official translation
REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA
LAW
ON PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS
(As Amended by 25 November 1997, No.VIII-543)
I. General Provisions
Article 1. The Basis for Elections of the President of the Republic
The President of the Republic shall be elected by the citizens of the Republic of Lithuania for a five-year term on the basis of universal, equal and direct suffrage and by secret ballot.
Article 2. The Right to Candidacy for the Office of President of the Republic
Any person who is a citizen of the Republic of Lithuania by birth, who has lived in Lithuania for at least the past three years, provided he has reached the age of 40 prior to the election day, and provided he is eligible for election to Seimas member may be elected President of the Republic.
The same individual may be eligible to the office of the President of the Republic for not more than two terms.
Article 21. Information about Relations with Foreign Special Services (Structures)
After the Central Electoral Committee has adopted a decision to issue an individual who nominates himself or is nominated as a candidate for President of the Republic with forms for the collection of voter signatures, he must, before he is registered as a candidate for President of the Republic, furnish the Central Electoral Committee with information about his work with the NKVD, NKGB, MGB, KGB of the USSR or other Soviet republics as well as with other corresponding services (structures) of other foreign states, studying at schools of said services (structures) or about collaboration with said services (structures). An individual who nominates himself or is nominated as a candidate for President of the Republic shall enter this information into a questionnaire. The following data must be indicated in the questionnaire: name and subordination of the service (structure), individual’s office, title, class, rank and functions, time and place of work or studies, awards. The Central Electoral Committee shall determine the form of a questionnaire. Data contained in the questionnaire shall be accessible to the public. If an individual who nominates himself or is nominated as a candidate for President of the Republic indicates the information specified in this paragraph of the Article in a questionnaire, the Central Electoral Committee must publicise such questionnaire within 24 hours following submitting thereof.
If an individual who nominates himself or is nominated as a candidate for President of the Republic has not submitted to the Central Electoral Committee a filled-in questionnaire prior to registration as a candidate for President of the Republic, the Committee shall make this fact public not later than within 24 hours after the individual has been registered as a candidate for President of the Republic.
A candidate for President of the Republic must announce about his work, studying or collaboration with the services (structures) specified in paragraph 1 of this Article, in his every video or audio election campaign material.
If the Central Electoral Committee receives information in writing that the data provided in a questionnaire are wrongful, concealed or that a filled-in questionnaire has not been submitted, as well as that an individual who nominates himself or is nominated as a candidate for President of the Republic or a candidate for President of the Republic worked, studied in the services (structures) specified in paragraph 1 of this Article, collaborated with them, and establishes that the data related to this fact are not included in a questionnaire, it must within 48 hours notify an individual who nominates himself or is nominated as a candidate for President of the Republic or a candidate for President of the Republic about the received information and offer him to provide explanations.
If an individual who nominates himself or is nominated as a candidate for President of the Republic or a candidate for President of the Republic agrees to the information received by the Central Electoral Committee, he shall without delay write down additionally this information in his questionnaire, and in the event a questionnaire has not been filled in, must fill it in - write down the indicated information. The Central Electoral Committee must not later than within 24 hours publicly announce this information.
If an individual who nominates himself or is nominated as a candidate for President of the Republic or a candidate for President of the Republic does not agree to the information received by the Central Electoral Committee, does not arrive at the Central Electoral Committee when invited or refuses to provide explanations regarding the received information, the Central Electoral Committee may, if necessary, approach the persons who provided said information, as well as other institutions or organisations, requesting to provide additional data or documents.
Upon having considered the received information, the Central Electoral Committee must adopt one of the following decisions:
2) to apply to the Vilnius county court with a request to establish a fact that an individual who nominates himself or is nominated as a candidate for President of the Republic or a candidate for President of the Republic has included in a questionnaire the wrongful data about his work, studying or collaboration with the services (structures) specified in paragraph 1 of this Article or has concealed these data.
In all cases the Central Electoral Committee must, not later than within 5 working days after the receipt of information, adopt a decision and to publicise it within 24 hours following its adoption.
The court shall within 72 hours consider a request of the Central Electoral Committee and shall make a ruling which becomes effective from the moment it has been announced.
The Central Electoral Committee shall within 24 hours publicly announce the ruling.
If the Central Electoral Committee receives the information specified in paragraph 1 of this Article later than 12 days left before the election, a candidate for President of the Republic is not notified about this information, and the Central Electoral Committee shall not consider it.
The Central Electoral Committee may publicly announce the fact established by the court not later than 72 hours left before the beginning of voting.
The term “collaboration” used in paragraph 1 of this Article is defined in Article 5
Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Review of Mandates of Deputies who are Suspected of Collaboration with Special Services of other States (Žin., 1992, No.1-1).
Article 3. Universal Suffrage
Citizens of the Republic of Lithuania who on the day of the election are 18 years of age or over shall have the right to vote for the President of the Republic. Citizens who have been declared incapable by court shall not participate in elections.
Any direct or indirect abridgement of a citizen of the Republic of Lithuania's right to vote on the grounds of their sex race nationality language descent, social status, religion, convictions, or views shall be prohibited.
Article 4. Equal Suffrage
Every citizen of the Republic of Lithuania who has the right to vote for the President of the Republic shall have one vote in the election.
Article 5. Direct Election of the President of the Republic
Voters shall elect the President of the Republic without mediators.
Article 6. Secret Ballot
Voters shall vote in person and by secret ballot. Controlling the will of the voters in the election shall be prohibited.
Article 7. Making Public the Preparation and Execution of Elections
State institutions and electoral committees shall prepare and conduct the elections of the President of the Republic publicly. Public notice must be given of all events (meetings, sessions) related to the organisation of elections at least 12 hours prior to the commencement of the event.
The electoral committees shall inform the citizens about their work; the formation of electoral districts (apylinkė); the composition of electoral committees, their location and business hours; the lists of voters; the results of candidate registration to the post of the President of the Republic; and the voting and election results.
The state mass media shall inform the public about the preparation and execution of the elections of the President of the Republic.
Representatives of all mass media shall have the right to unrestricted participation in all events organised by the electoral committees, attendance of all electoral committee sittings, as well as the acquisition of information from the electoral committees concerning the preparation and execution of the elections.
Article 8. Expenditures Related to the Preparation and Execution of the Elections
The expenses related to the preparation and execution of the elections of the President of the Republic shall be covered by the State and local authorities. The expenditures of electoral committees related to organisation and execution of elections and the work of the members of electoral committees and the service staff shall be paid with public funds. Maintenance of premises of the headquarters of electoral committees of towns, regions and districts, expenditures related to acquisition and keeping of the equipment of polling places shall be paid with local authority funds. If a local authority does not provide adequate premises or equipment for an electoral district headquarters and polling places, public funds shall be used for this at the decision of the Central Electoral Committee. In this event the actual expenses relating to polling places and equipment shall, within 2 months after the election, be exacted by the Central Electoral Committee from the local authority without suit.
II. Organisation of Elections
Article 9. Formation of Electoral Districts
Taking into consideration the convenience for a voter to reach a polling place and the number of voters, territories of towns and regions shall be divided into electoral districts.
The division of the territory of a town, region into electoral districts shall be approved and changed by the Central Electoral Committee on the recommendation of the mayor. The Central Electoral Committee shall publish in the Valstybės žinios a list of approved electoral districts, and changes made therein.
No more than 5,000 voters may reside in the territory of an electoral district.
The boundaries of an electoral district, the address of a polling place shall be changed when necessary, but no later than 100 days prior to the election. In the recommendation to approve the division of the territory of a local authority into electoral districts, the town, region mayor shall specify the following: a proposed name of an electoral district, addresses falling within an electoral district, number of voters in the formed district, address and telephone number of a polling place. Changes which are proposed to be made shall be specified in the recommendation to change the division of the territory of a local authority into electoral districts. No later than 100 prior to the election the mayor shall also inform the Central Electoral Committee about new addresses, changed addresses or addresses which are no longer existent, as well as approve the addresses and telephone numbers of polling places.
Article 10. Electoral Committees
The elections of the President of the Republic shall be organised and conducted by:
3) the electoral committees of electoral districts.
Members of electoral committees may not be candidates to the office of President of the Republic or agents of such candidates.
A citizen of the Republic of Lithuania may be proposed to the electoral committee provided he has the right to be elected as Seimas member (without taking into consideration the minimum age limit set for a candidate for Seimas member, but who is not younger than 18 years of age on the election day) and has not been previously removed from an electoral committee due to the violations of laws on elections or referendum.
Article 11. Repealed 19 September 1996
Article 12. The Powers of the Central Electoral Committee
When organising elections of the President of the Republic, the Central Electoral Committee shall:
2) register candidates to the office of the President of the Republic and issue them presidential candidacy certificates;
3) establish the samples and forms of ballot-papers and other documents used during the elections, as well as packages, stamps, and samples for their completion, and the procedure for sealing ballot-papers;
6) consider complaints concerning decisions of town, region electoral committees and electoral committees of electoral districts;
9) hand over the documents of the elections of the President of the Republic to the State Archive for keeping; and
10) execute other powers provided for in this Law.
