12:36 13.10.2020

Conducting polls on election day is contrary to Electoral Code – committee of voters

2 min read
Conducting polls on election day is contrary to Electoral Code – committee of voters

The Committee of Voters of Ukraine is concerned about the initiative of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky to conduct national polls on the day of voting in the regular local elections on October 25, the press service of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine has said.

"The procedure for conducting the national polls on voting day is not provided for by the Electoral Code of Ukraine. The Committee of Voters of Ukraine reminds that in early September similar initiatives were already considered in the Verkhovna Rada, but were not adopted," the committee said on the Facebook page.

The Committee of Voters of Ukraine said that today it is not clear which legal mechanisms can be used to conduct such polls, namely, who will conduct the polls, how the questions will be determined, how the voting procedure will take place, the polls will be conducted in the premises of polling stations or outside them, and what legal implications the poll results will have.

"If members of precinct election commissions are involved in the polls, this will contradict the current legislation. The Election Code of Ukraine clearly provides for a set of procedures that are used during voting in local elections, and determines the powers of members of election commissions," the committee said.

In addition, the Committee of Voters of Ukraine said that given the fact that there are 12 days left until voting day, any additional burden on commission members could potentially block the electoral process.

"Voters should have enough time to make an informed choice regarding a particular issue, and supporters and opponents of different answer options should be able to campaign among citizens. Under current conditions, compliance with these basic rules is impossible and can be viewed as a manipulative technology and an attempt to influence the voting results," the committee said.

Earlier, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky announced national polls in the country on the day of local elections on October 25, in which citizens will be asked to answer five questions.

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