Executive Summary—April 2004
THE NORTHERN IRELAND ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS—NOVEMBER
2003
This is the Commission's first report on a Northern
Ireland election. We have a statutory duty to report on the administration
of Northern Ireland Assembly elections. In reviewing this election,
the Commission has aimed to place the interests of the electorate
at the centre of its consideration. The November 2003 elecion
was the first election where the provisions of the Electoral Fraud
(Northern Ireland) Act 2002 were tested across Northern Ireland.
Our report contains a number of recommendations aimed at improving
the overall administration of elections in Northern Ireland.
ELECTION ADMINISTRATION
The postponement of the May elections, followed
by the decision to hold an election in the middle of the annual
registration period, caused major logistical difficulties for
the chief Electoral Officer and his staff. Work on the compilation
of the annual register had to be suspended while staff turned
their attention to the election.
The chief Electoral Officer feared that the
Electoral Office for Northern Ireland (EONI) would be unable to
retain sufficient people to staff the election. consequently a
number of staff recruited to work at the election were inexperienced
and some had received little or no training.
Following criticism after the 2001 combined
elections when a few hundred electors were refused a ballot paper
because of queues at the close of poll, the chief Electoral Officer
revised the polling station scheme, increasing both the number
of polling places and polling stations.
This initiative appears to have been relatively
successful with The Electoral commission electors and presiding
officers experiencing few difficulties with overcrowding and queuing.
However the significant reduction in the number of people voting
may have also contributed to this.
The main cause of complaint reported by presiding
officers was from people turning up to vote but refused a ballot
paper because their name was not on the electoral register. confusion
arose from the fact that many electors who had completed their
annual registration form in the weeks leading up to the election
assumed their name would be on the register and that they would
therefore be entitled to vote.
TURNOUT
There is a widely held perception that turnout
rates at elections in Northern Ireland are consistently high.
However, the reality is somewhat different.
Turnout at the November election was officially
recorded at 64%, representing a drop of six percentage points
from the 1998 Assembly election and four percentage points from
the 2001 election. In terms of votes polled, over 122,000 fewer
people voted in 2003 than in 1998 while the corresponding figure
for 2001 was 115,000. This represents a 15% reduction from 1998
in the number of people actually voting. In the report we explain
that comparing turnout before and after the introduction of individual
registration in 2002 gives a distorted picture because of the
decrease in numbers registered.
However, when turnout is measured against the
voting age population, it can be seen that just over hal (56%)
of those entitled to vote in Northern Ireland actually voted.
Even taking account of the time of year the election was held
and the problems encountered with the register, the overall drop
in turnout is a cause for concern.
PHOTOGRAPHIC IDENTIFICATION
For the first time all electors had to present
one of four forms of prescribed photographic identification before
being issued with a ballot paper. According to the EONI, 3,493
people turned up to vote without valid or current identification.
Overall, presiding officers reported that no significant problems
were encountered at polling stations with identification and this
aspect of the election appears to have gone well.
However we cannot be sure how many voters did
not turn out to vote because they possessed none of the four forms
of prescribed identification. We know from our public opinion
survey that 2% of those interviewed said they had not voted for
this reason. Some political parties felt the current forms of
prescribed identification were restrictive and should be expanded,
a view shared by Disability Action, the organisation who conducted
a polling place access audit on our behalf.
We do not share this view and believe that four
forms of identification prescribed in the legislation are sufficient
and do not need to be extended. However, opportunities to obtain
an electoral identity card, free of charge, must continue to be
made readily available.
ELECTORAL FRAUD
On the wider issue of electoral fraud, the commission
has received no evidence to suggest that this was an issue at
the election. Presiding officers, the police and the political
parties were in agreement on this point. The view generally expressed
was that individual registration and the requirement for photographic
identification had instilled greater confidence in the democratic
process in Northern Ireland.
We have previously highlighted the adverse impact
that individual registration appears to have had on disadvantaged,
marginalised and hard to reach groups, including young people
and people with disabilities.
ELECTION PROCEDURES
Despite the fact that the Single Transferable
Vote (STV) has been used in Northern Ireland for 30 years, over
10,200 invalid votes were cast at the election. According to EONI
statistics, the vast majority of ballot papers were spoiled because
of a lack of understanding of the STV system of voting. This highlights
the need for continued voter education and awarpness of electoral
systems.
The levels of privacy and secrecy of thftpoq
were also. highlighted as being far from ideal, with many of the
difficulties encountered linked to the design of the new polling
booths. Access to polling places for older people and people with
disabilities was considered inadequate, although problems were
exacerbated by holding the election in late November.
We concluded that there shouid be a wide-ranging
review of the systems and procedures used at the counts and that
the electronic counting of votes should be explored. The media
encountered significant difficulties in reporting at the counts
and felt their role was not fully understood or appreciated. Comparisons
with access granted to the media elsewhere in the UK and the RepublIc
of Ireland supports this assertion and highlights the need for
new arrangements to be established between the media and the EONI.
