Understanding Elections: From Polls to Proclamation
Election Polls
An election poll is a form of political market research that aims to understand the preferences of potential voters regarding candidates or policy options. These surveys are not intended to influence public opinion but rather to gauge it.
Poll Criteria
Election polls are subject to specific regulations, including:
- Accountability: Every poll must be conducted responsibly.
- Transparency: All data related to the poll must be made available.
- Sample Characteristics: The characteristics of the sample population must be clearly defined.
- Question Documentation: The full text of all questions, both answered and unanswered, must be recorded.
The JEC (presumably the Junta Electoral Central or a similar electoral commission) monitors the accuracy and fairness of polls. Polls can be published up to 5 days before an election.
Vote
Voting is the most crucial stage of the electoral process for both the individual citizen and the overall functioning of a democracy. It is the moment when citizens express their choices by selecting candidates, parties, or policy options in referendums and plebiscites.
Nature of the Vote
Voting involves a mental process of evaluating options and making a choice. In elections, citizens choose candidates or parties, while in referendums, they express their preference for specific policy options. Plebiscites are used to ratify a person in power.
Citizens should be well-informed about the political agenda and the stances of different candidates or parties before casting their votes.
Modes of Voting
In-Person Voting
In-person voting takes place at designated polling stations, typically between 9 am and 8 pm. Voters must present a valid form of identification, such as a DNI (presumably the Documento Nacional de Identidad or a similar national identity document), to confirm their eligibility. Privacy is ensured through the use of voting booths.
Assisted voting is available for individuals with physical or mental disabilities who require support to cast their votes.
Correspondence Voting
Correspondence voting, also known as postal voting or absentee voting, allows citizens who are unable to vote in person at their designated polling station to cast their ballots remotely. This option is commonly used by citizens living abroad who can vote through embassies or consulates.
Postal voting is specifically designed for citizens who are out of the country and may not be able to visit an embassy or consulate.
Online voting is a potential future development, but it is still under investigation and not yet widely implemented.
To vote by mail, voters must request the necessary materials from the electoral registration office, which will send them via expedited mail within 24 hours.
In cases where multiple elections coincide, the order of resolution is as follows: European Parliament, Senate, local authorities, autonomous regions, and finally, the Canary Islands.
Scrutiny
After the voting period ends, each polling place conducts a scrutiny, which involves counting the votes received by each political party or candidate.
The chairman of the board opens the envelopes containing the ballots and reads them aloud. Invalid votes, such as those that are unclear or contain multiple selections, are identified and excluded from the count.
Once all valid votes are counted, a separate count is conducted for blank ballots. The total number of votes cast should equal the sum of valid votes and blank ballots.
A statistical report is prepared and signed by the president of the board, with copies distributed to the court and the election board.
Proclamation of Candidates
The provincial Electoral public the results and sends it to the Central Electoral Board determine it to be official, the deputy giving him the card (credited to Mr. x has been obtained for the Senate seat in the province z).
Finally published in the Official Gazette and the results of each elected credential, just missing the oath and refines his position as deputy or senator. It then needs to win the election, have the credentials and swear to the constitution in the first two points is elected and in charge of ultimate perfection.