Jordan to implement electronic voting system

2012-03-22 By Ali al-Rawashdah in Amman

A worker at a voting centre cuts the edge of a Jordanian citizen’s identification card after he voted. [Ali al-Rawashdah/Al-Shorfa]

Jordan's Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Municipal Affairs are working to connect polling stations throughout the kingdom using the internet.

Officials say the project aims to enable citizens to cast their ballots using an online system in the upcoming municipal elections.

This system will link all the polling stations that are set up in Jordan's schools. Voters will cast their votes using their identification cards, which will automatically remove their names from the voting lists to prevent repeated voting.

With the new system, citizens will not be obligated to go to a particular polling station as was the case during previous elections. Instead, they will be able to vote at any centre in their constituency, an improvement officials say they hope will increase voter participation.

Municipal elections are expected to be held before the end of 2012, and Jordan's senate approved a municipality law concerning elections March 12th.

Integrity and transparency

The new system is intended to ensure integrity and transparency during the voting process, said Haitham al-Nahla, spokesperson for the Ministry of Municipal, Rural Affairs and Environment.

"This foolproof technical system prevents fraud [by individuals who use] ID cards that do not belong to [them] in addition to facilitating the voting and counting process by using ID cards that include voter data and the voter's national number," he said.

Al-Nahla said the government seeks to link the voter's personal data, which is on the ID card, to the electronic system used by electoral commissions. Each voter is able to vote within his constituency, and the link will prevent any transgressions from occurring when a voter changes his residence.

"The electoral commission has an electronic connection that provides access to the voter's data and compares it with people who actually vote, which increases transparency in the voting process and during counting," al-Nahla said.

"These procedures guarantee long-term and permanent access to voter names in coordination with the Civil Status and Passports Department, which updates the status of individuals who have reached the voting age and removes names of the deceased," he said.

Hilda Ajeilat, founding member of the Jordan Transparency Centre, said systems like the electronic connection project are designed to ensure greater fairness and transparency during the election process.

"International standards require that the ballot box where each citizen votes is identified to prevent fraud and to allow more transparency," Ajeilat said. "It also allows candidates to track their voter base with voting results and then decide whether to either challenge the outcome or not."

Ajeilat said it is important to make voting easy for citizens, as well as to issue voting cards that include a candidate's identifying information as well as the vicinity and ballot box where he is allowed to vote. These cards would be used in place of ID cards, she said.

"This will provide more guarantees when it comes to neutrality, integrity and objectivity," she said.

Faster and easier

Lawyer Nasser Sanaa said a committee independent from the executive branch should supervise the project to increase the transparency of the electoral process.

When the electronic system is implemented, the electoral process will be faster and easier, Sanaa said. However, he highlighted the importance of an alternative system that can be used in case the electronic system malfunctions.

"We have to work within a framework that avoids double-dealing as well as cheating the electoral commission," he said. "Laws and regulations that discourage people from selling their votes or receiving funds for political favours should be monitored by the relevant authorities."

"If any transgressions take place, the relevant authorities must intervene and forcefully impose the law outside the polling stations," Sanaa said. "It is also important to raise awareness, emphasising that citizens should cast their vote according to their preference."

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READER COMMENTS

صادق فارس

2012-4-20

I do not say that democracy is completely absent in Jordan once and for all. No. Of course, there are some practices but they are very limited. They did not mean that Jordan is on the way to a real democratic approach. We all know that Jordan and its ruling system is a police system par excellence. I do not believe that any Arab regime that pursues the police system in its methods can become one day a democratic system or a country that practices democracy, whether practicing freedoms or regarding the elections conducted in this country, in addition to the fact that the elections in Jordan cannot finish all of its sessions only with problems and submitting objections, because a lot of these elections are marred by many uncertainties which favor some over others, particularly in favor of those who are supporting the ruling regime in Jordan. This prevails in the end and, therefore, I do not see that Jordan could be described, with all of its practices, as completely democratic. It still has a lot of work and procedures in order to implement genuine democratic practices.
مسلم عادل

2012-4-20

According to my perception, many countries, particularly the Arab ones, raise many beautiful slogans that suggest the extent of democratic prosperity that those countries reached through their democratic practices, and the Arab media talks about them night and day in some countries, including Jordan. In fact, all these practices and events are just mock forms designed to beautify the image of the systems that control these countries. Regarding the democracy in Jordan, I do not imagine that it differs a lot from the democracy that we see in other Arab countries. Jordan is a country that practices a lot of mock democratic activities that neither nourish nor avail against hunger. It is just a lie of the era followed by a number of countries, including Jordan. What democracy did these Arab regimes know? What practices is Jordan talking about? Where are the democratic practices taking place in this country? The elections and the way they are managed, I do not believe that they are proof that these elections are experiencing some democracy and away from intervention, whether by the government or the institutions designated to oversee the elections of the Parliament or municipal councils in Jordan.
طارق ابراهيم الريحاني