The Central Electoral Committee may not interpret the provisions of this Law. If it is necessary to do so, the Central Electoral Committee shall appeal to the Seimas for the amendment of this Law. The Seimas shall consider questions submitted by the Central Electoral Committee according to the procedure of particular urgency.
Article 13. Formation of Town, region Electoral Committees
The Central Electoral Committee shall for the period of elections form town, region electoral committees no later than 85 days prior to the elections.
Town, region electoral committees shall be composed of:
1) two persons who reside or work in that town, region, have higher legal education, and who are nominated by the Minister of Justice;
2) two persons who reside or work in that town, region, have higher legal education, and who are nominated by the Lithuanian Lawyers' Society;
3) one public servant of “B” level who works in that town, region (one from every town, region), who is nominated by the mayor of that town, region; and
4) persons nominated by parties, political organisations which have received the mandates of Seimas member in the multi-candidate electoral area.
The Minister of Justice, the Lithuanian Lawyers' Society and the town, region mayor may propose more candidates.
Parties, political organisations which have received the mandates of Seimas member in the multi-candidate electoral area pursuant to the list of candidates (joint list) nominated in this electoral area shall each have the right to propose two representatives from this single list of candidates (joint list) nominated in the electoral area to town, region electoral committees. If the representatives meet the requirements of this Law, the Central Electoral Committee may not reject said candidates. In the event that candidates have not been proposed, the Central Electoral Committee may additionally appoint as members of the Committee candidatures who are proposed by the Minister of Justice, the Lithuanian Lawyers' Society or town, region mayor.
In all cases, persons who have been appointed to town, region electoral committees from the candidates proposed by the Minister of Justice, the Lithuanian Lawyers' Society and the town, region mayor must make up at least 1/3 of all the Committee members. If these people make up less than 1/3 of the Committee, the Committee shall be enlarged from the candidates proposed by the Minister of Justice, the Lithuanian Lawyers' Society or the town, region mayor.
If elections to the Seimas or elections of the President of the Republic, or elections to a municipal council, or a referendum are concurrently held on the same day, the same electoral committees of electoral districts or referendum committees shall be formed. The Central Electoral Committee shall form a single - town, region, electoral area or referendum - committee in a separate electoral, referendum territory and shall establish its functions in organising and carrying other elections or a referendum.
The Central Electoral Committee shall appoint the chairman of a town, region electoral committee.
Article 14. The Powers of Town, region Electoral Committees
The town region electoral committee shall:
1) in the manner prescribed by the Central Electoral Committee, inform the voters who reside in a town, region about the boundaries of the electoral districts, the headquarters, working hours and polling places;
4) distribute the funds allocated for elections to electoral committees of electoral districts, control utilisation of said funds and account to the Central Electoral Committee for the funds utilised for the elections;
6) make up a list of health care, social guardianship and care institutions, military units and places of confinement situated in the territory of a town, region, and together with the head of the post office have care of the organisation of voting by post in those places;
7) draw up the vote calculation records of a town, region, establish election results and transfer them to the Central Electoral Committee for approval;
8) consider complaints against decisions and actions of the electoral committees of electoral districts and adopt decisions concerning them; and
Article 15. Formation of Electoral Committees of Electoral Districts
No later than 75 days prior to the election, a town, region electoral committee shall establish the number of the members of the electoral committees of each electoral district, which must be a multiple of the number of the parties and political organisations which have the right to nominate candidates for electoral committees. If the number of proposed candidates is insufficient or there is a vacancy in the committee, the mayor of a municipality in the territory whereof the electoral district is formed may propose the lacking candidates.
The following shall be entitled to propose the same number of candidates for an electoral committee of an electoral district:
1) each party, political organisation or their coalition which received the mandates of Seimas member in a multi-candidate electoral area during the last elections to the Seimas. If the party, political organisation received the mandates of Seimas member when being in the coalition, it may propose candidates together with organisations which participated in the coalition;
2) the party, political organisation or their coalition which received the mandates of councillor from the list of nominated candidates (joint list) in the elections to a municipal council. If the party or political organisation received the mandates of councillor when being in the coalition, it may propose candidates together with the organisations which participated in said coalition.
If the party, political organisation may propose candidates according to the results both of the election to the Seimas and of the election to a municipal council, it shall propose candidates according to only one of these election results, by preference. If one of the organisations which took part in the election coalition, does not propose candidates or refuses to propose them, or chooses to propose according to other than the coalition was formed election results, other organisations which took part in said coalition shall have a right to propose candidates without its presence.
Parties, political organisations shall submit their lists of candidates for a town, region electoral committee no later than 62 days prior to the elections.
Town, region electoral committees shall for the period of elections form electoral committees of electoral districts no later than 60 days prior to the elections. If a candidate meets the requirements set forth in this Law, the town, region electoral committee may not reject the candidate.
If no candidates have been proposed or the proposed candidates do not meet the requirements of this Law, or they have been proposed after the set period of time, a town, region electoral committee may alter the earlier established number of the members of the electoral committee of an electoral district or to address the mayor to present the lacking number of candidates for electoral committees of electoral districts. The candidates proposed by the mayor may not be the members of parties, political organisations or to become such members prior to the expiration of the powers of a member of an electoral committee. If during a sitting not less than three members of the town, region electoral committee, while appointing a member of the electoral committee of an electoral district, object to the appointment of the candidate, proposed by the mayor, to be a member of the electoral committee of an electoral district, this candidate may not be appointed a member of the committee.
Town, region electoral committees shall appoint the chairmen of electoral committees of electoral districts.
During its first sitting the electoral committee of an electoral district shall elect a deputy chairman and a secretary of the committee.
Article 16. The Powers of Electoral Committees of Electoral Districts
The electoral committee of the electoral district:
1) shall receive electoral district voter lists from the town, region electoral committee, provide conditions for electors, representatives for elections to familiarise themselves with said lists, hand voter certificates to voters or distribute them in some other way, inform the town, region electoral committee about inaccuracies noticed in the electoral district voter list;
3) shall, in the manner prescribed by the Central Electoral Committee, observe how voting by post is conducted in the territory of an electoral district, and control that conditions for voting by post would be provided in all health care, social guardianship and care institutions, military units and the places of confinement situated in the territory of the electoral district;
4) shall, together with a representative of the municipal council, have care of preparing polling places, voting booths and ballot boxes in due time pursuant to the requirements provided in this Law;
7) shall consider the complaints of the voters and observers of that electoral district on issues concerning the preparation of the elections, the organisation of voting, vote calculation, the drawing up of vote calculation records, and adopt decisions related to them; and
Article 17. Written Pledge of Members of Electoral Committees and Organisation of Electoral Committee Work
A member, chairman of an electoral committee shall start holding the position in the electoral committee upon having given a written pledge.
The Central Electoral committee shall establish the procedure for giving a written pledge of the members, chairmen of town, region and district electoral committees. The text of a written pledge of the member and the chairman of an electoral committee shall read as follows:
“ I, (name, surname), member, chairman of the electoral committee, swear to be faithful to the Republic of Lithuania, observe its Constitution and laws, conscientiously and honestly perform my duties in the electoral committee and refrain from actions violating laws and the rights of citizens.
So help me God.”
The written pledge may be given omitting the last sentence. Upon having given a written pledge, a person shall subscribe to the text of the pledge. The pledge shall be effective for the whole duration of the appointment to work in the electoral committee. It shall be prohibited to hold the position in the electoral committee without giving a written pledge.
Written pledges shall remain in the custody of the electoral committee which has appointed electoral committee members, chairmen.
When appointing an electoral committee member, the Central Electoral Committee or the town, region electoral committee shall fix the date by which he must give a written pledge. The person who has not given a written pledge within 15 days after his appointment or who has given a written pledge with a reservation, shall be removed from his position in the electoral committee.
Sittings of electoral committees shall be valid provided that at least three-fifths of the members of the committee are in attendance. Decisions made by the committee shall be adopted by open, majority vote. In the event of a tie vote, the committee chairperson's vote shall be casting. Committee members who do not agree with a decision shall have the right to state a different opinion in writing, which shall then be appended to the minutes of the meeting and shall be an integral part thereof.
Upon the completion of elections, the powers of the members, chairmen of town, region and district electoral committees shall be terminated. The decision to terminate the powers shall be adopted by the electoral committee which appointed the committee members, when this committee, its chairman have fulfilled all the tasks assigned to him according to the Law.
