On September 14, the Chairman of the Central Election Commission Oleh Didenko met with the Ambassadors of the G7 countries. The meeting was held with support from the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES).
“Such meetings are becoming a good tradition and we are grateful for the attention being paid to the democratic processes in our country”, said the CEC Chairman.
Overall, Oleh Didenko shared insights about the preparations and conduct of local elections on October 25, 2020, key challenges that arise in this process, and how the Commission plans to continue modernizing and strengthening the CEC in the years to come.
On 2020 local elections preparations
“This is the most difficult election in the history of Ukraine. The electoral process is effected by several important factors: new electoral systems, flawed legislation, the impossibility of holding elections in certain territories due to military aggression, the new administrative-territorial structure, as well as COVID-19 pandemic”.
On voter education and outreach
“A complex legislation needs to clarify problematic issues. To ensure compliance with election law, we try to provide such clarifications. We pay special attention to the training of election commissioners. We’re also actively involved in voter education. This is a very important area of our work. After all, we believe that fair elections are possible if there is a high level of consciousness among citizens – when people comply with the law not because there are sanctions for violations, but because of their inner belief that it is right to do so”.
On the preparation and conduct of elections in times of pandemic
“COVID-19 pandemic has made the preparations for the local elections significantly complicated. Starting with the impossibility of holding offline events and ending with financial problems, as a result of which it was not possible to create regional and territorial branches, modernize the Information and Analytical System “Vybory”, and expand it to the level of TECs. This would have allowed election commissioners to use software to establish the voting results and the result of an election, that would have made the work much easier. But even in such conditions, active preparations for local elections are ongoing. The CEC has established a working group on countering COVID-19 and developed key recommendations to prevent the spread of the disease especially when voting at polling stations takes place, which have been included to the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on administering local elections in times of COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, today (ed. September 14, 2020) the Commission approved proposals for legislative regulation of the organization and conduct of elections during the quarantine period. We’ve reached out to the President of Ukraine and the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine with a request to ensure immediate consideration and adoption of this draft law.
Definitely, each case of COVID-19, including members of election commissions at all levels is likely to be individual. I assure you that we will seek maximum opportunities to ensure the smooth operation of such commissions if this happens.”
On calling elections in communities where holding elections on October 25, 2020 was deemed impossible
“The first elections can be held twice a year: in October and March. In future, we plan to reach out to respective military-civil administrations regarding the security situation in these territories. Once the necessary conditions are in place, elections will be called.”
On potential cancellation of local elections by court decision
“I do not think that such prospects exist today. In addition, the election process has already started. According to the Constitution of Ukraine, the suspension of the election process is possible only in the event of the imposition of a state of emergency or martial law in Ukraine or in certain areas.”
On cooperation with the National Police of Ukraine
“We have a well-organized coordination with the National Police in particular, and with the Ministry of Internal Affairs in general. For example, we have already asked them to check some suspicious, in our opinion, cases of changing electoral address. The National Police responded swiftly and in a proper manner. We hope that our cooperation will continue in future. The Ministry of Internal Affairs has proper experience in maintaining law and order in the 2019 elections.”
On the CEC Strategic Plan for 2020-2025
“The approval of the first-ever CEC Strategic Plan for 2020-2025 has become one of the most important steps towards increasing transparency, effective cooperation and further modernization of elections in Ukraine. The development of the Strategic Plan was supported by IFES and took almost six months, starting from December 2019. The strategic foundations of the plan include: institutional capacity; quality and transparency; awareness raising; inclusiveness; technological modernization and cooperation. This document paves the way for the Commission to further modernize and strengthen the institutional capacity of the CEC for the next five or even ten years.”
At the end of the meeting, Oleh Didenko expressed gratitude to the representatives of the diplomatic corps for their attention to the election processes in Ukraine and 2020 local elections in particular. The CEC Chairman also expressed hope that cooperation with international partners will only expand, which, in particular, will be an important factor in building democracy in our country.