The counting of votes was judged by many external
observers to be a long and laborious exercise that was neither
transparent nor in some cases particulariy well managed. The Commission.
shares these concerns but acknowledges that no political party
or candidate questioned the validity of the results either during
or after the counts.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The build-up
— In order to maintain public confidence
in the integrity of elections in Northern Ireland, we recommend
that statutory dates set inadvance for elections be changed only
in exceptional circumstances.
— To avoid confusion about whether
people are registered to vote we recommend to Government that
elections are not held during the annual canvass period.
— We recommend that the Government
should amend the law so that the timeframe for including names
on the register be moved closer to election day.
— We recommend that the Government
should amend the law so that the timetable for future elections
to the Northern Ireland Assembly is set at 25 days.
— We recommend that the review of the
Northern Ireland Assembly Disqualification Act 1975 is completed
by the Secretary of State.
— We will examine the application of
the disqualification legislation across the UK within the current
legal framework and will make recommendations to Government.
— We recommend to the EONI that all
communications to electors cleariy identify the name and address
of the sender.
— We recommend that the EONI conducts
a regular revision of its polling station scheme.Consultees should
be given at least eight weeks to respond to the proposals outlined
in the consultation paper.
— We will conduct a review of absent
voting in Northern Ireland and will make recomendations to the
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
— The EONI, in conjunction with the
Northern Ireland Office (NIO), should conduct a review of the
current arrangements for recruiting, retaining and paying staff
for election duty.
— We recommend that the EONI should
be funded by the NIO to employ a dedicated training officer to
work with all staff. We recommend that all presiding officers
and poll clerks, especially newly appointed staff, be given comprehensive
training in the practicalities of running a polling station.
Public awareness and participation
— Given the concerns raised by the
EONI we will conduct a review of the helpline and consider how
best this service can be provided to the public in future.
— We will take steps to ensure (that
the electorate is better informed about the arrangements for absent
voting.
— We will increase our efforts to promote
greater awareness and understanding of individual registration
and the requirement for photographic identification.
Polling day
— We recommend to the EONI that for
future elections polling clerks should be instructed to turn up
for duty at the same time as presiding officers in order to avoid
any potential delay in the opening of the poll.
— Given that so many primary schools
in Northern Ireland are considered inaccessible to people with
disabilities, consideration should be given to alternative venues
for polling places.
— Prior to election day the EONI should
conduct an access audit of polling places in order to identify
access issues that may prevent people with disabilities from voting.
— The EONI should consult with local
disability groups about the measures needed to ensure local polling
places are made more accessible.
— We will undertake a UK-wide review
of the use of tendered ballot papers and will make recommendations
on their future use at elections.
— We reaffirm our recommendation that
the Government should amend the law to allow for the introduction
of watermarks on ballot papers.
— We reaffirm our recommendation that
guidance notes explaining the voting system be available both
at polling stations and on ballot papers.
— We recommend that the EONI continues
to liaise with manufacturers of voting equipment about the development
of appropriate devices for people with visual impairments to use
at STV elections.
— We will conduct a UK-wide policy
review of the current assistance provided to voters in polling
statlons and will make recommendations.
— We recommend that the EONI should
review the current layout of polling places to ensure the secrecy
of the ballot is maintained and enhanced.
— We recommend to the EONI that estimated
figures on turnout be made routinely available on request to candidates
and agents during election day by presiding officers.
— We recommend to the Government that
the law be amended for all UK elections to enable voters present
inside polling places at the close of poll to be issued with a
ballot paper.
— We recommend that the EONI should
develop and make available a complaints leaflet for use by presiding
officers in polling places.
— We will undertake a UK-wide review
of the role and function of polling agents and will make recommendations.
The count and thereafter
— We recommend that the EONI reviews
the current location and suitability of count venues.
— We recommend that external consultants
be appointed to conduct a review of the entire count process with
the aim of increasing its efficiency and timeliness. The review
should also consider the scope for computerising all or part of
the count.
— We recommend that steps should be
taken to ensure that the transparency of the count is enhanced.
— We recommend that the EONI explores
ways of making greater use of information technology at STV counts.
We further recommend that the NIO put in place the necessary statutory
provisions to ensure that the EONI is in a position to conduct
a number of pilots in respect of electronic counting at the 2005
local council elections.
— We recommend to the EONI that it
convenes a working group involving broadcasters, the Commission
and other interested stakeholders with a view to developing and
putting in place a code of good practice on media access for use
at future elections in Northern Ireland.
Looking forward
— In order to benchmark performance
and identify funding issues we recommend that an audit of the
efficiency, economy and effectiveness of the EONI be conducted
by the National Audit Office.
— We strongly urge the Secretary of
State for Northern Ireland to take forward the recommendations
outlined in our 2003 report Funding electoral services.
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