Electronic voting at local body polls

The Government will introduce legislation to conduct local government elections, with electronic voting under a mixed proportional representation (PR) and first-past-the post (FPP) system, a Cabinet Minister said yesterday. Parliamentary Select Committee on Electoral Reforms chairman Dinesh Gunawardena told The Sunday Times the draft legislation would be finalised at a meeting of the Committee on October 8. Some of the provisions to be included in the proposed laws have met with strong opposition even before the draft was ready.

The UNP said any proposed reforms should consider all levels of government, namely, Parliament, Provincial Councils and local bodies and the new system devised should be applicable to all three levels and not selectively. The UNP also wants a political consensus on the ratio of those elected through the PR and FFP systems.

UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayaka said its response to the latest Government move to bring in the draft Bill would be discussed in the coming days. The SLMC and CWC too have their own views on electoral reforms and have presented their counter proposals to the Committee.

Under the new legislation, the ‘ward system’ would be re-introduced with 30 per cent of representatives to be elected under the PR system to ensure representation for minority communities and unrepresented parties.

Minister Gunawardena said he hoped that once the draft Bills were presented to the parties, they would approve them as the recommendations made by those parties were included in the draft Bills. “There may be a few objections but all parties strongly feel that a change in the system is needed. They can have the final say when the Bills come before Parliament,” he said. Draft Bills on Parliamentary and Presidential elections are to follow, Minister Gunawardena said.