IMAGE: Namibia Fact Check
With elections approaching it is important to have easy access to the law and regulations around elections and electoral issues
Namibia is six months away from parliamentary and presidential elections scheduled for late November.
However, many Namibians still do not have easy access to the law and regulations that guide how elections are conducted and how electoral affairs are governed.
The website of the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) has a section titled ‘Legislative Framework’, but this merely provides a brief overview of what the mandate of the commission is, without actually linking to the Electoral Act of 2014. In fact, nowhere on the ECN website are there links to the law or the regulations that go with it.
Recently, everything from political party funding and finances to voter registration, as well as the registration status of political parties, have been in the news. This is to be expected considering that 2024 could turn out to be a significant election year and so there appears to be heightened interest in the upcoming elections.
Against this backdrop, in order for Namibians to be able to assess whether elections and electoral processes in general are properly handled and governed, there needs to be easy access to the legal framework.
Click on the following link for access to:
- The Electoral Act 5 of 2014 as amended by the Electoral Amendment Act 17 of 2023.
Click on the following links for access to the regulations that speak to different sections of the law:
- Regulations relating to Authorisation Voting and Announcement of Results of Elections.
- Regulations relating to Nominations of Candidates for Elections.
- Regulations relating to Declaration of Assets and Liabilities of Political Parties and Disclosure of Foreign and Domestic Financing of Political Parties, Organisations, Members or Other Persons.
- Regulations relating to Registration of Voters, Political Parties or Organisations.
- Regulations relating to Use of Voting Machines at Elections: Electoral Act, 1992.