Executive summary
Elections offer an avenue for citizens to be involved in decision making, in addition to holding their representatives accountable. The political legitimacy that credible elections confer is essential for robust states and provides a crucial mandate if governments are to have the capacity to tackle a myriad of sustainable development challenges. Our organization recognizes that elections are pivotal to its central ambition of alleviating human poverty and endeavors, to strike a balance between offering short-term, event-specific support, and longer-term support to electoral systems and processes that will help sustain democratic institutions.
In the “third wave “of democratization, many countries began to reform and refashion their electoral rules to more closely meet the goals of accountability, legitimacy, representation, and sustainability (Ely, 1997). By partnering with countries, our organization provides electoral assistance as a primary means to achieve these goals and thus to enable all citizens to participate in and influence government policy and practice. As a result, since the 1980s, we have played an ever-expanding role in supporting electoral processes, and this now represents a significant component of the organization’s governance and institutional development activities.
The organization takes the approach that democracy is always a work in progress, and that strengthening democratic institutions and promoting truly democratic politics is the best way to overcome democratic deficits and to foster the link between democracy and human development. It is therefore a priority to focus on building the longer-term capacity of electoral institutions such as electoral management bodies and processes such as voter registration and voter and civic education.
When engaging in electoral assistance, our organization country offices need to take into account the sensitivity of the area. First, elections are fundamental political processes. They feature “winners” and “losers” and therefore the stakes can be high, particularly for incumbent governments, which usually constitute main partners.
Introduction
Elections are comprised on three concepts of democracy. Firstly, they offer a platform upon which leaders are chosen, secondly, they assist in setting up of governments and finally confer legitimacy to the existing political systems (Ely, 1997). Since the end of cold war and hence the rise of democratic governance globally, elections have provided a legitimate tool for crowning of governments. Today, very few states elect their leaders through means other than through elections. While it is widely acknowledged that democracy may be practiced differently across different countries, free and fair elections are considered a universal must for any state to be regarded as democratic.
Our organization will focus the various components of electoral assistance in Argentina. Primarily, these are areas which UNDP and other organizations of similar intention have worked on. In doing so, it hopes to set a precedent for free and fair electoral process. This is possible through enhancement of various stakeholders’ understanding of the electoral systems and processes. This project does not intend to dictate to the host country the type of election it should have, but rather offer technical and know-how support to various stakeholders. This proposal therefore acts as a primer on areas in which electoral assistance is effective and the implications of the same.
Background Information
One of the most significant characteristics of the Argentinean political system of the past few years has been the weak role played by the political parties. This has come in the face of other strong political actors of a corporate nature, such as the unions and businesses, used to acting in the political system. This strange phenomenon could be fundamental in explaining the struggle that has been taking place in the Argentinean political arena, post 1983. It could explain the failure to complete joint strategies, and could even be the reason behind the blocking of various initiatives to modernize purely instrumental aspects of the political system within its existing structure. The weakness of the political parties themselves, together with an unusual political culture, moved these parties further away from the centre of the political system and introduced the movement’s logic into the picture. At Peronism’s self-proclamation as the movement capable of uniting the popular identities en masse, there followed a sense of radicalism similar to that which around 1985 lit up the idea of the “third historical movement”, able to guarantee a radical government through to the end of the century (Ely, 1997).
In Argentina, the national electoral justice system courts has jurisdiction on a federal level over matters related to electoral and political party matters. The system is made up of 24federal electoral judges; one for each electoral district, and a single court of appeals with jurisdiction throughout the national territory that hears appeals of decisions issued by the lower courts. The National Electoral Chamber is composed of three judges, whose decisions are binding (see Article 6 of Law 19108) on lower court judges, and on the National Electoral Boards, which are temporary entities that are formed with judicial magistrates in each district during election periods.
The plenary nature of judgments is meant not only to unify jurisprudence on a subject that has a strict technical content, but also to prevent legal insecurity that could—in an area that is highly sensitive from an institutional standpoint—lead to contradictory judgments, specially since electoral processes are very brief and require prompt, clear definitions to preserve the political objective of the election.
