Chad: Electoral system
Updated August 2010
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Legal and institutional framework
| Legal basis |
|
| Electoral system | National Assembly: Directly elected by universal adult franchise from single member (plurality) and multi member (proportional representation constituencies); the number of seats vary (125 in 1997, 155 in 2001; 188 in 2010)[1]President: Directly elected through universal adult franchise; must obtain an absolute majority or a runoff is held with the best two candidates[2] |
| Electoral management bodies (EMBs) | National Independent Electoral Commission (CENI, Commission Electorale Nationale Indépendante) is constituted for each election to organise, supervise and control electoral operations that include voter registration, referenda and presidential, legislative and local elections3]Constitutional Council (CC, Conseil Constitutionne) vets and publishes Presidential candidates, processes electoral complaints for parliamentary, presidential elections and referenda, verifies and announces results of presidential elections and referenda[4] |
| Independence of EMBs | CENI: 31 members, chairperson chosen by agreement between political parties, 15 members nominated by opposition[5]CC: Nine members, three judges, two appointed by the President and one by the Speaker, and six jurists, three appointed by the President and three by the Speaker[6] |
| EMBs stakeholder relations | The CENI structures include representatives of ruling and opposition political parties at national, regional, district and local level; the CENI is required to collaborate with national observers and government invited international observers[7] |
| Political parties | Political party authorisation to function is undertaken by the Ministry of the Interior, appeals made to the Administrative Division of the Supreme Court[8]Party financing: Private funding is unregulated and no disclosure or accounting is required; no limits are placed on the amounts candidates or parties may receive or spend. Public funds are not allocated to parties, but refunds of 30% of campaign expenditures are made, up to a ceiling of five hundred million francs CFA, for presidential candidates who obtain at least 10% of the vote[9] |
| Mass media | The media is regulated by the High Communication Council (HCC, Haut Conseil de la Communication), which is responsible for freedom of the press and plurality in opinion expression as well as the equitable allocation of airtime to candidates and parties during elections and referenda[11] |
Election management
| Election period and dates | National Assembly every 4 and presidential elections every 5 years, non-concurrent[12]Elections called by decree of the Government at least 6 months before election day (by the president in the case of a referendum); voting takes place in one day between 06:00-1700, but voters in queue may vote after 17:00[13]In the event of persistent conflict between the executive and the legislature, or if the National Assembly forces the resignation of two successive governments in one year, the President may dissolve the National Assembly[14] |
| Delimitation of constituencies | Each district of N'Djamena (the capital) and each department elsewhere functions as an electoral constituency for the National Assembly, but the number of members returned to the National Assembly by each constituency is determined by a new law for each election[15] |
| Voter registration and voters' rolls | Voter registration is undertaken by the CENI, registration is compulsory and continuous, but voters' rolls are updated annually and prior to elections[16]Voters may present a wide range of documents to establish identity, failing which the attestation of two local people of substance is acceptable, are photographed and finger printed and are issued with a voter's card[17]Voters' rolls are displayed six months before election day at regional, district and local CENI offices for objections and correction[18] |
| Civic and voter education | Voter and civic education is not included in the brief of the CENI[19] |
| Candidate nomination | National Assembly: A candidate must be nominated by a party or party coalition, must be a registered voter 25 years old or older, resident in Chad for a year or more and be able to read and write French and Arabic; must pay a deposit of 100 000 frank CFA, refundable on attaining 5% or more of the vote; a dossier of information and supporting documents must be submitted to the CENI for verification[20]Presidential: Candidates must be must be a natural citizen of Chadian parents, be between 35 and 60 years old, in full possession of civil and political rights and have good mental and physical health; must pay a deposit of five million francs CFA refundable on attaining 10% or more of the vote; a dossier of information and supporting documents must be submitted to the CC for verification[21] |
| Election observation | There is no law or code of conduct governing election observers; the CENI is charged with collaborate with national observers and government invited international observers; political parties and candidates competing in elections may each send a representative to observe the work of the CENI or its structures[22] |
