The Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (ESIA) through its Elections Observation Mission (ESIA-EOM) expresses deep concern and anxiety over the high number of invalid votes reported across the country by the National Elections Commission from the 10 October 2023 Elections.
The Elections Observation Mission notes that huge invalid votes undermine and question electoral integrity and leaves a negative impact on public confidence.
The electoral commission reported total invalid votes of 114,639 out of 1,949,155 total votes cast across the country.
In its invalid votes finding released on October 30, 2023, the ESIA-EOM notes that in 12 of Liberia's 15 counties (excluding Margibi, Monsterrado and Grand Gedeh), the number of invalid votes for the Presidential elections were higher than the Senatorial or Representative ballots.
It records that the highest number of invalid votes recorded at a single polling place was 140 in Monsterrado County District# 1.
It observes that elections for the House of Representatives had 113,962 invalid votes, while for the Presidential election, a total of 114,369 invalid votes were recorded and the senatorial poll had 28,694 invalid votes across the country.
"During the 2017 elections, the number of invalid votes was 83,427 (5.14%) out of 1,539,502 votes. Invalid votes can have a significant impact on the outcome of an election, especially in close races. Invalid votes can also have a negative impact on public confidence in the electoral process. When many votes are thrown out, it can lead to allegations of irregularities and other malpractices. This can undermine public trust in the legitimacy of the government. There are several factors that can contribute to high rate of invalid votes, but there are also several measures that can be taken to reduce them", the report reads.
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At the same time, the ESIA-EOM report points out that during counting and tallying processes, the NEC took measures including recounting procedures and potential corrective measures for specific polling centers.
It says the impact of invalid votes in African elections requires careful consideration, adding that invalid votes often result from errors or unclear markings of ballots.
ESI-EOM explains that budget constraints impacted the NEC's civic and voter education efforts to educate voters on voting procedures.
Also, EISA blames illiteracy and poor education levels, particularly in more rural areas of Liberia for the huge number of invalid votes, stating that voters spoiled their ballots intentionally to protest the options on the ballot paper.
"More candidates on ballots in 2023 than previous elections, this may bring confusion for voters. EISA's Long-Term Observers also noted several complaints submitted to the NEC regarding the number of invalid votes that called for re-counts of specific polling centers. In some cases, after recounts, the number of invalid votes were reduced slightly and changed on the NEC results portal in accordance with election regulations."
According to EISA, conducting and participating in elections are worthwhile goals, but it is important to balance concern over this number against the historical performance of a country's previous elections and to benchmark invalid votes against international averages.
It underscores the importance of civic and voter education as a measure to reduce invalid votes. It also recognizes the importance of supporting budgets that enable this crucial function in electoral democracies like Liberia and adds that election officials should also be properly trained on how to process ballots and identify invalid votes.
"Whenever election budgets are tight, electoral commissions often cut funding to civic and voter education. In some cases, international donors fill the gap, but the importance of CVE in strengthening electoral democracy is too important to rely only on external support, and electoral commissions and national governments should review their financial support to the vital function that voter education plays in reducing invalid votes. In this way, governments invest in their most important resource, the voters themselves", it recommends.
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EISA is a continental not-for-profit organization located in Johannesburg, South Africa, and Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire with field offices in Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Madagascar, Niger, Liberia, Chad, and Sudan. It has continental and sub-regional programs in the field of elections and democracy throughout Africa. EISA strives for excellence in the promotion of credible elections, domestic participation, and the strengthening of political institutions for sustainable democracy in Africa.
The USAID-funded EISA International Election Observation Mission (EISA-IEOM) Activity seeks to enhance the integrity of the 2023 Liberia Presidential and Legislative elections through the deployment of an independent international election observer mission (EOM) to monitor, assess and report on all phases of the electoral process by international and regional benchmarks. Editing by Jonathan Browne
