Insuring a Fair and Open Election Process

Requiring that data on critical pre-election processes, such as delimitation of election districts and related census data, voter registration and voter registries and candidate/party ballot qualification, be made timely available for scrutiny and claims for remedies by persons with a direct interest and impartial election monitors.

All state-owned and controlled mass communications media should remain impartial toward all electoral contestants; include sanctions for non-compliance; provide that data collected by governmental agencies that may monitor the media be made publicly and timely available, and provide that public requests for information from state-owned or controlled media and media monitoring agencies shall receive timely responses.

Providing a mechanism for complaints, review and sanction concerning any government employee who uses governmental office, resources or employee time to pursue the advantage or disadvantage of an electoral contestant, and require timely public reports on the number, nature and disposition of such complaints.

Enforcing the criminal liability for any one, including government employees, acting in a manner that violates the rights of prospective voters or electoral contestants (including through bribery, threats of political retribution concerning jobs, scholarships or service provision, violence, threats of violence or other forms of coercion), and require timely public reports on the number, nature and disposition of such cases.

Provide the Impartial Bodies that manage elections with the powers and the financial resources to investigate on their own initiative possibilities of misfeasance and malfeasance by electoral officials, including any action that could affect an electoral outcome.