Be social, be active GUIDE
Projekt sfinansowany ze środków Polsko-Ukraińskiej Rady Wymiany Młodzieży
Organizations Fundacja Aktywni w Europie Chernihiv European
About the project That guide has been created by participants of the project "Be social, be active". Young people from Poland and Ukraine met together in Wisla to discuss their role in local community and country. The objectives of theproject were to increase of active citizenship by encourage to active participation in elections, to broaden the knowledge on democracy, rights and freedoms. Within the guide has been presented the election procedures and basic definitions related to the topic of democracy.
Election procedures
in Poland
Electoral rights: Elections to the Sejm shall be universal, equal, direct and proportional and shall be conducted by secret ballot. The President of the Republic shall be elected by the Nation, in universal, equal and direct elections, conducted by secret ballot. Elections to constitutive organs shall be universal, direct, equal and shall be conducted by secret ballot.
The right to vote: - active suffrage – a Polish citizen who is at least 18 years of age, on election day. The right to vote is not enjoyed by persons deprived of public rights and deprived of electoral rights; - passive suffrage – persons enjoy the right to be elected (in elections to bodies representing local government entities – at least 18 years of age, in the European Parliament elections – at least 21 years of age, in the elections to the Sejm – at least 21 years of age, in the elections for the mayor – at least 25 years of age, for election to the Senate – at least 30 years of age, the election of the President of the Republic – at least 35 years of age)
Election procedures
in Poland
The election of the President of the Republic of Poland:
The Right to declare candidacy for President has a group of at least 100 000 citizens who have the right to vote
Presidential candidate is obliged to make a statement that applies to his current job or service in the state security agencies, or cooperate with them
The President of the Republic shall be elected for a 5year term of office and may be reelected only for one more term
Only a Polish citizen who, no later than the day of the elections, has attained 35 years of age and has a full electoral franchise
The election of the President of the Republic shall be ordered by the Marshal of the Sejm to be held on a day no sooner than 100 days and no later than 75 days before expiry of the term of office of the serving President of the Republic
A candidate who has received more than half of votes shall be considered elected President of the Republic. If none of the candidates has received the required majority of votes, then a repeat ballot shall be held on the 14th day after the first vote.
The two candidates who have received the largest number of votes in the first ballot shall participate in a repeat ballot. The candidate who receives the higher number of votes in the repeat ballot shall be elected President of the Republic.
The President of the Republic shall assume office upon taking the oath in the presence of the National Assembly
Election procedures
in Poland
Parliamentary election:
Every polish citizen who on the day of vote, he has attained 18 years of age is entitled to take part in elections, except deprived of electoral rights
The term of office of the Sejm and the Senate is 4 years
In order to be candidate to Sejm a person has to have at years 21 years to the Senat 30. Not eligible for being elected are: person sentenced to imprisonment by a final judgment, EU citizens who are not having polish citizenship; people who have important role in country (among others president of National Bank of Poland, Ombudsman, judge, prosecutor, pol ice officer).
A person can not run at the same time to the Sejm and Senate
Election procedures
in Poland
460 Members of Parliament and 100 Senators are elected during elections
The principle of election campaign is equality of opportunities (equal access to the media, as the main channel of communicating with voters)
Voting takes one day
Election committees declare their candidates. Election committees runs election campaigns, which last at least 3 months. Committees may be created by the political parties, coalitions or voters.
Election procedures
in Poland
Elections to the Sejm and the Senate shall be ordered by the President of the Republic no later than 90 days before the expiry of the 4 year period beginning with the commencement of the Sejm's and Senate's term of office.
Elections to the Sejm and the Senate shall be ordered by the President of the Republic no later than 90 days before the expiry of the 4 year period beginning of Sejm and Senat terms of office.
Election procedures
in Poland
The President of the Republic, when ordering the shortening of the Sejm's term of office, shall order them to be held on a day falling no later than within the 45 day period from the day of the official announcement of Presidential order on the shortening of the Sejm's term of office.
Election date is a day off from work and it occurs within 30 days prior to the expiry of four years from the start of term of office.
Election procedures
in Poland
Elections to constitutive organs of units of local government:
Elections to constitutive organs of units of local government shall be universal, equal, direct and shall be conducted by secret ballot
A candidate can be a Polish citizen, who is having the right to elect the council of the municipality and, who is at least 25 years of age on election day
Active suffrage has the person having the right to elect the council of the municipality
Election procedures
in Poland
A candidate is not obliged to be permanently resident in the area of the municipality
The winner is a candidate who received more than half of the valid votes. If no candidate received more than half of the votes, there is carried out re-vote (on the 14th day after the first round), which involved two candidates with the most received votes.