The chairman or member of an electoral committee who has given a written pledge shall be prohibited from any form of election campaigning or attempts to influence the voter’s will in any other way. The individual who has violated this requirement or a written pledge of an electoral committee member, must be dismissed from the committee and may be prosecuted under laws.*[1]
Article 18. Appeals Concerning Decisions of Electoral Committees which are Adopted prior to the Completion of Voting
All political parties and political organisations which have nominated a presidential candidate, as well as agents of candidates to the office of the President of the Republic may appeal against the decisions of electoral committees according to the following procedure:
1) for decisions of electoral committees of electoral districts - to the town, region electoral committee;
3) for decisions of the Central Electoral Committee - to the Vilnius County Court.
Appeals must be considered within 48 hours of the time the appeal is submitted. Non-working days shall also be included in this period. The decision of the Vilnius County Court shall become effective from its pronouncement.
Article 19. Appeals Concerning Decisions of Electoral Committees which are Adopted after the Completion of Voting
All political parties and political organisations which have nominated presidential candidates, as well as the agents of candidates to the office of the President of the Republic, may appeal to the town, region electoral committees against the decisions of electoral committees of electoral districts concerning the drawing up of records of the calculation of votes not later than within 24 hours of their adoption.
Such appeals must be considered not later than within 24 hours. Town, region electoral committees, in considering appeals concerning the drawing up of records of the calculation of votes, may recount the ballot-papers presented by the electoral committee of an electoral district, provided at least three-fifths of the town, region electoral committee members are present. Upon establishing an arithmetic mistake or incorrectly calculated valid or invalid ballot-papers, the committee may amend the records of the calculation of votes. Town, region electoral committees shall not have the right to declare invalid the records of the calculation of votes drawn up by electoral committees of electoral districts.
The decisions of the Central Electoral Committee, with the exception of the decisions to declare the results of the elections of the President of the Republic invalid, may be appealed against to the Vilnius County Court not later than within 2 days of their adoption, and must be considered not later than within 48 hours. This term shall also include non-working days. The decision of the Vilnius County Court shall become effective from the moment of its pronouncement and its execution shall be binding upon the Central Electoral Committee.
While considering appeals against the decisions of town, region electoral committees concerning the drawing up of records of the calculation of votes in a respective town or region, the Central Electoral Committee may re-count the ballot-papers presented by the town, region electoral committee. Upon establishing an arithmetic mistake or incorrectly calculated ballot-papers, the Committee may amend the entries in the records of the calculation of votes of the respective town, region or electoral district. The Central Electoral Committee shall not have the right to declare invalid town, region records of the calculation of votes.
Article 20. Assistance for Electoral Committees
State institutions, firms, offices and organisations and their officials must assist electoral committees in exercising their powers, and must furnish them with necessary information.
State institutions, firms, offices and organisations and their officials must consider requests submitted by electoral committees and give the electoral committees a justified response not later than within 3 days.
Electoral committees may employ the required number of personnel for assistance work.
Local governments and State institutions and organisations must provide electoral committees with premises and equipment for the preparation and execution of elections.
Article 21. Remuneration for Electoral Committee Members
Chairpersons and members of electoral committees shall be paid salaries for their work in electoral committees in accordance with rates submitted by the Central Electoral Committee and approved by the Government. Chairpersons and members of electoral committees who are employed in firms, offices and organisations, and who are not receiving wages due to their involvement in electoral committee activities shall be paid by the State an amount not exceeding their average monthly salary.
Article 22. Changing the Members of Electoral Committees
Chairpersons and members of town, region, district electoral committees may be dismissed from their posts in the committee by the electoral committee which approved the composition of this committee, or by the Central Electoral Committee.
The electoral committee may consider only the justified proposal of a party or political organisation to recall the member of the electoral committee whom it has nominated.
As necessary, a new chairman or member of the electoral committee may be appointed in accordance with the procedure established by this Law and on the expiry of the period provided for in paragraph 1 of Article 13 and paragraph 5 of Article 15.
iii. Voter Lists
Article 23. Voter Lists
1. For the organisation and execution of elections, the following voter lists shall be compiled:
3) voter lists of electoral districts.
Voter lists shall be drawn up twice - provisional and final. These lists may be used only for organisation and execution of elections.
The procedure of compiling voter lists must be such that every citizen of the Republic of Lithuania who is entitled to vote shall be registered in voter lists. No one may be registered in a voter list more than once.
For the organisation of election campaign, at the request of parties and political organisations which have nominated a candidate or candidates, generalised voter lists (without surnames of voters, dates of birth, exact address of residence) may be drawn up. The actual expenditures related to drawing up of said lists shall be paid by the party, political organisation or the candidate who orders them.
The voter list of the Republic of Lithuania and the voter lists of town, regions which are drawn up and kept by the registrar of the population register, shall be compiled in magnetic media. The procedure and form of compiling of lists, method of compiling and the procedure for the use thereof shall be established by the Central Electoral Committee.
Article 231. General Procedure for Registering Citizens in the Voter List of the Republic of Lithuania
All citizens of the Republic of Lithuania who have the right to vote shall be registered in the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania according to the data of issuance of the document (passport) confirming the citizenship, and according to the population register of the Republic of Lithuania. Lists compiled according to these data shall be provisional.
Compiling, checking and keeping of voter lists shall be organised by the Central Electoral Committee on the basis of the information furnished by public authorities and electoral committees.
The following persons shall be struck from the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania:
3) a citizen who has been declared legally incompetent by the court.
Provisional voter lists with changes done therein and acknowledged in the procedure established by the Central Electoral Committee shall be, not more than 7 days prior to the election, approved as final voter lists. Changes in final voter lists may be done only with a consent of the Central Electoral Committee.
Article 232. Town, Region Voter Lists
The town, region voter list shall be made in magnetic media by the Central Electoral Committee according to the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania and the place of residence of a voter indicated therein, and shall be delivered to the town, region electoral committee at least 65 days prior to the election. Lists of voters residing abroad shall be drawn up concurrently and shall be delivered to diplomatic missions of the Republic of Lithuania. A list of citizens whose place of residence is unknown shall be also drawn up.
Article 233. Voter Lists of Electoral Districts
The voter list of an electoral district shall be drawn up by the town, region electoral committee according to the town, region voter list and the place of residence indicated therein, and shall be delivered to the electoral committee of an electoral district at least 55 days prior to the election. A list of citizens whose place of residence is unknown shall be also compiled. Voters, ship’s crew members and passengers who will be unable to return to Lithuania during the period of voting by post or to be present on the election day, shall, according to the procedure established by the Central Electoral Committee, be registered in a voter list of the electoral district on the territory whereof a ship’s registration harbour or the administration of a ship’s owner is located.
Article 234. Public Announcement of Voter Lists and Access to Voter Lists
The electoral committee of an electoral district, diplomatic mission shall, at least 55 days prior to the election, shall provide conditions for the voters to have access to voter lists. The time and place for the voters to implement this right shall be indicated at the entrance to the premises of an electoral committee, situated in the diplomatic mission.
Article 235. Voter Certificate
A voter certificate shall be a document issued by an electoral committee specifying in the voter list of which electoral district a citizen of the Republic of Lithuania is registered. One cannot vote by post without this certificate.
A voter certificate shall contain:
5) the name, number of the electoral district in whose list of voters the name of the voter has been included, as well as the address of the polling place; and
Article 236. Delivery of Voter Certificates
The delivery of voter certificates to voters shall be organised by the electoral committee of an electoral district. The diplomatic mission shall deliver or send by post a voter certificate to the voter who are abroad, provided that he has informed the diplomatic mission of his address. A voter certificate shall not be delivered to the voter who shall vote in a ship.
The delivery of voter certificates shall be noted in the provisional voter list of an electoral district. A voter certificate shall be either delivered to the voter personally or to the other person who lives together with the voter, or to a neighbour of the voter, who knows the voter and undertakes to deliver the voter certificate to the voter. The delivery of voter certificates to voters must be finished at least 40 days before the election.
The voter who has not received a voter certificate in due time or who has received a voter certificate with inaccuracies, must without delay inform the electoral committee of an electoral district in whose service territory he is residing, about this and to produce his passport or other document confirming his identity to the electoral committee. If the voter is registered in the voter list of this electoral district, the electoral committee of the electoral district must write out a new voter certificate to the voter and issue it to him immediately. If the voter is not registered in the voter list of this electoral district, the electoral committee of the electoral district shall immediately inform the town, region electoral committee about this, which must have care of registering the voter in the voter list of this electoral district. The voter certificate shall be written out and delivered to the voter following upon checking the accuracy of voter lists.
The town, region electoral committee may, in the manner prescribed by the Central Electoral Committee, write out a voter certificate for the voter who is on the voter list of another town, region, provided he is unable to return to his permanent place of residence to receive or otherwise get a voter certificate. The voter must request this in writing and produce the passport of the citizen of the Republic of Lithuania with his place of residence indicated therein.
Article 237. Checking the Accuracy of Voter Lists before Drawing up Final Lists
The accuracy of provisional voter lists shall be checked when transferring a voter from one town, region, district voter list into another, striking from or registering a voter in the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania.
The voter shall be transferred from one voter list into another if it becomes clear that the address of his place of residence in the provisional list is incorrect or it has changed after said list was drawn up.