The electoral system has both jurisdictional and administrative authority, although the infrastructural and logistical duties involved in electoral processes are performed with the support of the Ministry of the Interior. The system also includes a general electoral command unit, for maintaining public security, and the Official Postal Service, that is in charge of distributing election materials, among other things. Voter list information is available from the National Registry of Persons, assigned under the interior ministry. The National Electoral Justice system is responsible for everything having to do with the organization, management, and control of electoral processes, defined as all of the acts that are legally regulated and designed to allow for the authentic expression of the political will of citizens” (CNE judgments 3473/05, 3533/05 and 4075/08) (Collimore, 2008). As explained by the Chamber, it is based on the fact that “under the Constitution, courts […] may guarantee the primacy of the objective legal truth, which in turn is a requirement for the authenticity of the system, controlling the entire democratic process of the formation and expression of the political will of the people, which begins with the organization of political parties, continues with the internal selection of candidates, and culminates with the actual voting process to elect the national officials” (CNE judgments 3533/05, 3571/05 and 4075/08).
Since the electoral courts are part of the country’s Judicial Branch, they exercise widespread control of constitutionality inherent in our system. For many years, it was considered that matters involving elections and political parties remained outside the field of competence of judges to review, as they were regarded as “non-actionable political matters (Collimore, 2008).” However, case law diverged from this position when a specialized jurisdiction was created within the federal justice system, which considered these matters as actionable. In fact, judicial functions have not been affected by the matters judged, and the intervention of judges is required because they act with impartiality, due to the method they use to resolve matters in strict compliance with the principle of the logic of facts. The decisions of the National Electoral Chamber may be reviewed by the National Supreme Court of Justice only on extraordinary appeal, when the interpretation of a constitutional provision is directly implicated. Approximately 13% of the judgments issued by the National Electoral Chamber are appealed, and only a small number of cases have been revoked by the Supreme Court.
To consider the interaction of political parties in the electoral process, one must first be acquainted with the Argentine party system in order to understand the context in which this institutional relationship takes place, and how the parties participate in the elections. There are two different aspects to the legal nature of political parties: one is the civil association that creates them; and, the other is the legal and political capacity granted by the National Electoral System, to participate in elections, present candidates, and obtain public funding, in such a way that expiration of the legal capacity does not imply the termination of their status as a legal entity (Collimore, 2008).
Article 38 of the National Constitution, included with the 1994 constitutional reform, defines them as “fundamental institutions of the democratic system.” Similarly, the Supreme Court of Justice, even prior to the reform, described them non-state organizations of public law, necessary for the development of democracy and hence instruments of government (Judgments310:819 and 315:380, inter alia). The National Electoral Chamber has emphasized the role-played by political parties, stating that they are one of the most relevant vehicles in the manifestation of the will of the electorate and “that the very strength of the democratic system depends to a great extent on the strength of the party system” (CNE Judgments 3054/02, 3112/03,3253/03, 3423/05, and 3743/06, among others).Thus, political parties have “the duty to act to enhance the representative system and to strengthen a critical approach and active participation on the part of the voter” (CNE Judgments2984/01, and 3054/02, among others). This is why Article 38 of the National Constitution, in exchange for the freedom it gives parties to engage in their activities, imposes on them the duty to respect the principles of the Constitution, since they are responsible for carrying out an important mission for the State; its on this basis that the importance of parties having internal democracy is highlighted. Moreover, it is important to note that Article 2 of Law 23298 gives them monopoly over the nomination of candidates for elective offices, a power that entails the unavoidable responsibility to respect democratic principles in their internal activities, even in selecting their own party officers (CNE Judgment 3112/03).
Although public laws govern both the formation and the activities of political groups, control of which falls within the purview of the federal electoral courts, most of the machinery to guide operation courts is based on the statutes of the respective parties or articles of association guiding the operations f the party. They determine how officers are elected, establish the laws governing the activities of their members, and generally regulate all of their operations. The case law of the National Electoral Chamber has prepared as a standard the principle of “functional regularity,” according to which the slightest interference in the internal affairs of parties is subject to legal action, since it is their own organs that determine their operations, except in the case of serious or flagrant violations of the law. It is important to bear this in mind in considering the model of interaction of the courts with political parties.
At present, Argentina has 706 parties that are recognized at federal level as legal political entities; of these, 37 are national, and 669 are district parties. In the most recent legislative elections on June 28, 2009 to seat 127 national deputy’s and24 national senators, 713 political parties participated, of which 414 formed electoral alliances and 175 participated on an individual basis.