2012-4-12

Jordan is in a situation that enables it to succeed in the transition to democracy in a balanced way, away from internal unrest or external interference. It would represent an advanced state and a model in the Arab world. Jordan enjoys today a good condition of stability in the security and national unity, rationality and political maturity. It has a lot of experiences, environments and institutions necessary for a successful transition to democracy. However, despite the efforts made in the recent years to move forward with political reform, the results of the interaction between the distributions, structures, mechanisms, and the forces of power influence Jordan with many local regional, and global developments, as well as with the will of the popular forces that did not so far produce any quantum leap or a considerable amount in this direction. So the big question that imposes itself lies in determining what hinders the desired democratization process, proposing an integrated strategy dealing with all the gaps, providing radical sustainable and acceptable solutions to the vast majority of the Jordanian people, and responding to the fundamental developments raised regionally and globally, which led mostly to the establishment of a stable and successful democracy.
Rashad

2012-4-12

I think that the democracy in Jordan is untrue, despite the presence of many positives signs. In fact, there are numerous drawbacks that must be corrected. In this respect, the financial and administrative corruption, nepotism and favoritism are widespread in the country. Indeed, nepotism is the main obstacle to democracy in Jordan. This country also suffers from political turmoil because many political parties are calling for more constitutional amendments in order to provide the adequate control on the elections that are held in the country. In so doing, the citizens would be able to exercise their constitutional rights freely and away from the pressures and practices that are incompatible with it. Indeed, the Jordanians want to establish a democratic pluralistic regime ruled by law. The transfer of power should be carried out peacefully and based on fair elections that are devoid of the practices of some influential people who seek to marginalize or eliminate the others. In fact, these people want to remove their opponents from the political arena and strip them of their right to participate in the elections. A lot of people are complaining about the results of the elections. There are also some parties and blocs which often complain about the irregularities in the elections. Jordanians must show more attention to the Election Law in order to become a democratic State. Indeed, every government promises to enact a modern law for the election but none of these governments kept this promise. The Jordanian authorities should monitor the elections, seek a wider political participation and ensure the fundamental freedoms for all the citizens in order to create a democratic State. They should also achieve equality, justice and equal opportunities among citizens as well as men and women without discrimination. They must also ensure the freedom of speech and press and the liberty to join political parties.
رياض اقبال

2012-4-10

I ask God the Almighty to guide them to all what is good and I wish to see Jordan always making progress and development. I call on the Jordanian people to take the issue of the elections seriously and avoid causing any troubles that may make their country like the other states that do not know what to do. I also call on the heroic Jordanian king to always protect his country and work hard to make sure that it is developing and moving forward. I am proud of the democracy in Jordan and the parliamentary elections there. They enjoy a state of progress and development, and this is what we wish and hope from our God. We ask God to help Jordan to develop and make progress because Jordan deserves all that is good. We will always see it making progress and moving forward, God willing, until it reaches first position as to construction, tourism, and progress at all political and social aspects as well as in international relations. Jordan will be good and democracy in it will make progress, God willing.
سنان عادل

2012-4-10

We thank God because the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan develops continually and improves all the time, especially at the political level. I see that democracy is the best thing as we saw in the parliamentary elections in Jordan. We noticed that the electoral process in Jordan is moving forward towards continuous development and this is what we are looking for and what we were demanding. In the past, the Jordanians were suffering from deterioration and the current affairs should therefore make them better and more confident in themselves. All they need now is to pay attention to the things that their country needs from them. The Hashemite kingdom of Jordan has always prided itself in its achievements and reforms. I see that this great progress is a result of the great efforts of King Abdullah who wishes to see his country to become better and better.
عساف

2012-4-9

It is said that Jordan is the least corrupt Arab country. This is why I would say that Jordan is the most democratic Arab country, because democracy is inversely proportional to corruption. So the less corruption that exists, the less dictatorship and the more democracy in the society. It is also known that Jordan is a kingdom governed by the Al Hashim, represented in King Abdullah al-Hashimi. A lot of things have been said about this king, yet everybody in Jordan is loyal to the king, even if it is a traditional loyalty, because it is a kingdom, so everybody should respect the king and give him allegiance. The kingdom has many political and partisan conflicts; there are also disagreements over the constitution. Those conflicts can be found in any kingdom. I think Jordan is not very different than Morocco, except for the level of freedom - Morocco is still below Jordan in terms of democracy, despite the amendments that King Mohammed VI has made to the constitution. Based on these amendments, the Muslim Brotherhood took nearly half of the seats in the Parliament. King Mohammed VI also made amendments to the constitution and the legislative authority responsible for issuing laws. This contributed to increasing the dose of democracy. There are also laws and legislation that had noticeable effects, leading to the winning of seats in the parliament by people from different political currents. People who were considered part of the opposition and the Muslim Brotherhood are now in the parliament. The last local elections in Jordan led to these results. It is worth mentioning that the last elections in Jordan helped in calming the street in Jordan that called for reformation, like the rest of the Arab countries in which revolutions have been taking place. The king responded and made some amendments and decisions; he enacted some laws too, which shows his respect for the Jordanian citizen and what he hopes for. This is a sign that he respects democracy; yet I think it is a democracy within the limits of what is permissible.