FAQ

At what age is one eligible to vote?

• One is eligible to vote when they attain the age of 18 years.
   

What are the other requirements to be eligible to vote?

• Must be in possession of a Green National Registration Card
• One has to register as a voter
• One must go with their NRC and voters card to the polling station

Can one use any other identity document apart from a National Registration Card (NRC) to vote?

• According to law voters can only be allowed to vote if they present their NRC and the voters’ card.
   

Who is allowed to enter the Polling Station?

• Any person or organisation that is authorized or accredited by the Commission.
   

What is the duration of the voting time?

• Voting starts at 06:00hrs and ends at 18:00hrs.
   

What is a rejected ballot paper?
A rejected ballot paper is one that is not included on the counting of ballot papers due to the following reason;

• Marking by the voter on more than one candidate
• Unmarked ballot paper
• Ballot paper marked with voters name
• Ballot paper with voters signature
   

What can one do in case of lost voters’ card?

• Apply for replacement of your voters’ card by going with your Green National Registration Card or NRC number to the District Office or nearest school in your constituency or any other school that the Commission designates as a centre for the collection of details of the lost voters; card within a stipulated period of time.
   

What is done in cases of a transfer?

• You can register in your new area. However if it is too late for you to register, then you need to go back and vote where you registered.
   

Is there any special help during voting for those who cannot read, write, see or have other needs?

• Yes. Those who need assistance can ask a person they trust or a presiding officer to assist.
• The person who assists must be a registered voter in that polling district.
   

How many people can the person assisting Help?

• The person assisting with the exception of the presiding officer can only help one voter.
   

Who is allowed to monitor elections?

• Any registered Non- governmental Organisation is allowed to monitor elections as long as they get accredited from the Electoral Commission of Zambia.
   

Are political parties also allowed to monitor elections?

• All bonafide registered political parties are allowed to send their representatives to monitor any election as long as they are accredited by the Electoral Commission of Zambia.
   

Is campaigning allowed on voting day?

• Campaigns are not allowed on voting day. Campaigns begin a day before nominations and end at 18hours, a day before the poll day.
   

How many types of elections do we have in Zambia?
We have four (4) types of elections in Zambia namely;

• Presidential which take place every after five (5) years.
• Parliamentary which take place every after five (5) years.
• Local Government which takes place every (5) five years. However, a Presidential election can be held if the incumbent President dies or is incapacitated before the end of the five year period.
• By -elections which take place when the incumbent Member of Parliament/Councillor dies, resigns, is expelled, or joins another political party.
   

Who qualifies to vote in all these elections?

• Any Zambian citizen as long as they meet the requirements for voting, given in 1 and 2.
   

When is Zambia going to have the next elections?

• Presidential elections will be conducted on 30th October, 2008 and in 2011.
• Parliamentary elections will also take place in 2011.
• Local Government elections will take place in 2011.
• By-elections take place from time to time when a Parliamentary or local government seat falls vacant.
   

I’m a Zambian citizen living outside the country. What can I do to vote?

• The Commission does not have any provision for Zambians living abroad to vote. However if one wants to participate in voting they have to travel to Zambia during voter registration exercise to register and vote where they registered from.
   

Who counts the results at the polling station?

• Results are counted by the Presiding Officer and his assistants at the polling station in the presence of political party agents, monitors and observers and any persons authorized by the Electoral Commission of Zambia. After counting at the polling station, in case of a by-election, the results are taken to a central place in the constituencies where the final results are announced. In a general or presidential election the results are sent from the collation centres to the Electoral Commission of Zambia headquarters who transfer them to the Election Results Centre where the final results are announced by the Returning Officer.
   

Can the results of the poll be announced within a day?

• Results cannot be announced within a day because some polling districts are far from the collation centres and at times they are inaccessible by road and have no Communication facilities. Election officers have to walk or drive for long hours to reach the totaling centres.
   

Who is allowed to enter the Election Results Centre?

• All persons, institutions or organizations accredited by the Electoral Commission of Zambia to observe the receiving of the poll results. If you were accredited to observe or monitor elections at polling stations you still have to be accredited again for you to enter the results centre. The Commission usually restricts the number of people to be accredited for this purpose to reduce congestion at the centre.