The Issue and its Dimensions
Most national governments have been set through free and fair elections. However, UNDP’s 2002 report on human development presents mixed results in democratic transition. Cases of illiberal democracies are common. While governments are elected through democratic processes, they end up ruling through authoritarian approaches. In the American scenario, this may not be the case, but a number of challenges plague the electoral processes which need to be addressed. These include:
- Insufficient citizen participation in politics, including low voter turnout
- Insufficient voter competence caused by a lack of information, interest, or both
- Insufficient citizen control over elected officials
- A lack of adequate political virtue in voters, elected officials, or both
- Insufficient representativeness of legislatures
- Political inequality with respect to race, gender, class, geographical region, or other factors
- Past reformers typically attempted to address these problems by making voting easier and more convenient; by attempting to introduce alternative voting systems such as proportional representation (PR); by devolving political authority to sub-national units of government, such as through the implementation of local home rule; or by introducing some aspect of direct democracy, such as the initiative and referendum. More recent reform movements have focused on term limits for incumbent officials; the use of advanced voting technology; alterations in the format of party primary elections; and regulating campaign finance
In general, this project will limit itself to issues which strengthen democratic governance including provision of assistance to governance entities including electoral oversight bodies, as well as congress and the judiciary. Additionally, the initiatives will aim to create longer-term capacity programs in order to achieve effective and sustainable electoral processes in the long run. By involving all stakeholders, our organization acknowledges that democratic governance is inter alia, participatory, transparent and accountable. Additionally, such a government needs to be effective, equitable and built on the rule of law. Three main forms of electoral assistance are proposed in this paper. These are:
- Providing support or preparations in conduct of electoral process
- Helping build long-term capacities of involved institutions, e.g. electoral body, delimitation commissions, civic societies, and political entities
- Enhancing appropriate election related processes including civic and voter education, and voter registration as well as domestic observation
Much focus will however be on longer term assistance initiatives
It must be acknowledged that electoral assistance is rather sensitive while elections are considered large scale public administrations exercises, they are also archetypical political processes. This implies that any players providing assistance in this area must be tactful and conscious of the covert political impacts. Governments often have a lot of interest in elections and hence cannot be considered as impartial players.
Principle areas of engagement
Given its current grassroots entrenchment on programs for development and assistance for the poor, our organization will be able to facilitate electoral assistance as a means for citizens especially the poor, women, marginalized communities and the disadvantaged to participate and impact on government decisions making. This requires accountability links between voters and elected leaders, broad-based political entities, cost effective process of election, and independent as well as permanent election facilitation entities. Further, based on the principle of maintaining impartial position among the players, the organization will ideally coordinate and directly offer support to electoral processes.
The major entry points are as documented in the table below:
Detailed analysis
Civic and voter education
Civic and voter education are overlapping yet distinct processes. Voter education is aimed at potential voters and is an important element in developing an environment within which free and fair elections can take place. It is particularly important in emerging democracies. Voter education is mainly aimed at assisting the administering body to deliver credible and representative results. An effective voter education program is one that is focused on the technical aspects of the election and aimed at encouraging people to make free choices, can prevent violence and intimidation, particularly during the campaign and on Election Day. Civic education, on the other hand, is aimed at citizens at large in order to sensitize them to their rights, roles, and responsibilities within a democracy.
Voter and civic education programs are among the most commonly requested and potentially influential areas of UNDP’s electoral assistance activities. Over the longer term, successful civic education programs can increase political participation in diverse areas of governance across a broad cross-section of society. For example, in most developing countries there are identifiable groups – such as the poor, women, indigenous people, and others – that collectively tend to under-participate as voters and be under-represented as candidates and elected representatives at elections. Targeted civic and voter education programs, aimed specifically at raising the participation of these groups can thus be a particularly effective strategy for advancing the long-term interests of the most disadvantaged sectors of society.
Actual activities
Voter education focuses largely on the mechanics of Election Day—why to vote, how to vote, where to vote, etc. Civic education, on the other hand, is a broader concept focusing on a citizen’s rights and duties in a democratic society. It is most usefully mainstreamed into school curricula, media messages, etc. Electoral support provided by UNDP that is targeted at a range of institutions and processes—such as electoral management bodies, media, political parties, voter education and other areas—can potentially serve as a springboard to civic education initiatives in non-election years that can help sensitize citizens and enhance their participation in democratic life as a whole, and in elections in particular.
Capacity
Based on the current grass-root presence enjoyed by our organization, reaching out to voter as well as other stakeholder institutions will not require initial establishments but will rather utilize the already existing facilities. This would significantly lower the cost of setting up the project.
