IEBC Press Statement on the March 4th General Election

Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC)

PRESS STATEMENT ON THE MARCH 4TH GENERAL ELECTION

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) wishes to inform the voters and the general public to note the following with regard to the March 4th 2013 General Elections:-

Opening and closing of the Polling Stations
 

Station will open at 6am and close at 5pm. However, if there are voters still on the queue at 5pm, voting time will be extended until such a time that all eligible voters have voted. If for whatever reason the opening of a station is delayed or voting interrupted, the Presiding Officer shall ensure the lost time is fully recovered by commensurately extending the voting period.
 

Voting Station
 

You will vote at the polling station where you registered as a voter. The name of the station is indicated in your acknowledgement slip issued during registration.
 

Identification Documents
 

You will require your ORIGINAL National ID or valid Passport i.e. whichever you used to register. Please note that Police Abstracts and photocopies are NOT acceptable documents.

Identification Procedure
 

To confirm that you are a genuine registered voter, the following will be required/undertaken:

• Personal identification documents: National ID or Passport
• Reading of your fingerprints using the Electronic Voter Identification Device (EVID)
• Physical check for your name in the Principal Register of Voters

Things to Avoid During the Election Day:-
 

The following are key election offences that are punishable by law

• Campaigns: Official campaign ended on Saturday 2nd March, 2013 at 6pm. Candidates and their supporters are warned its an election offence to campaign by directly soliciting for votes or by distributing or displaying campaign materials including branded vehicles, attires or give-aways thereafter.
• Buying or selling personal identification documents. It is an offense to buy or offer to buy, sell or offer to sell a National ID or Passport for whatever reasons including denying the seller or buyer the right to vote in an election.
• Stealing Identification Documents: It is a electoral offence to steal or illegally possess another person’s National ID, Passport or any other identification documents.
• Possessing or Purporting to Possess election material without authority: It is an offence to possess or pretend to possess without lawful authority a Register of Voters, ballot papers or any other election material.
• Destroying election material: Voters must refrain from destroying posters, ballot papers, ballot boxes, poll booths and any other material intended for use during elections.
• Intimidating Voters: it is an offence to intimidate or attempt to intimidate voters to vote or not to vote for any candidate or party.
• Disrupting the electoral process: Interrupting the normal flow of voting, counting or tallying of election results is an offence.
• Attempting to vote more than once: It is an offence to vote or attempt to vote more than once.

Number of Ballot Papers Issued and Received
 

Every voter will be issued with six ballot papers for the following positions: President, Member of National Assembly, Senator, Governor, County Woman Representative to the National Assembly and the County Assembly Ward Representative.
 

Counting of Votes
 

Counting of ballot papers shall commence at the polling station immediately after the close of the voting period. The Presiding Officer, in the presence of the party and independent candidates’ agents, shall proceed to count and transmit results in the following manner:

• Presidential
• Member of the National Assembly
• County Assembly Ward Representative
• Senator
• County Women Representative
• Governor

The results will be transmitted using a mobile phone-based software and received as follows:

In order to promote transparency and public participation in elections, the IEBC will provide giant screens at the constituency and county tallying centers for the public to follow the inflow of results for various elective positions.
 

The public is encouraged to turnout in large numbers to vote and to maintain peace throughout the election period.

AHMED ISSACK HASSAN, EBS
CHAIRPERSON
INDEPENDENT ELECTORAL AND BOUNDARIES COMMISSION (IEBC)