the status of the foreign country and consulting the opinion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Supreme Election Council can decide on the foreign missions and sites where voters can vote for twenty four hours including holidays and where they can vote for shorter periods of time; and this decision is announced in the electronic environment. (annulment of the last sentence of the paragraph on 25/4/2018 in accordance with the article 1 of Law 7140)


The foreign missions and sites, where ballot boxes shall be established and the officials constituting the balloting committee shall be determined by the Supreme Election Council, by consulting the opinion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. According to this determination, the balloting committee chairman and members shall be selected by the Overseas District Election Council. The balloting committee consists of a chairman, a public official member, and an individual to be assigned by each of the three political parties receiving the most votes across Turkey in the most recent parliamentary election, and reserve members are selected through the same procedures. If any political party fails to assign such an individual, the corresponding vacancy shall be occupied by a member to be selected among public officials or voters. The chairman and members of the balloting committee are selected primarily among public officials and voters at localities, where ballot boxes shall be established overseas.”


(Annexed as a paragraph on 25/4/2018 in accordance with the article 1 of Law 7140) "Political parties may appoint different members for the polling station committees for each voting day abroad.”


The Supreme Election Council sends the specially had manufactured ballots and the ballot envelopes printed in special colors to the Overseas District Election Council. All features including the dimensions of the ballot boxes, voting booths, and other voting equipment to be used overseas and number of voters that will cast votes in a ballot box are distinctively determined by the Supreme Election Council by considering the status of the foreign country and consulting the opinion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.


Upon arrival of the voter for voting, the chairman of the balloting committee identifies the identification of the voter from his/her identification certificate or passport bearing the national identification number of the Republic of Turkey, and checks whether or not the voter has casted another vote through other methods via the Computer Aided Central Electoral Registry System. The voter determined not to have casted a vote takes the ballot and ballot envelope stamped with the cachet of the balloting committee together with the “Evet (Yes)” or “Tercih (Preference)” stamps and goes to the closed voting site in order to cast his/her vote. The voter that has casted a vote is requested to put a signature next to his/her name on the chart.


The ballot boxes are opened by the balloting committees according to the procedures specified in this law at 05:00 pm when the voting period ends, or at any other time specified otherwise. Before the ballot envelopes are opened, the number of ballot envelopes, the number of voters that casted votes, and the consistency between these two figures are identified with a written report.


The balloting committee assigned with the duty of storing the votes at each foreign mission and delivering them to the Overseas District Election Council in sealed ballot bags with the methods determined by the Supreme Election Council, and under the chair of the mission chief of that locality or the most senior official and consisting of a public officer member assigned at the mission and the individuals designated by the three political parties receiving the most votes in the most recent parliamentary election in Turkey shall be established by the Overseas District Election Council by consulting the opinion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and reserve members are selected by means of the same procedure. If the political parties do not notify members, the vacancy is occupied with a member to be selected among public officers.


After the voting period has finished in Turkey, the Overseas District Election Council has sealed ballot bags coming from overseas opened, counted, tallied, and reported by the Balloting Committees under its own supervision in compliance with general principles. Reports are issued on combination procedures performed on the basis of the previously mentioned reports; and the results are forwarded to the Ankara Provincial Election Council. Furthermore, the results in the temporary combination report coming from temporary election boards of customs gates are combined within themselves, and these results are forwarded to the Ankara Provincial Election Council. The results coming from overseas ballot boxes and customs gates are combined by the Ankara Provincial Election Council, and the report issued is delivered to the Supreme Election Council by utilizing the fastest means.