| Election campaigns | Campaign period: Presidential 30 days, National Assembly 21 days; campaigning ends 24 hours before the opening of the polls and campaigning on election day is prohibited[23]Only political parties, coalitions and candidates may hold gatherings, which are prohibited on public roads; sites for posters must be equitably distributed; the use of public resources and abuse of incumbency for campaigning is prohibited[24]No limits are set on amounts candidates may spend on campaigning[25]No Code of Conduct governs campaigning |
| Conflict prevention and management | Presidential and National Assembly election disputes are heard by the CC[26] |
| Election staff and logistics | The CENI has a free hand in recruiting the staff and may draw on the expertise of the Civil Service; the polling station staff should reflect a balance between governing and opposition parties[27]The number of voters per polling station should not 300 who should also be within a radius of less than 5km[28]A single ballot paper (one for each registered voter in a constituency) is used for each election with the ordering of candidates determined by lot and ballot boxes must be transparent[29] |
| Secrecy of the ballot | The polling booths must be placed so as to shield the voters from observation while they mark their ballots; voters requiring assistance in marking their ballots may choose another voter to assist them[30] |
| Voting and counting process | In presence of candidates, their agents the Presiding Officer demonstrates ballot boxes are empty and seals them[31]A voters presents identification, is issued with a ballot paper, marks the paper next to candidate of choice in a ballot booth voter and folds it, leaves and places the ballot in a ballot box in the presence of the presiding officer; the voter's finger is marked with indelible ink[32]Counting takes place at the polling station immediately after polling and is observed by candidates and candidate agents[33] |
| Announcement of results | After the count an official report is compiled, the Presiding Officer announces the results and posts them outside the polling station; polling official and candidate agents sign the report and agents are issued with copies of it; four copies and all documents and ballot pares are transmitted to the relevant CENI structure[34]The CENI district structures checks and summate the results in the presence of party representatives; after completion the official in charge draws up an official report and it an all documents are transmitted to the higher CENI structure; a copy of the report is sent to the Ministry of Territorial Administration and another to the CC[35]The CENI checks and summates the results in the presence of party representatives and proclaims the results within 15 days (final for the National Assembly, provisional for the presidental; presidential results are transmitted to the CC[36]Parties may send observers to the reception and unsealing of official reports by the clerk of the CC; the CC verifies the results and proclaims final presidential and referendum results[37] |
Table notes
[1] Constitution 1996, Articles 108; Loi no 003/PR/2009, 147, 148. The Constitution does not prescribe the number of members of the National Assembly nor how they are to be elected; Article 111 says only that an organic law must determine the number of members and the mode of their election. Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 147 and 148, prescribe the mixed system of single and multi member constituencies and determine that each district of N'Djamena (the capital) and each department elsewhere function as constituencies, but leaves it to a further law to allocate the number of members returned by each constituency.
[2] Constitution 1996, Articles 61, 66; Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 135, 136.
[3] Loi no 020/PR/2008, Article 2, 4.
[4] Constitution 1996, Article 63, 68, 162; Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 129, 133, 134, 144, 155, 161.
[5] Loi no 020/PR/2008, Article 4. The opposition party representatives should include one person from each party represented in the National Assembly.
[6] Constitution 1996, Article 161.
[7] Loi no 020/PR/2008, Articles 2, 4, 15-18; Décret no 621 2009, Article 7-10.
[8] Loi no 45 1994, Articles 15, 22.
[9] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 139.
[11] Constitution 1996, Article 186; Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 106, 119.
[12] Constitution 1996, Articles 61, 107, 110.
[13] Constitution 1996, Article 64; Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 34-36, 43, 104. If an election is annulled fresh elections must be called within 15 days in the case of a presidential election and 21 days in the case of a legislative election (Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 35). If polling begins late the station stays open later to compensate (Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 43). The members of the security forces are consigned to barracks on election day and vote the day before (Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 43).