Transferring of the voter from the voter list of one electoral district into another in the same town, region shall be executed by the town, region electoral committee and it shall inform the Central Electoral Committee about the changes made in voter lists of electoral districts. Transferring of the voter from one town, region voter list into another shall be executed by the Central Electoral Committee on the recommendation of the electoral committee of the electoral district and shall inform the town, region electoral committees about the changes done. Only the Central Electoral Committee may register a voter in or strike him from the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania in the cases provided in Article 231 of this Law.
Article 238. Registration of Citizens of the Republic of Lithuania, Staying Abroad, in Voter Lists
Citizens of the Republic of Lithuania staying in other states shall be registered in the voter list of the city of Vilnius.
A diplomatic mission of the Republic of Lithuania shall, at least 15 days before the elections, submit to the Central Electoral Committee the voter list compiled in the diplomatic mission, as well as the data concerning checking the accuracy of said list. This list may be supplemented with the voters who will be unable to return to Lithuania during the period of voting by post or to be present on the polling day, and who shall vote in diplomatic missions.
Article 239. Registration of National Defence Servicemen, Voters who are Aboard a Ship and in Places of Confinement in Voter Lists
Voters performing the active or alternative service shall be included in the voter lists of the electoral district on whose territory they permanently resided before they have been summoned for the active or alternative service.
Officers, non-commissioned officers and re-enlistees of the national defence system and the internal affairs service shall be included in the voter lists of the electoral district on whose territory they permanently reside.
The voters who are aboard a ship and who will be unable to return to Lithuania during the period of voting by post or to be present on the polling day, shall be registered in the additional voter list of the electoral district in whose voter list the ship’s crew is registered.
Voters who are in places of confinement shall be registered in the voter list of the electoral district on whose territory they have permanently resided before they were placed in confinement. If a person who is in a place of confinement requests in writing, he shall be registered in the voter list of the electoral district on whose territory the place of confinement is situated.
Article 2310. Checking the Accuracy of Voter Lists upon Compiling Final Voter Lists, as well as on the Election Day
If following the approval of the final voter lists, but no later than until six o’clock p.m. on the election day, a voter addresses the electoral committee of an electoral district and submits the passport of the citizen of the Republic of Lithuania with the address of the place of residence recorded therein, which is attached to the territory of this electoral district, but the voter is not registered in the voter list of this electoral district, the electoral committee of the electoral district shall register the voter in the additional voter list of the electoral district and shall allow him to vote according to the procedure established by the Central Electoral Committee. The Central Electoral Committee shall immediately inform the town, region electoral committee about the voter’s surname, name, personal code, his passport number and the address recorded in the passport. The town, region electoral committee shall check if the voter is registered in the town, region voter list and take actions to guarantee that the voter would not be able to vote twice or the ballot papers filled by him will be counted only once. If the voter has voted twice, only that vote shall be counted which was put in the ballot box of the electoral district. The other vote of the voter, received by post or when cast according to the additional voter list of the electoral district shall not be counted.
Article 2311. Complaints Concerning Voter Lists
A voter or a representative of the party, political organisation may lodge complaints about the errors made in voter lists due to which the voter is not registered in the voter list in the manner prescribed by this Law or is registered in several voter lists with the electoral committee of the electoral district no later than 7 days before the election. The electoral committee of the electoral district must consider the complaint and adopt a decision thereon either immediately or within 2 days of the receipt thereof, if more than 10 days are left until the election day.
The decision of the electoral committee of an electoral district may be within 3 days appealed against in the district court, which shall consider the complaint within 2 days. The decision of the court shall be final.
Complaints and comments shall not be considered after the expiration of the term established for filing comments or complaints.
Electoral committees of electoral districts shall report to the town, region electoral committee about the received complaints and changes made in the voter lists by the court’s decision, and the town, region electoral committee shall report to the Central Electoral Committee as soon as possible but no later than within 12 hours.
Article 24. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 25. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 26. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 27. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 28. Repealed 19 September 1996
Article 29. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 30. Repealed 19 September 1996.
IV. Nomination of Candidates to the Office of President of
the Republic
Article 31. Nomination of Candidates to the Office of the President of the Republic
Individual persons may nominate themselves to the office of President of the Republic.
Political parties and political organisations may nominate and support candidates to the office of President of the Republic.
The nomination of candidates to the office of the President of the Republic shall begin not more than 80 nor less than 65 days prior to the day of elections.
Article 32. Declaration of an Individual's Participation in the Elections as a Candidate to the Office of President of the Republic
An individual who has been nominated or who has been nominated himself to the office of President of the Republic must declare his nomination to the Central Electoral Committee at least 65 days prior to the election.
If an individual is nominated by a political party or political organisation to the office of President of the Republic, this decision of theirs shall also be presented in writing. Documents confirming the citizenship and identity of the candidate shall also be submitted and a deposit amounting to five average monthly salaries shall be paid. Having collected twenty thousand voter signatures as provided in Article 79 of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania, the total deposit shall be refunded to the individual who has paid it.
The Central Electoral Committee shall, not later than within 3 days (including non-working days) after the receipt of the declaration, confirm that none of the conditions indicated in Article 78 of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania which prohibit an individual to be a candidate to the office of President of the Republic are present, and shall adopt a grounded decision on whether or not to issue the individual forms with the name and surname of the candidate to the President of the Republic for the collection of voter signatures. Refusal to issue the forms for the collection of voter signatures may be appealed against to the Vilnius County Court not later than within 3 days, and that appeal shall be considered not later than within 72 hours of its submission. This term shall include non-working days. The decision of the Vilnius County Court shall become effective from its pronouncement.
Article 33. The Collection of Voter Signatures
At least twenty thousand voter signatures as prescribed in Article 79 of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania must be collected on the form for the collection of voter signatures, which shall contain the following text:
I, as a citizen of the Republic of Lithuania, confirm my support for the application of
............................................................................................................................................................(the person's name, surname)
to participate in the ..... ............... .......... (day, month and year) elections as a candidate to the office of President of the Republic of Lithuania.
|
Serial No. |
Individual’s Surname, Name |
Series and No. of the Document Confirming Citizenship of the Republic of Lithuania |
Date of Birth |
Permanent Place of Residence |
Signature and Date |
The name and surname of the individual who has collected the signatures shall be indicated at the bottom of the page, as well as the series and number of the document confirming his citizenship of the Republic of Lithuania, his permanent place of residence, and signature.
All information on forms for the collection of signatures shall be filled out by the voters themselves. Voters may sign for each candidate to the office of President of the Republic, but may only sign for each candidate once.
Forms for the collection of voter signatures shall be issued by the Central Electoral Committee directly to individuals who have announced in writing their participation as candidates in the elections of the President of the Republic and, upon the request of these persons - to persons indicated by them.
Article 34. Registration of Candidates to the Office of the President of the Republic
At least 45 days prior to the elections, individuals who have been nominated or who have nominated themselves as candidates to the office of the President of the Republic must submit voter signature collection forms containing at least twenty thousand voter signatures to the Central Electoral Committee which issued the said forms. Said individuals must also submit the extract containing the basic data from the income and property declaration approved by the State Tax Inspectorate.
Individuals who have been nominated or who have nominated themselves as candidates to the office of President of the Republic may submit a certificate of their health condition to the Central Electoral Committee. The Central Electoral Committee shall announce such certificates through mass media.
The Central Electoral Committee shall check whether the forms for the collection of voter signatures have been completed correctly not later than within 10 days of the receipt thereof. In the event that it is discovered that a citizen has signed for the same candidate more than once, none of his signatures shall be counted. Signatures of the citizens who did not record all of the necessary information or who recorded incorrect information shall also be annulled.
If, after all invalid votes are cast off, the candidate to the office of President of the Republic has the signatures of at least twenty thousand of voters, the Central Electoral Committee must register the individual as a candidate to the office of President of the Republic not later than within 24 hours. Refusal of the Central Electoral Committee to register an individual as a candidate to the office of President of the Republic may be appealed against to the Vilnius County Court not later than within 3 days (including non-working days), and said Court must consider the appeal within 72 hours. This term shall include non-working days as well. The decision of the Vilnius County Court shall become effective from its pronouncement.
Individuals who have been nominated or who have nominated themselves as candidates to the office of President of the Republic shall acquire the status of candidate to the office of President of the Republic upon their registration as candidates to the office of President of the Republic with the Central Electoral Committee.
The Central Electoral Committee shall officially announce the list of all individuals who have been registered as candidates to the office of President of the Republic no later than 30 days prior to the day of the elections, and shall issue said individuals with certificates of candidacy to the office of President of the Republic within 24 hours of the announcement thereof. The campaign for elections of the President of the Republic shall commence on the day of the official announcement of the list of candidates to the office of President of the Republic.