The right to vote is not enjoyed by persons deprived of public rights by a final court ruling and deprived of electoral rights
Elections to constitutive organs of units of local government shall be ordered by the Prime Minister
Election procedures
in Poland
Elections are carried out by selected commissions in municipalities
A voter can have only one vote for only one candidate
The election is organized and supervised by the National Electoral Commission and the Electoral Commissioners
Candidates who will take part in the elections can be chosen by the political parties, coalitions of political parties, associations, social organizations and voters
Election procedures
in Ukraine
With the formation of Ukraine as a sovereign, independent state interest in the elections and the electoral process as a whole began to grow rapidly. Elections are becoming an important topic of political analysis in the context of the study of the political system. What we see today: interest in the election is not fading, by contrast, elections are becoming, unfortunately, one of the main factors of polarization of society. Article 5 of the Constitution of Ukraine states that "... bearer of sovereignty and the only source of power in Ukraine is the people. The people exercise power directly through government agencies and local authorities, no one can usurp state power". The power of the people is realized primarily through elections and referendums and it is the starting point for the establishment and development of appropriate legislation. The legal future of our country depends upon the people’s will.
Election procedures
in Ukraine
Art. 1 of the Constitution of Ukraine defines Ukraine as a sovereign, independent, democratic, social, legal state. Democracy of the state and society is primarily determined by the level of development of people’s power, that is, the extent to which actually existing procedures of identifying and implementing of people’s will influence the management of state and public affairs. Citizens of Ukraine according to the Constitution of Ukraine can participate directly in the exercise of state power. This form of popular sovereignty is called straight (direct) democracy.
In Ukraine, in accordance with Art. 75 of the Constitution the only legislative body of power, its Parliament is the Verkhovna Rada. Besides collective (collegial) national agencies, single-person ones can be created, authorized to act on behalf of the state. In Ukraine, it is - the President.
Election procedures
in Ukraine
Elections in Ukraine - is provided by the Constitution and laws of Ukraine form of direct democracy, which is the expression of the will of the people by secret ballot on the formation of the constitutional qualitative and quantitative composition of representative bodies of state power and bodies of local self-government.Add a little bit of body text
The principle of universality of elections in Ukraine means that all its citizens who are under 18 on election day are entitled to vote. Only those who are in the court recognized incapacitated are deprived of this right. (Art.70 of the C.U.).
Describing the elections and referendum, the Constitution of Ukraine indicates that they are forms of direct democracy through which the people exercise their expression of will (Art. 69). Art. 71 contains a provision that elections to state authorities and bodies of local self-government are free and are held on the basis of general, equal and direct electoral rights through secret ballot.
Election procedures
in Ukraine
Democracy is the foundation of the state system of Ukraine.
In the current version of the Constitution of Ukraine general principles for the development of direct democracy in our country are laid down. Art. 1 and Art. 5 of the Constitution stipulate that the people of Ukraine perform initial and supreme power in the country, is the bearer of sovereignty and the only source of power in the state. This defines the right of people to exercise power both directly and through bodies of state and local governments. The current stage of democratic transformations in Ukraine requires strengthening of mechanisms of direct participation of citizens in social and political processes as inefficiency of fundamental political institutions is largely caused by lack of public control over their activities in the period between elections and limitation of political participation of citizens with only electoral processes. Further development of forms of direct democracy in Ukraine causes, above all, the need to improve constitutional principles of implementation of mechanisms of direct participation of citizens in public affairs.
Election procedures
in Ukraine
The election of the President of the Ukraine:
The Ukrainian president is elected by direct popular vote by Ukrainian citizens who are 18 years and over. The President is elected for a 5-year term of office, limited to two terms consecutively. Ukraine's electoral law provides for a two-round system electoral system to elect the President; a candidate must win an absolute majority of all votes cast. If no candidate obtains an absolute majority in the first round of voting then the two highest polling candidates contest a run-off second ballot. According to Chapter V, Article 103 of the Constitution, a candidate in the presidential election a candidate must be a Ukrainian citizenwho has attained the age of 35, has the right to vote, has resided in the country for the past 10 years and has full command of the Ukrainian state language. Per the Constitution, regular presidential elections are scheduled to be held on the last Sunday of the last month of the fifth year of the incumbent President's term. If the President's authority has ended pre-term, then the elections must be held within 90 days of the incumbent President's end of term. Candidates seeking election are required to pay a nomination deposit of 500,000 hryvnias (approx. 20,000 US Dollars) which is refunded only to those candidates that progress to the second round of voting.
The last presidential elections took place on 25 May 2014.
Election procedures
in Ukraine
Parliamentary election: Ukraine is divided into 225 voting areas and there are 450 deputies in Verkhova Rada.
1. Enouncement of the elections (90 days ahead). Payment for participation 1450 UAH x 10 from a person and 1450 UAH x 1000 from a party (for this they have 79 days). The money go for organization of elections.
3. A week before elections people receive official invitations.
2. Agitation (89 days). The last day (Saturday) is the day of silence.
4. Sunday – elections: from 8 a.m. till 8 p.m. People with passports and invitations come to special places (polls) at schools/universities/cultural establishments for election and vote in closed cabins on their own. There are people volunteers who observe the process. They may be from different organizations and from the parties. There are police present.
Election procedures
in Ukraine
5. Central election commission has 15 days from the day of elections to count votes. There are election commissions in the areas and on the places. Usually they count the votes day and night.
6. Ukrainians may vote abroad in special places, according to the local time.
7. Representative of CEC announces the results on TV and the information is published in the newspapers “Uriadovyi kuryer” and “Holos Ukrainy”.
