Electoral Reform: Resumption of 'No vote' option under consideration

The Electoral Reform Commission is considering recommending the reinstatement of the "No vote" option on ballots to enhance voter choice and address concerns over unopposed contests.

The option, introduced during the 9th parliamentary election in 2008 under ATM Shamsul Huda's Election Commission, was abolished after the Awami League assumed power in 2009.

Several members of the commission, on condition of anonymity, told TBS that other proposals under consideration include – nomination seekers must be registered and active members of a political party for at least three years, a move aimed at curbing political dominance by businessmen.

The commission may also propose amendments to the "Representation of the People Order 1972," including harsher penalties for election offences and reforms to the women's reserved seat allocation system to ensure candidate selection based on merit and competence.

Other likely proposals include – postponing elections with only one candidate, enforcing stricter penalties for false affidavit submissions, and raising the candidates' election expenditure limit.

"If a candidate is found to have submitted false information, their candidacy will be revoked at any stage of the election process. Even after the election, a winning candidate discovered to have falsified information will lose their position," said a commission member.

"To ensure transparency, affidavits will be published on the Election Commission's website, allowing citizens to report any discrepancies," the member added.

Members said they want to eliminate unopposed elections. To address this, they are considering two approaches: either postponing the election when there is only one candidate or introducing the "no vote".

They explained that the "no vote" would function as a de facto candidate. If this option garners more votes than any individual candidate in a constituency, the election in that area would be annulled, and a re-election would be held.

For further reforms, the commission will recommend postponing elections where there is only one candidate, as elections in such cases would be a waste of resources.

However, the "no vote" will remain an option where more than one candidate is running. This will allow voters to choose not to vote for a candidate they dislike. If the "no votes" exceed 50%, a re-election will be held.

Opinions on 'No vote' option 

The option appears to be gaining preference among many. In a press conference at Dhaka Reporters Unity on Saturday, Naripokkho, a women's rights organisation, called for its inclusion in the next election.

CPB General Secretary Ruhin Hossain Prince told TBS, "Our stance has always been in favour of the 'no-vote' option. We want it, and we will continue to press for it."

However, the BNP has yet to make a decision on this.

BNP Standing Committee Member Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain said, "Our party will present a reform proposal to the government. However, we have yet to make a decision on the no-vote issue. Once we finalise it in the committee meeting, we will comment on it."

Reform for women's reserved seats 

The reform commission plans to overhaul the system for reserved seats for women, believing current selections are based more on political connections than merit or competence. They will recommend abolishing the current system in favour of direct elections with a rotational approach.

Under this plan, 100 out of 400 constituencies would be reserved for women, with only female candidates contesting these seats. Both men and women could run for the remaining constituencies. Over four election cycles, each constituency would elect one woman, ensuring fair representation and promoting qualified women's participation in the political process.

Expenditure limit and other reforms 

Other proposals under consideration include raising the electoral expenditure limit, forming an expenditure monitoring committee, appointing returning officers (ROs), and simplifying party registration.

The commission will recommend increasing the election expenditure limit by at least Tk10 lakh, up from the current Tk25 lakh. It will propose setting up a monitoring committee with members from both the government and private sectors to oversee candidates' electoral spending.

To ease party registration, the commission will suggest reducing the number of districts where a party must have an office from the current 100.

Regarding returning officers, the commission will propose that Election Commission officials should serve as ROs in the future, though they recommend a mixed appointment of ROs for the upcoming election.

A member of the reform commission told TBS that ROs should not only come from the administrative sector but also from other services, proposing an election service cadre system similar to the BCS, with exams administered by the Public Service Commission.

Additionally, the commission is considering changes to the position of secretary in the Election Commission. They will propose that the secretary should be selected from within the Election Commission itself, not from the administrative cadre, and that the secretary should be prohibited from taking up other government or private jobs after retirement, except for entitled benefits.