The Transparency Maldives (TM)’s pre-election interim assessment has found that public confidence in the Elections Commission (EC) is declining.
The assessment looked at the situation of fundamental rights, political situation and public views ahead of the September 9 presidential election.
Recent surveys from TM and polls from the International Republican Institute show that 74 percent of people had confidence in the EC in 2013, but it dropped to 43 percent in 2022.
In addition to doing desk research, TM analysed research and poll documents for the assessment and interviewed 30 people under the technical guidance of experts.
The interviewees include representatives of state institutions, political parties, media, NGOs and international NGOs.
According to the study, one of the reasons for the lack of trust is the unclear code of conduct of the commission members and the fact that the commission members can be removed by the majority of parliament. The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has a majority in the current parliament, which gives it an opportunity to exert political influence.
The assessment report also said that political parties have openly accused the commission of having political influence as the election approaches.
Little concern about EC’s technical capacity
Citing expert interviews, the study found that all voting processes take place in a transparent manner, in front of journalists, monitors, observers and candidate representatives.
“The greater transparency of the voting process, combined with the strengthened design of polling day procedures, eliminates the possibility of systematic vote rigging,” explains the research paper.
Experts interviewed by TM believe that the voting process was planned to prevent systematic fraud. There are no serious systemic problems that prevent the secrecy of the vote, the report stated.