Article 35. Agents of Candidates to the Office of President of the Republic
Individuals who have been registered as candidates to the office of President of the Republic shall have the right to have their own agents. Candidates to the office of President of the Republic shall submit their list of agents to the Central Electoral Committee, which shall, not later than within 24 hours, issue agent certificates (indicating the name and surname of the candidate) to the agents of the candidates to the office of President of the Republic.
On the instruction of the candidate to the office of President of the Republic, an agent of the candidate to the office of President of the Republic shall have the right to represent the candidate in meetings with voters and in the mass media, to raise funds for financing the elections, and to carry out other instructions of the candidate to the office of President of the Republic which do not contradict laws.
Candidates to the office of President of the Republic may at any time recall their agents. Upon receiving such a request from a candidate to the office of the President of the Republic, the Central Electoral Committee shall adopt a decision concerning the recall of an agent and shall announce it publicly.
Article 36. Observers of the Elections of the President of the Republic
All political parties and political organisations which have nominated an individual as a candidate to the office of President of the Republic as well as candidates to the office of President of the Republic shall have the right to appoint in writing observers to each electoral committee. Observer of the Elections of President of the Republic certificates shall be issued immediately. The certificates shall be issued by:
1) the Central Electoral Committee - to observers who have been appointed to observe the activities of the Central Electoral Committee, as well as the activities of town, region electoral committees; and
2) town, region electoral committees - to observers who have been appointed to observe the activities of the electoral committees of electoral districts.
Election observers shall have the right to be present at the sittings of electoral committees whose activities they have been appointed to observe and to demand that the chairperson and members of the electoral committee observe this Law.
Protests presented by observers in writing shall be attached to the records and decisions of the electoral committee.
In cases provided for in this Law and according to the procedure established therein, observers shall have the right to appeal against the decisions of electoral committees.
Organisations or candidates to the office of President of the Republic who have appointed observers shall have the right to recall the observer in writing at any time. The observer shall be deemed recalled from the moment the declaration of recall is submitted to the electoral committee which issued the observer's certificate to the individual.
V. Guarantees of the Activities of Candidates to the Office of President of the Republic
Article 37. The Right of Candidates to the Office of President of the Republic to Speak at Meetings or through Mass Media
After the official publication of the list of candidates, the candidates to the office of President of the Republic shall have equal right to speak at voter meetings or at any other meetings, gatherings, or conferences, and to utilise state mass media and publicise their election programme.
Heads of state institutions of power and government must assist the candidates to the office of President of the Republic to organise meetings with voters and to obtain necessary information, with the exception of confidential information.
Article 38. The Right of Candidates to the Office of President of the Republic to be Relieved from Work or Service Duties During the Election Campaign
Upon his or her request, a candidate to the office of President of the Republic may be relieved from work or service duties for the period of the election campaign but for no longer than 2 months. During this period, the candidate shall be paid two average monthly wages from State resources.
Article 39. The Immunity of the Person of a Candidate to the Office of President of the Republic
During the election campaign and directly following the elections, candidates to the office of President of the Republic may not be found criminally responsible or arrested, and may not be imposed with administrative penalties by court for their actions during the election campaign of the President of the Republic without the consent of the Central Electoral Committee.
The Central Electoral Committee together with the Ministry of the Interior must arrange for the security of candidates to the office of President of the Republic, paid from the State funds. A candidate may refuse from such security, and he may also hire security at his own expense.
Article 40. Amenability for the Violation of the Republic of Lithuania Law on Presidential Elections
Individuals who obstruct, by means of violence, fraud, threats, or any other way, the implementation the right of voters to elect the President of the Republic, and the organisation of campaigning, as well as the members of electoral committees and other officials who have falsified documents of the election, intentionally counted the votes incorrectly, or violated voting secrecy, or this Law in any other way shall be responsible according to the laws of the Republic of Lithuania. Legal actions shall be also brought against individuals who have announced or publicised in any other way false information concerning a candidate to the office of President of the Republic, or who have interfered with a candidate's meeting with voters.
VI. CAMPAIGNING
Article 41. The Basic Principles of Campaigning
Political parties and political organisations, as well as citizens and candidates to the office of President of the Republic may begin campaigning from the day the campaign of the elections of the President of the Republic starts to which the provisions of this Chapter shall be applicable.
Campaigning may be conducted in any form or manner provided that they do not contradict the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Lithuania. The commencement of campaigning shall be declared by the Central Electoral Committee.
Article 42. Conditions and Procedure for the Use of Mass Media
Candidates to the office of President of the Republic shall all have equal opportunity to use State mass media free of charge for the purpose of campaigning. The actual duration and time of broadcasts of the National Radio and Television of Lithuania used for each candidate's campaign for the elections of the President of the Republic shall be established by the Central Electoral Committee in co-ordination with the heads of the National Radio and Television of Lithuania and set in a manner which ensures that principals of equality are maintained among the candidates to the office of President of the Republic.
Candidates to the office of President of the Republic may use the time allotted to them in the National Radio and Television of Lithuania themselves or may permit political parties or political organisations indicated by them, as well as to their agents or other specified individuals, to conduct campaigning at the fixed time.
Only the special account of the Elections of the President of the Republic shall limit campaigning in the commercial mass media.
All disputes concerning campaigning shall be settled by the Central Electoral Committee, which shall base itself on the principle of equality of candidates to the office of President of the Republic.
Upon the demand of a candidate to the office of President of the Republic or the candidate's agent, mass media which has publicised compromising material about the said candidate to the office of President of the Republic must publicise the countering opinion of the candidate or his agent at least 5 days prior to the day of election.
Article 43. Prohibition to Conduct Election Campaigning while Abusing one’s Official Position
Anyone shall be prohibited from abusing his official position in state or local authority institutions, offices or organisations, as well as in the state or local authority mass media when carrying out election campaign, from instructing other persons to do so, or from trying to exert influence upon the will of voters in any other manner, while using his official position. State, municipal officers shall be prohibited from using their official position in creating for themselves or others exceptional election campaigning conditions. In the event the officer violates this Article, criminal or administrative action may be brought against him in a manner prescribed by law.
If a person is a candidate for President of the Republic, he can use the state or local authority mass media only according to the procedure set forth in Article 42 of this Law. If the fulfilment of their duties requires to announce to the mass media important news, they can do it only at a press conference. The state or local authority mass media can publicise only a recording of such conference, which contains no election campaigning.
Article 44. Financing Campaigning
Campaigning shall be financed from State funds as well as from the funds raised by political parties and political organisations, and citizens and candidates to the office of President of the Republic and which shall be accumulated in special accounts for Elections of the President of the Republic in the Savings Bank of Lithuania as well as its branches.
Candidates to the office of the President of the Republic shall be paid from State funds on an equal basis for the time, specified in this Law, on the National Radio and Television of Lithuania, the printing of a candidate’s campaign poster, and the publishing of election programmes. The utilisation of State funds allocated for campaigning shall be controlled by the Central Electoral Committee and by the Savings Bank of Lithuania. The Central Electoral Committee and the Savings Bank of Lithuania must publicise the report concerning utilisation of State funds for campaigning in the press not later than within 15 days after the election of the President of the Republic.
Candidates to the office of President of the Republic, as well as the elected President of the Republic, shall announce all funds which were received and utilised for the elections (indicating their sources) in the press not later than within 30 days after the election of the President of the Republic.
Article 45. Prohibition of Campaigning on the Day of Election
Campaigning shall be prohibited 30 hours preceding the commencement of elections and on the day of elections, with the exception of permanent visual campaign material in the places intended for this, provided that it was displayed at least 48 hours prior to the beginning of the elections. During this time, no visual campaigning material (with the exception of those which are issued by the Central Electoral Committee) may be displayed in a polling place or within 50 metres of the building in which a polling place is situated.
VII. Preparatory Activities for the Organisation of Elections
Article 46. Ballot-papers
For elections of the President of the Republic, each voter shall be presented with a ballot-paper which shall contain the name and surname of each candidate to the office of President of the Republic. Candidates to the office of President of the Republic shall be listed in alphabetic order.
Article 47. Delivery of Ballot-papers
Town, region electoral committees shall recount the received ballot-papers and envelopes and shall draw up a report of the receipt thereof.
Town, region electoral committees shall deliver ballot-papers to the electoral committees of electoral districts at least 12 hours prior to the beginning of voting. The electoral committees of electoral districts shall recount the ballot-papers and draw up a report of the receipt thereof.
Town, region electoral committees shall deliver ballot-papers and envelopes to central post offices at least 2 days before the beginning of voting by mail.
At diplomatic missions of the Republic of Lithuania, voters must be provided with free access to ballot-papers and envelopes for voting by mail at least 15 days prior to the election day, on ships voters must be provided with free access to the text of ballot-papers not less than 15 days prior to elections. On ships ballot-papers shall be printed according to their description sent by a radiogram.
The Central Electoral Committee shall be responsible for the issue, calculation and
delivery of ballot-papers and envelopes within the indicated time period.
