Electoral Commission (Ireland)

An independent electoral commission is planned by the current Irish government to oversee the conduct of all elections in the state. This responsibility is at present distributed among various government departments, statutory agencies and components of the Oireachtas (parliament). The previous (2011–2016) government similarly planned an electoral commission, which was not implemented.

History

An electoral commission was recommended by several official reports, including the Second Report (2006) of the Commission on Electronic Voting.[1] Private member's bills to establish an electoral commission were introduced by Ciarán Lynch in 2008 and 2012.[2]

In 2008, the then Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government commissioned and published a study on introducing an electoral commission, carried out by academics from University College Dublin.[3] After the 2011 general election, the Fine Gael and Labour parties formed a coalition government whose programme included a commitment to establish an electoral commission.[4] Such a commission was also recommended in the Constitutional Convention's 2013 report on the system of elections to Dáil Éireann (lower house of the Oireachtas),[5] which was also endorsed the government.[6] Alan Kelly, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, outlined progress of the plan in Seanad Éireann (upper house of the Oireachtas) in December 2014,[7][8] The government published a consultation paper in January 2015, and said it intended to introduce a bill in the Oireachtas in 2015.[9] The Oireachtas Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht discussed the plan with Alan Kelly on 10 March 2015. Kelly stated that drafting the enabling bill would begin when the committee had consulted and reported back to him, that he expected the bill to be enacted by the end of 2015, that the commission would not be established before the next general election, and that functions should be assigned to it on a phased basis.[10] In April 2015 the committee invited submissions on the government's consultation paper from interest groups,[11] and held hearings with them in June and July.[12] The committee's report was launched on 14 January 2016.[13]

After the 2016 general election, a minority coalition government was formed by Fine Gael and independents with confidence and supply support from Fianna Fáil. Its programme commits to establishing an electoral commission "independent of Government and directly accountable to the Oireachtas".[14][15] The government's September 2016 list of planned legislation includes the Electoral Commission Bill in the Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government's "medium and long term" plans.[16] In June 2017, the Department was preparing a Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA).[17] In October 2017, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said there was "no timeframe" for establishing the commission and it was "very much a long-term project".[18] In September 2018 John Paul Phelan, Minister of State for Local Government and Electoral Reform, gave an update to the Seanad. He said a priority was "modernisation" of the electoral register, which different local authorities had been maintaining in divergent manners; this would take "two to three years", involve "significant public consultation",[19] and proceed separately from work on an Electoral Commission.[20] The Electoral Commission RIA published in November 2018 compared four implementation strategies.[21] The ensuing public consultation received 23 submissions by the closing date of 15 March 2019.[20][22] In July 2019 Phelan said work was commencing on drafting the General Scheme of an Electoral Commission Bill.[23]

Possible functions

The Constitutional Convention took the Australian Electoral Commission and UK Electoral Commission as case studies of possible models for the Irish body.[24] The various official reports list functions which might be performed by the commission, and notes who is currently responsible for them.

FunctionCurrently done bySuggested by[n 1] Notes
Referendum campaigns Referendum Commission DECLG, Oir, PFG, RIA The Referendum Commission could be a subsection of the Electoral Commission
Constituency boundaries Constituency Commission and Local Electoral Area Boundary Committees DECLG, Oir, RIA
Voter education and participation "Generally absent"[26] DECLG, Oir, PFG, RIA The 2016 government programme says the commission should "look at ways to increase participation in our political process through voter education and turnout".[14]
Returning officers County registrars and sheriffs DECLG, RIA The RIA suggested existing returning officers would continue, under supervision from the Electoral Commission.
Maintaining the electoral register Local authorities and the Franchise Section of the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government DECLG, Oir, PFG, RIA The Personal Public Service Number system might be used to add people to the electoral register automatically once they reached voting age.[14]
Monitoring of campaign financing Standards in Public Office Commission DECLG, Oir, PFG, RIA
Maintaining the register of political parties Clerk of the Dáil DECLG, Oir, PFG, RIA
Elections to the Seanad Vocational panel elections are overseen by the clerk of the Seanad; elections for NUI and Dublin U are overseen by respective universities DECLG The working group established after the defeat of the 2013 Seanad abolition referendum reported in 2015 on proposed reforms, which included radical changes in the Seanad electoral system and the creation of a "Seanad Electoral Commission" to oversee this.[27][28] The working group's report recognised that the Electoral Commission already proposed by the government would, if established, make a separate Seanad Electoral Commission unnecessary.[27]
Policy, strategy, and research Franchise Section Oir, RIA The Oireachtas report emphasises independent research. The 2018 report of the Interdepartmental Group on the Security of Ireland's Electoral Process and Disinformation suggested some policy functions would remain within the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government.[29]
Publication of results Returning officers, Franchise Section Oir, RIA Returning officers publish summaries in Iris Oifigiúil shortly after the poll; the Department publishes detailed results later. The Oireachtas report addresses real-time official publication online.
Standards for electronic voting N/A Recommended in 2005 by the Commission on Electronic Voting formed after the abortive 2003 e-voting trial.[1]
Countering electoral fraud, post-truth politics, foreign electoral intervention The 2018 report of the Interdepartmental Group on the Security of Ireland's Electoral Process and Disinformation foresees a role for the Electoral Commission.[29]
Notes
  1. DECLG = Consultation paper 2015;[25] Oir = Oireachtas committee report 2016, pp.iii–iv, 34–35; PFG = Programme for Government 2016 pp.152–3;[14] RIA = Summary of Regulatory Impact Analysis, p.6 §1.1

