1/2024. NVB Directive

on the amendment of the National Election Committee's 3/2014., 13/2014. and 2/2015. NVB Directives

The National Election Committee, acting within its competence as laid down in Section 51 (1) of Act XXXVI of 2013 on Electoral Procedure (hereinafter: Ve.) - on the initiative of the President of the National Election Office - with 13 votes in favour and 0 against, issues the following

directive

1, Amendment of the 3/2014. NVB Directive on certain issues of bus transport on election day

1. Point 1 of the directive shall be replaced by the following provision:

„1. The provision of Section 143/A (2) of the Electoral Procedure Act contains a general prohibition, which also applies to election bodies, including election offices. Based on the legal provision, the election office is also not entitled to publish a public invitation for transport to the polling station. Furthermore, it is a violation of the said prohibition if the election office transports voters to the polling station by bus in order to reach the polling station. Given that neither the Electoral Procedure Act nor any other law applicable to the election defines a task on the basis of which election offices would be entitled to transport voters by bus on election day for any reason to reach the polling station, they not only do not have the competence and authority to perform such a task, but it is also unlawful based on the prohibition contained in Section 143/A (2) of the Electoral Procedure Act.

To define the concept of bus transport, Appendix 1. Section II. e) of the joint decree of KPM-BM No. 1/1975. (II. 5.) on the rules of road traffic must be taken into account. According to this legal provision, a bus is a motor vehicle designed for the transport of persons, not connected to an electric overhead line, which has more than nine permanent seats, including the driver's seat.”

1.2 The fourth paragraph of the reasoning for the directive shall be replaced by the following provision:

“Section 75 (1) lists the basic tasks and competences of election offices.

Accordingly, among other things

“a) they perform organizational tasks related to the preparation and conduct of the election,

b) they ensure the information of voters, candidates and nominating organizations, and operate an election information service,

c) they perform the secretarial tasks of the election committees, and prepare for decision the matters falling within the competence of the election committees,

d) they provide the material and technical conditions for the operation of the election committees and the conduct of the vote,

e) they organize the training of the members of the election bodies,

f) they ensure the management, safe keeping and destruction of election documents,

g) they perform tasks related to administrative and IT tests,

h) they perform data management in their area of competence in the election IT system,

i) they provide assistance with the counting of votes and the establishment of the election results by providing the technical background,

j) they perform other tasks defined in the legal regulations.””

1. Amendment of the 13/2014. NVB Directive on the interpretation of the rules for the removal of election posters

2.1 Of the provisions of the Ve. interpreted and quoted verbatim in the directive, Section 218 (2) d) shall be replaced by the following provision after the amendment effective from May 26, 2023:

“Section 218 (1) The election committee shall decide on the objection on the basis of the data available to it.

(2) If the election committee upholds the objection

(..)

d) in the event of a violation of the rules of the election campaign or a breach of the obligation set out in Section 155, it may also impose a fine.”

2.2 The second paragraph of the reasoning for the directive shall be replaced by the following provision after the amendment of Section 218 (2) d) of the Electoral Procedure Act effective from May 26, 2023:

“According to Section 218 (2) d) of the Electoral Procedure Act, a fine may be imposed in a legal remedy procedure only in the event of a violation of the rules of the election campaign, and in the event that the candidate or the nominating organization violates the rules on the processing of data of voters included in the polling district register for the purpose of the election campaign.”

1. Amendment of the 2/2015. NVB Directive on the mixing of signature collection sheets for different referendum questions

3.1 Of the Nsztv. provisions interpreted and quoted verbatim in the directive, Section 19 (1) and Section 1, and of the Ve. provisions, Section 3 (1) point 7 shall be replaced by the following provision:

“Section 19 (1) The organizer may submit the signature collection sheets of the citizens' initiative for the referendum to the National Election Office for the purpose of checking the signatures once, within a hundred and twenty days following the receipt of the signature collection sheets as defined in Section 14 (1) or (2), but no later than the tenth day following the event specified in Section 14 (1). This deadline does not include the period specified in Section 18 (1) and the suspension under Section 19/B (6) b).”

Nsztv.:

“Section 1 (1) The General Part of the Act XXXVI of 2013 on Electoral Procedure (hereinafter: the Ve.) shall apply to the procedures falling under the scope of this Act, with the exceptions laid down in this Act.”

Ve.:

(...)

“Section 3 (1) For the purposes of this Act

(...)

7. authorized person: a person with authorization given in an administrative order, or a person with a power of attorney in a public or full private document,”

4.2. The first paragraph of the reasoning for the directive shall be replaced by the following text:

“According to Section 19 (1) of the Nsztv., the organizer may submit the signature collection sheets to the National Election Office for the purpose of checking the signatures once, within a hundred and twenty days following the receipt, but no later than the tenth day following the event specified in Section 14 (1). ”

Reasoning

General Reasoning

After the review of the directives adopted by the National Election Committee since 2014 on November 3, 2021, the Electoral Procedure Act was amended several times. Consequently, the National Election Office, in accordance with its task set out in Section 75 (1) c) of the Electoral Procedure Act, reviewed the directives again and proposed their amendment where necessary.

Detailed Reasoning

Regarding point 1

The amendment of point 1 of the operative part of the directive corrects a reference error, given that the appendix in the joint decree of KPM-BM No. 1/1975. (II. 5.) on the rules of road traffic is numbered with an Arabic numeral, whereas the second paragraph of point 1 of the operative part of the directive refers to the appendix with a Roman numeral.

In addition, the amendment of the reasoning for the directive is necessary in accordance with the change in the law, given that Section 75 (1) h) of the Electoral Procedure Act, quoted verbatim in the reasoning, was changed with effect from December 1, 2023.

Regarding point 2

The implementation of the change of Section 218 (2) d) of the Electoral Procedure Act effective from May 26, 2023, in the directive.

The amendment of the reasoning for the directive is necessary in accordance with the change in the law, given that the reference to Section 124 (2) of the Electoral Procedure Act was omitted from Section 218 (2) d) of the Electoral Procedure Act.

Regarding point 3

The amendment updates the Nsztv. provision interpreted and quoted verbatim in the directive due to the change of Section 19 (1) of the Nsztv. effective from May 26, 2023.

The amendment also includes the clarification of Section 1 (1) of the Nsztv. and the supplementation of Section 3 (1) point 7 of the Electoral Procedure Act, which were taken into account when issuing the directive.

Budapest, March 27, 2024.

Dr. Róbert Sasvári
President
National Election Committee