Article 48. Repealed 9 October 1997
VIII. Voting
Article 49. Time and Place of Voting
Voting shall take place on the day of election from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the polling place designated by the electoral committee. Voters shall only vote in the electoral district in whose voter list their names have been included. Votes received by mail shall be valid only in the electoral district in whose voter list the name of the voter has been included.
Article 50. Preparation of Polling Places
A polling place of the electoral district must be completely prepared for elections not later than 12 hours before the beginning of voting. The electoral committee must also have counted all ballot papers received from the town, region electoral committee and drawn up their acceptance report. In the polling place of an electoral district there must be a ballot box , secret voting booth (booths) in which a voter could fill ballot papers in secrecy. Election posters, issued by the Central Electoral Committee, must be displayed in the polling place. The text of this Law must be accessible in each electoral district. The election campaign material, except for the material issued by the Central Electoral Committee, shall be removed from the polling place, passageways leading to or out of it (corridors) and within 50 metres of the building in which the polling place is situated. Working places for the electoral committee members, local election observers must be also arranged. Upon completion of preparing, the polling place shall be closed, sealed, left under the police protection, and the chairman of the electoral committee of the electoral district shall inform the town, region electoral committee about this.
Other requirements for preparation of polling places shall be established by the Central Electoral Committee
Article 51. Commencement of Voting
On the day of election, the polling place shall be opened only if at least 3/5 of the members of the electoral committee of the electoral district are present. Then, the chairperson of the electoral committee, together with other members of the electoral committee, shall make sure that the ballot-box is empty and shall seal it. Having checked that the polling place has been furnished without violating the established requirements, the chairperson of the electoral committee of the electoral district shall register the total number of the received ballot-papers into the record of the calculation of votes, distribute the ballot-papers and voter lists among the members of the electoral committee, register the number of ballot-papers distributed among each electoral committee member into the record of the calculation of votes, and open the voting place, thereby proclaiming the commencement of the elections.
Article 52. Voter Identification
At the entrance to the polling place, a voter shall present his voter certificate, passport or other document proving his identity and citizenship to an electoral committee member of the electoral district. Upon having established that the voter has arrived at the electoral district in whose list of voters his name has been included, a committee member shall hand the voter an arrival card, stamped with the seal of an electoral district, indicating which the voter was to come to the polling place to vote and shall show the committee member to be applied to for a ballot. It shall not be allowed to hand several arrival cards to one voter or to hand another voter’s arrival card to him. If upon arriving at the polling place, the person does not have the required documents or it is not clear whether he has been registered in the list of voters of this electoral district, the committee member shall not hand the arrival card to this person, shall hand him a guest’s card and refer him to the committee chairman or deputy chairman to find out about voting.
The committee member who is instructed to hand ballot papers, having established on the basis of the produced documents that the person who arrived to vote is indeed the citizen who has been registered in the list of voters, or if two citizens of the Republic of Lithuania registered in the list of voters of that electoral district witness to this fact in writing to the electoral committee chairman, shall find the surname of the voter on the list of voters, and shall take the voter certificate and the arrival card from the person. After the voter and the committee member who hands ballot papers sign in the list of voters of the electoral district, the voter shall be handed ballot papers. The voter certificate and arrival card shall not be returned to the voter. In voting by post, an entry shall be made on the voter certificate concerning the issue of a ballot paper, and the voter certificate shall be returned to the voter.
It shall be prohibited to hand the voter the ballot paper of another person. The member of an electoral committee who violates this provision shall be liable under law.
Article 53. Voting Procedure
Having been handed the ballot-paper, the voter shall go into a voting booth and mark the ballot personally. The voter may only enter the voting booth alone. The only exceptions shall be in cases provided for in part 5 of this Article.
On the ballot-paper, the voter shall mark the name of the candidate for whom he is voting.
Voters shall personally cast their marked ballot-papers into the ballot-box.
Upon the request of a voter, faulty ballot-papers shall be exchanged for new ones by the decision of the electoral committee of the electoral district. The chairperson of the electoral committee shall cross out the faulty ballot paper in ink (ball-point pen) and shall sign it. The electoral committee secretary and one of the members shall also sign the faulty ballot-paper. Faulty ballot-papers shall be kept separately.
Voters who are physically unable to mark their ballot-papers themselves or cast them into the ballot-box may designate another person to mark the ballot-paper and cast it into the ballot-box for them. Electoral Committee chairpersons or members, as well as election observers, shall be prohibited from carrying out such actions for voters.
Article 54. Voting by Post
Voting by post shall provide citizens who are not able to arrive at an electoral district to vote due to the health or other reasons with a possibility to participate in elections . Voting by post shall be possible at town, region post offices during their business hours beginning with 5 days before the election and ending with 1 day prior to the election, provided the voter is put on the voter list of that town, region, and ending 2 days prior to the election, provided the voter is not put on the voter list of that town, region. Expenses related to voting by post shall be covered by the State.
The head of the post office shall be responsible for the organisation of voting by post. He shall be responsible for keeping of records, issue and collection of ballot papers and voucher envelopes during voting by post.
The head of the post office, with the consent of the town, region electoral committee, shall, for the issue and collection of ballot papers and voucher envelopes during voting by post, appoint postal workers (officers) who are entrusted with the issue of ballot papers and voucher envelopes. If the town, region electoral committee requests so, the head of the post office must remove a postal worker from the work with election documents. Postal workers who are authorised to issue election papers shall be issued by the town, region electoral committee the certificates of the established form. An electoral committee member, election observer, having produced his certificate to the postal worker, a voter, having produced the voter certificate and the document proving his identity, shall have the right to write his remark in this certificate, and the head of the post office shall immediately notify the town, region electoral committee about this remark. The postal worker who does not have this certificate shall not have the right to issue election papers. Post offices must provide a room (place) where the voter can, without interference and in secrecy, mark the ballot papers and put them into a voucher envelope. Voting procedure may be watched by the observers who have the certificates allowing to observe election in any electoral district.
The postal worker shall issue election documents in accordance with the procedure established by the Central Electoral Committee. Together with ballot papers, voters shall be given envelopes for voting by post. An outer envelope for voting by post shall be addressed by the postal worker to the electoral committee of the electoral district which is indicated in the voter certificate of the person.
Voting in secrecy, the voter shall:
5) seal the outer envelope.
The outer envelopes, voucher envelopes, and ballot papers shall, at least 2 days prior to the election, be delivered by a postman to the homes of voters who are not able to arrive for voting at a post office or at an electoral district on the polling day due to health reasons. Together with a postman not less than 2 committee members, as well as observers may arrive at the voter’s home. The list of these voters shall be compiled at least 15 days before the elections by the electoral committees of the electoral district in accordance with the data submitted in writing by town, regional social guardianship and care institutions and with requests to ensure a possibility to vote at home, which are filled out by citizens personally according to the form established by the Central Electoral Committee. The requests of citizens must be also approved by the heads of town, region social guardianship and care institutions or by the officers who are authorised by them for that purpose. The requests and lists compiled by the town, and regional social guardianship and care institutions shall be added to the list, compiled by the district electoral committee, of the voters who are not able to arrive for voting at a post office or at an electoral district on the polling day due to health reasons. Postal workers, members of electoral committees or other individuals may not bring outer envelopes, voucher envelopes and ballot papers to the homes of voters who are not registered on the list of the voters who are not able to arrive for voting at a post office or at an electoral district on the polling day due to health reasons. The following may be registered on the list of the voters who are not able to arrive for voting at a post office or at an electoral district on the polling day: I group invalids, persons with a locomotor disability (I and II groups) and the persons with temporary incapacity to work, if they have submitted requests, provided for in this paragraph of the Article, to ensure a possibility to vote at home.
The sealed outer envelope (with the voter certificate, voucher envelope and ballot papers in it) the voter may:
4) hand the enclosed in envelopes election ballot, to the captain of a port bound ship and entrust him with the posting of the ballot.
When a voter casts a vote at home, it shall be prohibited to exert any influence on his decision and to hasten him to vote. The voter who has no physical defects preventing him from marking a ballot paper, shall personally put the secretly marked ballot paper into the voucher envelope, seal it, place the sealed voucher envelope into the outer envelope together with the voter certificate and seal it.. On the request of the voter who, due to his physical defects, is not able to do that himself, this shall be performed by the person (except a postman, electoral committee member or observer) chosen by the voter whom he trusts and who must maintain confidentiality of the voting. The voter may deliver the sealed outer envelope to a postman or post it on the same or another day.
Article 541. Voting in Diplomatic Missions
Voting in diplomatic missions (consulates) of the Republic of Lithuania may take place during its business hours, but for at least 4 hours a day. If the voter requests so, the diplomatic mission (consulate) may send and accept election documents from him by post.
On the recommendation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Central Electoral Committee shall compile the list of diplomatic missions (consulates) in which voting shall be conducted and shall establish voting days (no less than 10) for each diplomatic mission (consulate).