Coordination of international electoral assistance
This is an area where non-governmental organization’s help is increasingly being sought. Where bilateral and multilateral partners offer donations either technical or financial to a county, effective coordination is fundamental. NGO’s often play a critical role in coordinating such. They offer an avenue upon which international and national actors link to create a smooth electoral process. Coordination can take several forms, including serving as the central coordination point for all electoral assistance, and coordinating international or national election observers. NGO’s also playing a lead role in coordinating election observers. A wide range of international and regional actors now regularly observe elections, particularly in fragile or transitional electoral contests.
Actual participatory role
Our organization will engage both bilateral and multilateral players who intend to offer financial and technical assistance to various stakeholders. In addition, it will offer a platform for coordination of observer participation within its areas of operation.
Capability
Among the capability that will enhance success of this role is enlarged grassroots presence. However, the technical know how having previously engaged in such in Mali and various states in America makes it more of a repetitive task than a new one.
Voter registration
Elections are a unique area of public governance, large-scale events in which most adult citizens are able to take part, and requiring national organization and coordination. Because of this, and the need to collect, collate, manage, and protect from misuse, voter registration is a key aspect of election administration. This is also one of a number of sub-areas within electoral administration that are particularly influenced by the increasing use of new technology. One key element of voter registration is the delimitation of electoral boundaries. As is the case with electoral administration, different approaches around the world are taken to the issue of drawing constituency boundaries. For example, some countries hand this task over to the representatives of politicians and political parties themselves in an effort to “balance” any outcomes between sides. In other countries, civil servants, judges or similar non-political appointments undertake the delimitation. Comparative experience strongly suggests best practice in this area is to make the delimitation process as transparent and independent of political pressures as possible. This usually means having an independent body comprised of neutral appointees, which conducts its hearings in public and is able to take submissions and other suggestions from all interested persons.
Voter registration involves collection of standardized information from eligible citizens, and collating the same in a manner that could facilitate voting during election. This ensures that only eligible voters participate in the process and within the provisions of the constitution. Additionally, it guards against cases of multiple voting and impersonation amongst other electoral malpractices. Their complexity and laborious nature makes an expensive process in addition to time consuming, and hence the need for assistance to the respective counties
Actual participation
Participation in assisting voter registration includes instituting a permanent or continuous electoral register. Particularly, one that is regularly updated to reflect population movements, new voters, and births and deaths, as opposed to registers that are periodically created for each election. As in the case of many other areas of electoral administration, the compilation and maintenance of an effective voter register lends itself readily to the application of new technology, particularly the computerization of electoral data.
Capacity
Having previously participated in similar exercises, experience and technical know-how makes it possible to implement the same activity within a short time at reduced costs.
Electoral administration
Some countries assign election administration responsibility within a government portfolio like the interior or home affairs ministry, while others situate this responsibility within other institutions of governance, such as the public records office, tax department, or even the postal service. Dedicated electoral management bodies (EMBs), where they exist, also feature important differences—some are temporary, others permanent; and some have a centralized structure, while others are decentralized. However, comparative experiences to date, and a global study sponsored and published by UNDP, emphasize that independent and permanent electoral management bodies represent a clear and good practice in terms of global electoral administration, where the associated short- to medium-term costs can be met, where such bodies enjoy public trust, and where they are stable. Their perceived independence from political interference lends credibility to the electoral process, which is a crucial determinant of the success of any election, and a core permanent and professional staff that grows in election years can, in the long run, be more cost-effective than an ad hoc or temporary one.
Actual participation
Given the risks and vulnerabilities described above, strengthening the capacity of electoral management bodies is one of UNDP’s major forms of electoral assistance, to help build sustainable democratic governance. In the electoral arena, it takes many shapes, including large-scale event planning, logistical support, and conflict-resolution training. But assistance to electoral management bodies can also expand to other areas of public administration not necessarily election-related, such as financial planning, budgeting, technical support, procurement, human resources, and strategic development.
Capability
The organization prides itself with experienced staff and lots of technical know-how.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is important to note that Elections and Political Processes Program in America is not about interferences with political processes of any nation, Argentina in this case but rather it focuses on expanding the democratic space. This, it basically does through increased enlightenment of the parties involved. Additionally, the group uses its broad network base to reach out to citizens who have lost interest in participating in the nation’s decision making. Through this, it expects to attain election outcomes which are representative of the face of the nation.
References
Collimore, R. (2008). The role of elections democracy. Journal of Democracy, 43(2), pp 567-572.
Ely, J. H. (1997). The Constitution of Deliberative Democracy. Barcelona: Gedisa, pp. 273.