System of Procedures for Local Council Elections No.(6) of 2011

The Cabinet,

 

Having reviewed:

The amended Basic Law of 2003, especially Article 70 thereof,

Local Council Elections Law No.(10) of 2005, especially Article 70 thereof,

Law No. (12) of 2005, amending some provisions of Local Council Elections Law No.(10) of 2005, especially Article 5 thereof,

and Cabinet Decision No.(44) of 2005 on the issuance of a System of Procedures for the Local Council Elections of 2005,

and based on:

The recommendation of the Central Elections Commission,

that which the Cabinet has approved in its session held on 28/3/2011,

and the powers invested in us by law,

and for the sake of public interest;

the cabinet has devised the following system:

 

Article (1)

Definitions

The following words and phrases shall have the following definitions, unless otherwise stated:

Law: Local Council Elections Law No.(10) of 2005 and its amendments

Commission: the Central Elections Commission

Electoral List: the political parties, movements, coalitions, or groups formed of citizens eligible to run for local elections

Representation of Women: the minimum representation of women in a closed electoral list and in a local council.

Muslim-Christian Quota: the number of locality seats allocated to each religion– Islam and Christianity– according to Presidential Decree.

Sainte-Laguë method: a method used for calculating results and distributing seats by proportional representation.

Closed list: the list of the names of the candidates, submitted by an electoral list, in sequential order.

 

Article (2)

Representation of Women in Electoral Lists

1. To register the nomination of an electoral list of more than five candidates in localities whose seats number thirteen or less; a minimum of two female candidates are required, according to the order in the elections law.

2. To register the nomination of an electoral list of more than ten candidates in localities whose seats number fifteen; a minimum of three female candidates are required, according to the order in the elections law.

 

Article (3)

Winning by Acclamation

If by the end of the nomination period, only one list–composed of a number of candidates equal to the total number of council seats in that locality and which meets the requirements for representation of women and the Muslim-Christian quota–has registered; no elections will be held in that locality. The registered list wins by acclamation.

 

Article (4)

Distribution of Seats

1. In the event that the number of seats won by an electoral list is greater than the number of candidates in the closed list, the remaining seats are given to the next list according to the results of the division.

2. In the event that two lists get the same result after division upon the distribution of the first seat, CEC will cast a lot to determine which list will win the first seat.

 

Article (5)

Representation of Women in the Result

If, after applying the Sainte-Laguë method, the requirement for the representation of women is not met; the last winning candidate in the list which won the last seat is substituted with the first non winning female candidate from the same list. The same process is repeated until the quota is met.

 

Article (6)

Distribution of Seats in Constituencies Subject to the Muslim-Christian Quota

1. The Sainte-Laguë method shall be applied to determine the distribution of seats in the constituencies subject to the Muslim-Christian quota, according to the law.

2. The seats are allocated to the candidates of the lists according to the division results, up to the maximum number of seats designated for Muslims and Christians in accordance with the Presidential Decree issued on this regard.

3. When the maximum limit of seats designated for one religion has been reached, the remaining candidates of the same religion shall be excluded.

4. When applying article (5) of this procedure, the woman must be of the same religion of the man she replaces.

5. In the event that there remains in the closed list no female candidate of the same religion as the last winning man, then the first remaining female candidate shall replace the last winning male of her religion from the same list.

6. In the event that the religion of all winning male candidates in the list differs from the religion of all non winning female candidates in that list, the substitution occurs from within the list that won the previous seat; following the same technique.

 

Article (7)

Postponement of Elections

The Cabinet may decide to postpone the elections for a maximum of four weeks, based on a request from the CEC, in the following conditions:

a. If the number of candidates is less than the number of council seats in a given locality.

b. If the number of candidates doesn’t meet the Muslim-Christian quota.

 

Article (8)

Re-run of Elections

The cabinet may, based on a request from the CEC, issue a decision to hold new elections in one or more councils within a month if the results show that of the candidates of all the lists which crossed the threshold percentage of votes does not fulfill clause (a) and/or clause (b) of article (7) of this system.

 

Article (9)

Postponement and Re-run of Elections

1. If the elections are postponed, according to article (7) of this system, the elections process will be repeated starting from the nomination phase.

2. If results show that the reasons behind the postponement or repeat elections persist, according to articles (7) and (8) of this system, the Ministry of Local Government assigns a commission to run the local council, taking into consideration the representation of women and the Muslim-Christian quota.

 

Article (10)

Vacancy

1. In such case as a local council seat becomes vacant after the announcement of the final results, causing that council to fall short of the requirements for the representation of women, and there is no female remaining on the same list to fill the vacancy, it will be filled with a male from the same list. If there is no remaining candidate from the same list, the seat will be given to the next list according to the division results, taking into consideration the Islamic- Christian quota.

2. In such case as a local council seat becomes vacant after the announcement of the final results, causing that council to fall short of the Muslim-Christian quota, the regulations in article (6) are applied. If there is no remaining candidate of the same religion to fill the vacancy, it is filled according to the results, regardless of religion.

  

Article (11)

Annulment

1. Cabinet Decision No.(44) of 2005 issuing System of Procedures for Local Council Elections is hereby annulled.

2. All that which is in conflict with this system is hereby annulled.

 

 

Article (12)

Implementation and Validity

All concerned bodies–each within its jurisdiction–shall implement the regulations of this system. This system comes into force as of its publication in the official gazette.

 

 

 

Issued in the city of Ramallah on 28/3/2011

 

Salam Fayyad

Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority