The following is a statement by Bill Sweeney, President and CEO of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) regarding a proposal by Tunisia’s Independent Election Commission to postpone the election of a Constituent Assembly from 24 July to 16 October:

“The newly-appointed Independent Election Commission’s first order of business was to make the difficult decision of either moving forward with the ambitious 24 July date and risk the quality of elections, or call for the postponement of the election and risk public objection. We hope the Commission’s recent sensible proposal to postpone the elections to 16 October will be accepted by the transitional government and embraced by the people.

IFES agrees with the Commission that an adequate planning process must be put in place before the election. This includes setting a budget for the overall elections, registering voters, determining the location of polling stations, recruiting and training personnel to ensure a smooth election and identifying the mechanism for casting votes.

So far, no progress has been made in putting together a comprehensive operational structure for voter registration (i.e. the recruitment of registration officers, the establishment of registration offices) and the delays in the adoption of an Electoral Law means there is no effective regulatory framework in place. Also, no budget has been set aside by the Tunisian authorities for the conduct of voter registration, much less for the broader elections.

The Tunisian authorities also face the challenge of immediately determining the number of electoral districts and the number of seats per district; the framework for out-of-country voting, including the number of seats allocated to expatriates; and the rules relating to the registration of candidates. These major steps are unlikely to be taken within the short timeframe ahead of the currently scheduled elections.

Today, 24 May, is the cutoff statutory date for the President to call the elections for 24 July. The Tunisian authorities have a very narrow window to decide if the priority is for the elections to take place on 24 July (and risk the quality of elections) or allow a delay in order for proper preparations to be made (and risk public protest).

IFES believes that every effort should be made to ensure a credible and transparent electoral process that leads to final results that are embraced by the people and accepted as legitimate.”