Once voting has finished the count is carried out as follows:
The committee chair takes the envelopes out of the ballot box one by one and reads out the name of the list voted for. The chair also has to show each ballot paper they read out to the members, observers and agents.
Once the count is completed, it is checked against the total number of envelopes of voters noted down on the numbered list of voters.
Any queries and/or protests have to be resolved by majority voting.
If there are no queries or protests, the chair has to announce the results, specifying the number of registered voters, the electoral roll certificates provided, the number of spoilt ballots, blank ballots and the ballots obtained by each list.
Subsequently the committee has to publish the results in the count record and post a copy of it on the door of the polling station.
Yes. The count is public. Anyone, irrespective of whether they are a voter or not, can attend the count of the ballots at any committee.
However, the chair will order the immediate expulsion of anyone who disturbs or obstructs the count.
Only the notaries as part of their duties, the candidates and the representatives of the lists can ask to see a ballot paper and examine it if they are not sure about a ballot paper read out by the chair of the committee during the count.
The members of the committee and the observers do not need to ask to examine the ballot papers since the chair has to show them each ballot paper after reading it out.
Any voter who observes any irregularity in the count can mention it at the end of the count and their protest or complaint must be stated in the record of the session.
The ballot papers taken out of the ballot box have to be destroyed in the presence of the people in attendance immediately after completing the count, except for ballot papers that have been declared invalid and those about which there have been complaints.
These ballot papers will be kept along with the record of the session for future claims and appeals.
A blank ballot is:
- an envelope which does not contain a ballot paper, and
- a ballot cast for a list that has been legally withdrawn
Blank ballots are not taken into account when assigning seats but they are part of the valid ballots and therefore have an influence on the percentage of votes obtained by each list.
A spoilt ballot is:
- one cast using an envelope or ballot paper different from the official model
- ballot papers put in the ballot box which are not in an envelope
- envelopes containing more than one ballot paper for different lists (if they contain a number of ballot papers for the same list they are counted as a single valid vote)
- ballot papers where the names of the candidates have been changed, added to or crossed out or the order of the list has been changed
- ballot papers where any kind of writing has been added or there has been any voluntary or intentional alteration
Nonetheless, votes cast using a ballot paper containing a sign, cross or other symbol next to any of the candidates will be recorded as valid insofar as they are not sufficiently important or large to be considered to have altered the configuration of the ballot paper or to have indicated criticism of any candidate or the political party to which they belong.
Spoilt ballots are invalid ballots and have no impact on the assignment of seats. They are simply another piece of information forming part of the election results. They are not counted for the purposes of deciding on the election result.
A spoilt ballot is an invalid ballot, in other words it is not counted for the purposes of deciding on the election result. By contrast, a blank ballot is a valid vote which makes it significant when determining the electoral threshold.
The law states that when assigning seats lists that have not obtained 3% of the valid votes cast in the constituency are excluded, which means that blank ballots are taken into account when determining the number of votes required to exceed this 3% threshold.
"Valid ballots" are the ballots cast for lists which have not been annulled due to a defect plus the "blank ballots".
"Spoilt ballots" are not counted as "valid ballots".
Valid ballots = blank ballots + ballots for lists / Total ballots = valid ballots + spoilt ballots.
Abstention is all the voters who are registered on the electoral roll and do not vote in an election.
The official count starts on 30 September at the provincial electoral commissions and may not go on past 3 October.
The count for each constituency is carried out all in one go and in public.