Repeal of quorum for election commissions could disrupt election, says CEC Deputy Chairman

Kyiv, February 3 (Interfax-Ukraine) - The presidential election in Ukraine may not take place if the requirement that there be a quorum to hold sittings of territorial and district election commissions is cancelled, Deputy Chairman of the Central Election Commission Andriy Mahera has said.

"It seems to me that this mechanism is doomed to fail. This may lead to the fact that neither the first nor the second candidate is elected president," he said during a round table at Interfax-Ukraine on Wednesday.

In particular, Mahera said that the repeal of the requirement that there be a quorum for territorial and district election commissions could tempt candidates to recall their members at district and territorial commissions in the regions where they don't have enough support, so as to disrupt the election.

The requirement that there be a quorum in a proportion of 2/3 of the commission's composition should be changed, but not on the eve of the voting, CEC Deputy Chief said.

At the same time the authorized representative of presidential candidate Yulia Tymoshenko in CEC MP Volodymyr Pylypenko said that CEC plans to approve explanations at its sitting on Friday. According to him, via the explanations the CEC plans to make members of territorial and district election commissions establish legally responsible, enabling the commission to take decisions on their dismissal if certain members don't participate in sittings of commissions.