Mock voting held at Dhaka school tests referendum ballot with 4 proposals
On referendum day, the public will give their opinion on all four issues with a single “Yes: or “No” vote.
Ahead of the upcoming national election and the referendum, scheduled to be held on the same day in February, a mock voting exercise at a school in Dhaka today (29 November) used a ballot paper asking voters to choose "Yes" or "No" on four main issues.
The proposed questions had been earlier published on 18 November on the official Facebook page of the chief adviser.
The Election Commission organised the mock voting today ahead of the national election and referendum to assess its preparedness. It began at 8am and was scheduled to continue until noon, with a total of 510 male and female voters taking part.
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The four proposals are:
- During the election period, a caretaker government, the Election Commission, and other constitutional bodies will be formed according to the process described in the July Charter.
- The next parliament will be bicameral. A 100-member upper chamber will be formed based on parties' proportional votes, and constitutional amendments will require approval from the majority of upper chamber members.
- Implementation of 30 proposals agreed by political parties in the July Charter, including increasing women's representation in parliament, election of deputy speaker and parliamentary committee chairpersons from the opposition, limiting the prime minister's term, expanding presidential powers, enhancing fundamental rights, ensuring judicial independence, and local government reforms.
- Other reforms described in the July Charter will be implemented according to parties' commitments.
On referendum day, the public will give their opinion on all four issues with a single "Yes: or "No" vote.
If "Yes" wins, the next parliament will be bicameral, with the 100-member upper chamber formed based on proportional representation.
Presiding officer Jahangir Alam said that in the mock voting exercise, 70.4% of voters participated, with 352 out of 510 casting their votes. The mock voting was conducted across four booths.
A commissioner observed one of the booths from 9am to 10am to review the voting process with different types of voters. Jahangir Alam added that a report will be prepared based on this observation, which the Election Commission will use to assess the overall process.