The head of the diplomatic mission (consulate) shall be responsible for the organisation of voting.
Article 542. Voting on a Ship
Voting shall take place aboard a ship if the ship leaves a port of the Republic of Lithuania at least 12 days prior to an election and does not return until the day of the election, or if other circumstances are such that a crew member or a board passenger who has the right to elect is unable to vote in his electoral district, by post or in a diplomatic mission.
The list of ships, on which there are no less than 10 crew members - voters, with which the radio communication shall be maintained during the voting and on which voting shall take place, as well as the time of voting on each ship shall be compiled by the Central Electoral Committee. The Central Electoral Committee shall also set a time for voting on each ship so that each voter who is aboard a ship would be given the opportunity to vote. The captain of the ship, who is a citizen of the Republic of Lithuania, shall be responsible for the organisation of voting on a ship.
Voting shall not be organised on ships in which there are no conditions for organising the voting in accordance with the requirements of this Law.
Article 543. The Procedure for Voting in Diplomatic Missions and on Ships of the Republic of Lithuania
Electoral committees shall be formed in diplomatic missions (consulates) and ships of the Republic of Lithuania for organising the voting and calculating the votes cast.
Electoral committees shall be composed of a chairman and at least two members. The head of a diplomatic mission or consulate of the Republic of Lithuania shall form electoral committees from the staff members of the diplomatic mission or consulate or from other citizens of the Republic of Lithuania residing in the foreign state. The procedure for giving written pledges of electoral committee members shall be established by the Central Electoral Committee.
Electoral committees on ships shall be formed by the captain of a ship, taking into consideration the decision of the meeting of the ship’s crew - citizens of the Republic of Lithuania .
The procedure for voting, vote calculation, submitting of vote calculation records to the Central Electoral Committee, as well as the procedure for issuing certificates to observers shall be established by the Central Electoral Committee.
Article 544. Voting in Medical Treatment Facilities and Institutions of Social Guardianship and Care Institutions
Special post offices designated for voting shall be established in medical treatment facilities and institutions of social guardianship and care. At least 20 days before the election the town, region electoral committee shall: on the recommendation of heads of medical treatment facilities, institutions of social guardianship and care, compile the list of special post offices; on the recommendation of the head of the post office, establish the working hours of these post offices. The head of the institution or facilities shall allot the place appropriate for voting and shall be responsible that the voters are notified about the working place and time of a special post office, and that the conditions should be created for voters to reach it.
Patients of such facilities and institutions who are able to move shall vote themselves in the voting place in accordance with the procedure set forth in Article 54 of this Law.
Inmates of medical treatment facilities and institutions of social care who are unable to arrive at the polling place due to health reasons shall be visited by at least two electoral committee members, observers (should they participate) and officers of special post offices.
A voting person must, in conditions of secrecy, personally mark the ballot paper and put it into the voucher envelope. If necessary, he may be assisted by an individual (except an employee of that institution, a postman, a member of the electoral committee, or an election observer) whom he trusts.
According to the instruction of the head of the medical treatment facilities or the institution of social guardianship or care, it may be prohibited to disturb patients who are in bad condition for the purpose of voting. Such instruction shall be obligatory to postmen.
It shall also be prohibited to disturb an individual for the purpose of voting, if the commission of doctors has concluded pursuant to the established procedure of the Ministry of Health Care that he is incapable of understanding the essence of his actions at the time of voting because of chronic mental disease, feeble-mindedness, or temporary mental disorder.
Article 545. Voting in Military Units
Special post offices designated for voting shall be established in military units of the national defence system and internal service, as established in Article 544.
If possible, chief officers of military units shall provide conditions for servicemen to vote in the electoral districts of their permanent place of residence.
Article 546. Voting in Places of Confinement
Special post offices designated for voting shall be established in places of confinement, as established in Article 544.
In accordance with the procedure set forth in the laws, heads of places of confinement may allow sentenced persons to vote in the electoral areas of their permanent place of residence.
Article 55. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 56. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 57. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 58. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 59. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 60. Repealed 19 September 1996.
ix. calculation of Votes and Establishment of Voting Results
Article 61. Calculation of Voucher Envelopes and Ballot-Papers in Post Offices
The records of voucher envelopes and ballot papers shall be kept by the head of the post office, indicating the data of said records in a journal specially designated for this purpose in accordance with the procedure established by the Central Electoral Committee
The post office head shall deliver unused envelopes and ballot papers to the town, region electoral committee one day prior to elections.
The post office shall deliver envelopes containing ballot papers marked by voters to electoral committees of electoral districts on the day of the election, but not later than 2 hours before closing the election.
The Central Electoral Committee shall keep records of voucher envelopes and ballot papers in the Republic of Lithuania.
Article 62. Calculation of Ballot-Papers in Electoral Districts
Upon the closing of a polling place, the chairperson of the electoral committee of the electoral district, in the presence of at least 3/5 of the members of the electoral committee, shall close and seal the ballot-box slot, collect unused ballot-papers from each member of the electoral committee of the electoral district, record the number of unused ballot-papers in the vote calculation record, count them publicly, and check, according to signatures in the voter list, that no ballot-papers have been handed in unlawfully.
Unused and faulty ballot-papers shall be counted publicly by the electoral committee, annulled by cutting off the upper right corner, and put into envelopes specially designated for this purpose which shall thereafter be sealed. The number of unused and faulty ballot-papers shall be entered in the vote calculation record.
Article 63. Calculation of Votes in Electoral Districts and Registration of Voters who Have Voted
The electoral committee of the electoral district, in the presence of at least 3/5 of its members, shall inspect the ballot- box of the electoral district to: ensure that the seals
have not been broken and that there is no other evidence which indicates that it could have been opened or that ballot-papers could have been removed in any other way. The committee, in the presence of at least 3/5 of its members, shall decide if the ballot box has been tampered with. If the committee decides that the ballot-box was tampered with, an act shall be drawn up about this and votes shall not be calculated.
Upon the ascertainment that the ballot-box has not been tampered with, the box shall be opened and the votes shall be calculated.
Votes shall be calculated in such a way that this procedure and ballot-papers marked by voters can be observed by all persons present during the calculation of votes. The Central Electoral Committee shall establish the concrete procedure for the calculation of votes.
Upon ascertainment that the ballot-box was not tampered with and in the presence of at least 3/5 of the members of the committee as well as observers, the box shall be opened, all ballot-papers shall be placed on tables on which there are no other documents and writing-materials, and the votes shall be counted.
The number of the voters of the electoral district shall be established according to the voter list of the electoral district. The number of voters who have been handed ballot-papers shall be established according to the voter lists testifying the receipt of the ballot-paper. The number of voters who have voted in the electoral district shall be established according to the number of ballot-papers found in the ballot-box of the electoral district. The number of voters who have participated in the elections shall be established according to the number of ballot-papers found in ballot-boxes of the electoral districts and the number of ballot-papers received by mail.
Upon finding more ballot-papers in the ballot-box than were handed to the voters, the committee shall take measures to clarify the reason.
The results of the vote calculation shall be entered in the vote calculation records.
Article 64. Registration of Voters who Have Voted by Mail and the Calculation of their Votes
After the calculation of ballot-papers found in the ballot-box, ballot-papers received by mail shall be calculated in the following procedure:
1) the chairperson of the electoral committee of the electoral district shall present, unopened, all outer envelopes received by mail. Their number shall be entered in the vote calculation record;
3) voter certificates shall be taken out of the outer envelopes and checked against the voter list of the electoral district, and the voucher envelopes shall be stamped with the seal of the electoral district. If the person on the voter certificate is not on the voter list, if the voter has already signed the voter list indicating that he or she has already voted in the electoral district, if another envelope for voting by mail has been received from the same voter, if there is no voter certificate in the outer envelope, or if there is more than one voucher envelope in the outer envelope, the seal shall not be affixed and the ballot-paper in the envelope shall be considered invalid. This fact must be noted on the voucher envelope;
4) in the voter list of the electoral district, a special record of the receipt of the elector's vote shall be made by the surname of the voter whose vote has been received by mail;
5) the sealed voucher envelope shall be cast into the ballot-box prepared according to the established requirements; and
6) when all envelopes received by mail have been gone over in this way, and upon opening the unsealed voucher envelopes, the votes received by mail shall be calculated according to the requirements of Article 63. If there is more than one ballot-paper in the voucher envelope, all ballot-papers in the envelope shall be considered invalid.
If only one sealed voucher envelope is in the electoral district (committee), it, in order to protect the privacy of voting, shall not be opened, but shall be handed over to the senior electoral committee, which shall enter the results of the voting in its vote calculation record.
Article 65. Vote Calculation Records in Electoral Districts
A vote calculation record shall be drawn up in every electoral district. It shall include:
3) the number of ballot-papers delivered to each member of the committee, the number of ballot-papers delivered to voters, the number of voters' signatures, the number of voter certificates, and the number of unused ballot-papers;
9) the number of votes found in the ballot-box which have been separately cast for each candidate to the office of President of the Republic;
13) the number of votes received by mail for each candidate to the office of President of the Republic;
16) the total number of votes cast for each candidate to the office of President of the Republic.