[14] Constitution 1996, Article 83. The President must first consult with the Prime Minister and the Speaker before dissolving the National Assembly and fresh elections for Parliament must be held within 45 days of the dissolution.
[15] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 147, 148.
[16] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 1, 8, 11, 24; Loi no 020/PR/2008, Article 2. Although a new CENI is constituted for each election, the Permanent Elections Office supplies the continuity required for continuous registration (Loi no 020/PR/2008, Articles 4, 6; see Commission Electorale Nationale Indépendante for details).
[17] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 17. The identification may be anything from a national identity card to a pension booklet and from a student's report card to a tax certificate. Article 192 of Loi no 003/PR/2009 recognises that the CENI may have insufficient time to adopt the technology necessary to electronically capture photographs and finger prints on voters' cards for the next election (ie in 2010) and permits the use of ordinary cards in this case (see also DÉcret no 621 2009, Article 192).
[18] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 19-23.
[19] See Article 2 of Loi no 020/PR/2008 for a list of the functions and duties that are included in the CENI's brief.
[20] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 149-152. Members of the security forces and certain (legally defined elsewhere) classes of civil servants are ineligible to stand for public office (Article 112, 128). In multi member constituencies a candidate list must have the same number of candidates as the number of seats in the constituency (Article 150).
[21] Constitution Article 62, 63; Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 129-132.
[22] Loi no 020/PR/2008, Article 2, 12; Décret no 621 2009, Article 16.
[23] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles, 113, 122 137, 138. In the event of a presidential election second round campaigning resumes after the proclamation of the results of the first round and closes the day before the second polling day at 23:59.
[24] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 114, 116, 118, 124.
[25] See Political party finances.
[26] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 144, 155, 161.
[27] Loi no 020/PR/2008, Articles 13, 14, 39; Décret no 621 2009, Article 17.
[28] Loi no 020/PR/2008, Article 37. For legislative and local elections mobile polling stations may be instituted by the CENI facilitate voting by nomads, while expatriates may vote in referenda and the presidential elections at diplomatic missions abroad (Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 64, 66). Polling stations for members of the security forces must be outside their barracks' and accessible to candidates (Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 38, see also Article 43).
[29] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 44, 46.
[30] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 47, 50.
[31] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 40, 46.
[32] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 48, 49.
[33] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Article 67.
[34] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 70-72.
[35] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 73, 142.
[36] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 74, 142, 160.
[37] Loi no 003/PR/2009, Articles 73, 74, 142, 160.
References
CONSTITUTION DU RÉPUBLIQUE DU TCHAD DU 31 MARS 1996 RÉVISÉE, [www] http://www.la-constitution-en-afrique.org/ext/http://democratie.francophonie.org/IMG/pdf/Constitution_revisee_de_la_Republique_du_Tchad.pdf (as amended in 2005), [PDF document, opens new window] (accessed 4 Aug 2010).
DÉCRET NO 621/PR/PM/MISP/2009, 6 juin 2009, [www] http://www.presidencetchad.org/decret_621_09.htm [opens new window] (accessed 3 Aug 2010).
LOI NO 003/PR/2009 portant Code Électoral, du 7 janvier 2009, [www] http://www.cefod.org/spip.php?article2007 [opens new window] (accessed 4 Aug 2010).
LOI NO 008/PR/2009 portant modification de l'article 73 de la loi no 003/PR/2009 du 07 janvier 2009 portant Code électoral, [www] http://www.cefod.org/spip.php?article2107 [opens new window] (accessed 4 Aug 2010).
LOI NO 020/PR/2008 PORTANT CRÉATION D'UNE COMMISSION ELECTORALE NATIONALE INDÉPENDANTE, du 23 décembre 2008, [www] http://www.iss.co.za/uploads/CHADCENI.PDF [opens new window] (accessed 4 Aug 2010).
LOI NO 45 DU 14 DÉCEMBRE 1994 PORTANT CHARTE DES PARTIS POLITIQUES, [www] http://www.cefod.org/spip.php?article1057 [opens new window] (accessed 17 Aug 2010).