Election procedures
in Ukraine
Municipal elections In Ukraine elections are held every 5 years.
Ukraine consists of 24 regions, Kyiv and Sevastopol have special status. A candidate must be over 18 and have Ukrainian passport and no criminal records.
Before the start, Central Election Commission (CEC) must prepare a list of voters and a list of candidates.
Voters also must be Ukrainians over 18.
Election procedures
in Ukraine
Pre-election campaign ends on Friday of the last week of October. And the next day, that is called "day of silence". It means, that any pre-election campaign has to be finished.
Votes are counted after 8 p.m. at night. And results are announced in 15 days after counting.
Every candidate has a pre-election campaign, which must tell others about him. It includes creation of banners, flyers.
On Sunday every voter must go to an election place with the passport and the invitation. It's opened from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Be social, be active
dictionary
ACT – formally adopted law. An attempt by a group of people to persuade members of a government that a particular law or situation should be changed.
BALLOT – the act, process, or method of voting, especially in secret.
AUTOCRACY - a form of government where unlimited power is held by one single individual.
Be social, be active
dictionary
BALLOT PAPER - a paper used in ballot. On this paper we can pick our candidate and give our voice to him.
CADENCE – defined by the law period of performing the function by the official or the elected. The cadence depends on many factors and can be among others an expression of the power of the governmental body. Period of time of cadence usually begins after the swearing of elected person.
BILL - the name for proposed legislation entered into the house of parliament to be discussed upon for approval. If approved at all stages it then becomes an act and thus law.
CANDIDATE - a person who stands for election to Parliament.
Be social, be active
dictionary
CITIZEN - a person who legally belongs to a country and has the rights and protection of that country; A person who lives in a particular town or city.
CONSTITUTION – the most important Act in the country, which contains fundamental rules about regime of the country.
COALITION - two or more political parties that join together to fight an election or to achieve a particular purpose.
DEMOCRACY – political system which allows people elect representatives to a parliament or similar assembly
DIRECT DEMOCRACY - is a form of government in which citizens rather than representatives decide the laws and policies that govern them power is directly in the hands of the people. Direct Democracy is the purest form of democracy. This type of democracy only works in countries with small populations.
Be social, be active
dictionary
ELECTOR – a person who has a right to vote
FEDERALISM - a system under which governmental powers are divided between the central government and the states or provinces all within the same geographical territory.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES – the members of this body come from direct universal suffrage. Its competences are different in differ countries.
ELECTORATE – people who can take part in voting
GOVERNMENT - is the system of people, laws, and officials that define and control the country that we live in.
LAW – the system of rules in country.
Be social, be active
dictionary
LEFT WING – political party or organization with a social program.
NGO – non-governmental organisation. Organisation which is not connected with business and with government.
LOBBY – a group of people with similar interests who try to persuade a government that a particular law or situation should be changed.
MINISTER – a head of a government department. Politician who holds significant public office in a national or regional government, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers.
Be social, be active
dictionary
OLIGARCHY - situation where small amount of people rule the country and rule the majority of citizens.
OMBUDSMAN – independent official, intervening in the offices and institutions in matters of citizens' complaints.
PARLIAMENT - the group of people elected to make a country's laws and discuss important national issues.
PLUTOCRACY – form of government in which power is exercised by the richest people.
POLL – collective decisionmaking, involving the telling for something or against something.
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dictionary
PRESIDENTIAL SYSTEM – system of government in which the president, elected by universal suffrage, is both head of state and head of government, there is no legislative initiative or the right to participate in the deliberations of parliament.
REFERENDUM - a public vote with possibly legally binding consequences.
PROTEST – a statement or action expressing disapproval of something or objection to something.
REPRESENTATIVE - person (who was elected) chosen to act and speak on behalf of a wider group (society, citizens).
Be social, be active
dictionary
REPUBLIC – a form of political system in which the highest authorities are appointed by election for a specified period.
RIGHT WING - political party or organization with a conservative program, based on the values of the national community, the family and private property.
RULE OF LAW – the concept of the state in which the law has a superior position in the political system, involves ruling and determines the scope of their competence and guarantees citizens a number of rights and freedoms.
Be social, be active
dictionary
SPEAKER – a person who leads deliberations in Parliament.
THEOCRACY – political doctrine, according to which the state power is exercised priest or priests and determine the civil and religious matters.
THINK TANK – independent advisory committee of a non-profit organization, engaged in research and analysis on public affairs.
Be social, be active
photo gallery
Participants during international activities and workshops.
Be social, be active
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Participants during international activities and workshops.
Be social, be active
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The meeting in the City Hall with the mayor and councilors.
Be social, be active
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The meeting in the City Hall with the mayor and councilors.
Be social, be active
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The meeting with school students in Wisla.
Be social, be active
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Event "Promote the election!" in the center of Wisla.
Be social, be active
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Event "Promote the election!" in the center of Wisla.
Be social, be active
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The meeting with representative of NGO from Wisla.
Be social, be active
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Visit to the Residence of the President of Poland in Wisla.
@FundacjaAktywniwEuropie @chernihiv.european