If more ballot-papers are found in the ballot-box than it has been delivered to voters, this shall be entered in the vote calculation record, indicating the number of extra ballot-papers which were found.
The vote calculation record of the electoral district shall be signed by the chairperson and members of the electoral committee of the electoral district. After that the observers shall sign the record. Their observations and the opinions of the members of the committee shall be attached to the record and shall be an inseparable part thereof.
Article 66. Invalid Ballot-papers
Invalid ballot-papers shall be:
3) ballot-papers on which more than one candidate to the office of President of the Republic are marked by the voter; and
Article 67. Presentation of Electoral District Vote Calculation Documents to Town, region Electoral Committees
The electoral committee of an electoral district shall put all ballot-papers, including invalid and unused ballot-papers, all voucher envelopes, vote calculation records, voter lists and other election documents into a package and shall seal it in accordance with the procedure established by the Central Electoral Committee. The package shall be delivered to the town, region electoral committee within 6 hours of the closing of voting.
The Central Electoral Committee and the Ministry of the Interior must ensure the safety of the transportation of election documents as well as of the persons transporting them.
Article 68. The Calculation of Votes in Town, Region Electoral Committees
Town, region electoral committees shall begin calculating votes upon receiving all vote calculation records and other election documents from all electoral districts.
The town, region electoral committee shall accept the documents delivered by the electoral committee of the electoral district and shall check:
3) whether all data have been entered in the vote calculation record; if they do not contradict one another; if they correspond to the data available to the town, region electoral committee (the number of ballot papers issued to the electoral committee of the electoral district, the number of voters, the number of outer envelopes received by post); if there are all necessary signatures; whether all separate opinions of the committee members, remarks of observers are attached to the record in which they are specified; and
4) whether all remarks and complaints of voters have been considered in the electoral committee of the electoral district.
The town, region electoral committee shall immediately report the data of the vote calculation record, its comments concerning the documents submitted by the electoral committee of the electoral district to the Central Electoral Committee, in the manner prescribed by it, and shall ensure the safety of submitted documents.
The packages sealed by the electoral committees of the electoral districts, which contain ballot papers, may be opened in the town, region electoral committee only by the decision of the town, region electoral committee.
Upon establishing the shortage of documents submitted by the electoral committee of the electoral district, the town, region electoral committee shall take measures to eliminate the shortage, request the chairman of the electoral committee of the electoral district to supply the missing documents.
The town, region electoral committee shall calculate the votes in the following manner: sums up the documents submitted by the electoral committees of the electoral districts and adds to them those votes cast by the voters by post, which have been counted in the town, region electoral committee.
Article 69. Town, Region Vote Calculation Records
According to the electoral district vote calculation records, ballot-papers, and other election documents, the town, region electoral committees shall establish:
1) the number of voters who have participated in the town, region elections, which shall equal the number of voters who have voted in the town, region electoral districts;
2) the number of invalid ballot-papers in the town or region which shall equal the number of invalid ballot-papers in the town, region electoral district;
3) the number of ballot-papers valid in the town or region, which shall equal the number of ballot-papers valid in the town, region electoral district; and
4) the number of votes cast for each candidate to the office of President of the Republic. This number shall equal the sum of votes received in the electoral districts separately for each candidate to the office of President of the Republic.
These data shall be entered in town, region vote calculation records, which shall then be signed by the chairperson and members of the respective town, region electoral district.
Article 70. Presentation of Town, Region Vote Calculation Records to the Central Electoral Committee and Establishment of Election Results
The Central Electoral Committee may begin to establish the election results after the vote calculation records of the electoral committees of all towns and regions, as well as other documents have been received.
The town, region electoral committee shall put all documents (except financial documentation) received from the electoral districts, voter lists, the vote calculation records of the town, region electoral committee, records pertaining to the whole period of activities of the town, region electoral committee and other election documents into special packages, shall seal them. The packages shall, within the time limit established by the Central Electoral Committee, be delivered to the Central Electoral Committee.
According to the vote calculation records of the town, region electoral committees and the vote calculation records in diplomatic missions, the Central Electoral Committee shall establish:
5) the number of votes cast for each candidate to the office of President of the Republic.
Considering complaints filed in the procedure established by this Law, the Central Electoral Committee may recount ballot-papers and, upon the establishment of errors in their calculation, may correct entries in vote calculation records. The Central Electoral Committee may not consider invalid vote calculation records of electoral committees of electoral districts, town, region electoral committees due to errors found in vote calculation records.
Upon the establishment that gross violations of this Law were committed during voting or that the document forgery had a decisive influence on the results of the election of the President of the Republic, the Central Electoral Committee may consider the results of the elections to the office of the President of the Republic invalid.
A candidate to the office of President of the Republic shall be considered elected if during voting for the first time in which at least half of all voters participate, he receives more than half of the votes of all voters participating in the elections. If less than half of all voters participated in the elections, a candidate shall be considered elected when he receives the most, but no less than one-third of votes of all voters.
If during the first voting round none of the candidates get the required majority vote, a repeat vote shall be held within 2 weeks of the election day in the procedure established by this Law between the two candidates who received the most votes in the first voting round. The Central Electoral Committee shall proclaim this voting on the same day as the final results of the first round of voting. The candidate who gets more votes shall be considered elected.
If no more than two candidates participate in the first voting round and neither of them get the required number of votes, repeat elections for the office of President of the Republic shall be held within 45 days of the day of the elections in the procedure established by this Law.
Article 71. Participation of Observers in the Calculation of Votes and the Establishment of Election Results
Observers of political parties and political organisations which have nominated candidates to the office of President of the Republic, observers appointed by candidates to the office of President of the Republic, and representatives of all mass media may participate in the calculation of votes in electoral districts and town, region electoral committees, as well as in the establishment of election results in the Central Electoral Committee.
Observers shall have the right to make remarks and claims to electoral committees concerning violations of this and other laws of the Republic of Lithuania, but they must not hinder the work of electoral committees. Observers shall have the right to make written protests which must be added to the electoral committee records and decisions and, together with other election documents, must be delivered to the senior electoral committee.
Article 72. Publication of Election Results
The final results of elections of the President of the Republic shall be publicised by the Central Electoral Committee within 5 days of the elections.
The results of repeat elections of the President of the Republic shall be publicised by the Central Electoral Committee within 5 days of the day of the repeat vote.
Article 721. Inquiry Concerning the Violation of the Law on Presidential Elections
Not later than within 3 days of the official proclamation of the election results, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania may appeal to the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania with the inquiry whether or not the Law on Elections has been violated during the elections of the President of the Republic.
The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania shall investigate and evaluate the decision only of the Central Electoral Committee or its refusal to consider complaints concerning the violations of the Law on Elections in the cases when decisions have been adopted or other actions of said Committee have been performed after the closing of voting while holding elections of the President of the Republic.
This inquiry shall be investigated by the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania not later than within 72 hours of its submission to the Constitutional Court. Non-working days shall be included in this period.
Following the findings of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania shall adopt the final decision concerning the violation of the Law on Presidential Elections.
If the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Lithuania makes a conclusion that the Central Electoral Committee has severely violated the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Presidential Elections or has falsified election documents, and this has had an essential influence on the establishment of the election results, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania may pass one of the following resolutions:
1) to declare the election results invalid - when, from the vote calculation records, it is impossible to establish real election results; or
2) to establish real final election results according to the vote calculation records confirmed by electoral committees, provided that the decisions of the committees concerning confirmation of these records have not been appealed against in the Vilnius County Court, and the Vilnius County Court has not reversed the decisions of the committees concerning confirmation or non-confirmation of these records.
Upon declaring the results of the elections of the President of the Republic invalid, repeat elections of the President of the Republic shall, not later than within 3 months of the election day, be held in the manner prescribed by this Law.
Article 73. Repealed 19 September 1996.
Article 74. The Keeping of Documents Concerning the Elections of the President of the Republic
After the closing of elections of the President of the Republic and not later than within 20 days of the end of the term established in this Law for the consideration of complaints against its decisions, the Central Electoral Committee shall deliver records and voter lists of the electoral districts and town, region electoral committees, and the Central Electoral Committee to the State Archives to be held for an unspecified period of time.
[1] *For members, chairmen of town, region, district electoral committees, who have not given a written pledge prior to the coming into effect of the Law on Amending Articles 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 22, 23, 43, 47, 48, 50, 52, 54, 61, 68, 70 and Supplementing Articles 231, 232, 233, 234, 235, 236, 237, 238, 239, 2310, 2311, 541, 542, 543, 544, 545, 546 of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Presidential Elections (9 October 1997, No.VII-439), the period of 15 days shall be counted not from their appointment, but from the day of coming into effect of said Law.