The Central Elections Commission (CEC) is an independent body in charge of administering, conducting and supervising presidential and legislative elections in Palestine.
The CEC is headed by a board of nine members appointed by the President of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). The President also appoints the Chairman and the Secretary General of the CEC.
Members of the CEC are normally chosen from amongst senior judges, lawyers and academicians of the Palestinian community.
Structure and Functions
1. The Central Elections Commission
The main duties of the CEC commission include the following:
Ratifying all necessary procedures for conducting presidential and legislative elections in Palestine.
Supervising and monitoring the course of each step of the electoral process.
Verifying that election activities are carried out in accordance with the law.
Ensuring that the necessary measures are in place to allow elections to be held in a free, fair and transparent manner.
Ratifying and announcing the election results.
The daily operations of the CEC are carried by the Central Elections Bureau
2. The Central Elections Bureau
The Central Elections Bureau is the administrative and executive apparatus of the Central Elections Commission and is headed by the Chief Electoral Officer who is appointed by the CEC and reports directly to it. The Bureau prepares plans, procedures and systems; and presents them before the commissioners for ratification. The task of the Central Elections Bureau include:
Developing strategies for each phase of the election processes and action plans for their execution.
Recruiting and training electoral employees.
Preparing the primary and final Voters’ List.
Coordinate with all organizations concerned with the electoral process.
Registering political parties, their candidates, and independent candidates.
Raising voters’ awareness of the importance of elections and how to participate in them.
Archiving all documents and files relating to the elections
Acting as a communications link between the Central Elections Commission and other bodies concerned with the elections, such as political parties, media, observers and candidates.
To implement its work, the Elections Bureau has the following main departments:
a) The Operations Department:
In charge of drawing up, executing and administering plans related to voter registration and polling, training of employees, and coordinating between the electoral districts and the headquarters office.
b) The Administration Department:
Supervises the administrative aspects of the electoral processes and attends to human resource matters.
c) The Electoral Affairs Department:
Focuses on the registration of political parties and candidates; the accreditation of local and international observers, party agents and candidates; and providing them with the necessary information on the electoral process.
d) The Public Relations Department:
Works to provide voters with accurate and detailed information on the importance of the elections, and how to participate in its various phases. It also coordinates the CEC′s media relations.
(last updated: 02-June-2008)
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Palestine \ Other Government Institutions \ Central Elections Commission