References
  • "Consultation Paper on the Establishment of an Electoral Commission in Ireland" (PDF). Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government (DECLG). 27 January 2015. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  • "Fourth Report: Dáil Electoral System". Constitutional Convention. August 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 July 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  • Oireachtas Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht (13 January 2016). "Report of the Joint Committee on the Consultation on the Proposed Electoral Commission 2016" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  • Franchise Section, Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government (18 November 2018). "Proposed functions of the Electoral Commission and associated costs: Summary of Regulatory Impact Analysis" (PDF).CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

Citations
  1. Commission on Electronic Voting (July 2006). Second Report; on the Secrecy, Accuracy and Testing of the Chosen Electronic Voting System (PDF). Dublin: Stationery Office. p. 206, R.41.
  3. Sinnott, Richard; John Coakley; John O’Dowd; James McBride (November 2008). "Preliminary study on the establishment of an Electoral Commission in Ireland" (PDF). Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 November 2013. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  4. DECLG 2015, p.5
  5. Constitutional Convention 2013, p.9
  6. "Fourth Report of the Constitutional Convention on the Dáil Electoral System: Statements (Continued)". Dáil Éireann debates. 18 December 2014. p. 47. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  7. ""Progress on the Establishment of Independent Electoral Commission" Speech by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Alan Kelly T.D." MerrionStreet.ie. Government of Ireland. 17 December 2014. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  8. "Electoral Commission: Motion". Seanad Éireann debates. 17 December 2014. p. 24. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
  9. Kehoe, Paul (14 January 2015). "Section C: Bills in respect of which heads have yet to be approved by Government" (PDF). Government Legislation Programme: Spring/Summer Session 2015. p. 13. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
  10. "Electoral Commission: Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government". Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht proceedings. Oireachtas. 10 March 2015. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
  11. Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht (30 April 2015). "Have your say: Environment Committee seeks submissions on Electoral Commission" (Press release). Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  12. Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht Electoral Commission in Ireland: Discussion; 16 June 2015 23 June 2015 30 June 2015 7 July 2015 14 July 2015
  13. "11–15 January 2016". This Week in the Houses of the Oireachtas. Oireachtas. January 2016. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 12 January 2016. Report Launch / Report on the Consultation on the Proposed Electoral Commission 2016 /Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht / Audio Visual Room, LH2000, on Thursday, 14 January 2016 at 11 a.m.
  14. "A Programme for a Partnership Government" (PDF). Government of Ireland. 11 May 2016. pp. 152–3. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
  15. Coveney, Simon (5 Jul 2016). "Written answers: Electoral Commission Establishment". Dáil debates. KildareStreet.com. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
  16. "Legislation Programme Autumn 2016" (PDF). Office of the Government Chief Whip. 27 September 2016. pp. 6, 24. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
  17. "Electoral Commission Establishment". Written answers. KildareStreet.com. 13 Jul 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
  18. "Questions on Promised Legislation". Dáil debates. KildareStreet.com. 4 Oct 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
  19. "Electoral Commission: Statements". Seanad debates. kildarestreet.com. 27 September 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  20. "Parliamentary Questions: Election Management System". 32nd Dáil proceedings. Oireachtas. 11 June 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  21. Stuart-Mills, Ian (29 November 2018). "Public Consultation on a Regulatory Impact Analysis on the Establishment of an Electoral Commission". Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  22. "Public Consultation Responses for Public Consultation on a Regulatory Impact Analysis on the Establishment of an Electoral Commission". Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  23. Thornton, Gareth (19 July 2019). "Government Approval for the Establishment of an Electoral Commission" (Press release). Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  24. Constitutional Convention 2013, pp.62–63, 77
  25. DECLG 2015, p.17
  26. Oireachtas committee report 2016 p.173
  27. Working Group on Seanad Reform (April 2015). "Report" (PDF). Department of the Taoiseach. p. 37. Retrieved 13 May 2015. The Working Group recognises that the Electoral Commission, to be established by the Government, would have responsibility far beyond Seanad Elections and in that regard that the Interim body and its functions would be subsumed into the wider Electoral Commission.
  28. Working Group on Seanad Reform (5 May 2015). "Part 8: Seanad Electoral Commission" (PDF). Seanad Bill 2015 [draft]. Department of the Taoiseach. pp. 24–25. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
  29. "Government publishes first Report of the Interdepartmental Group on security of Ireland's Electoral Process and Disinformation". merrionstreet.ie (Press release). 17 July 2018. Retrieved 19 July 2019.; Interdepartmental Group on security of Ireland's Electoral Process and Disinformation (17 July 2018). "Appendix 3. Electoral Commission". First Report (PDF). pp. 30–31. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
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