Law Of Election To The House Of Deputies -Jordan-

The 1986 Election Law regulates the operational aspects of parliamentary elections, as well as the requirements for candidates and proportional allotment of representatives throughout the country. At that time, the West Bank was constitutionally considered a part of Jordan. After the decision to disengage administratively and legally from the West Bank in 1988, the Election Law was amended in 1989 to redraw the Kingdom’s electoral districts. The amendment removed the West Bank from Jordan’s electoral map, thus paving the way for the 1989 parliamentary elections, the country’s first in 22 years.

In August 1993, Parliament passed an amendment to the election law which adjusted Jordan’s electoral system to the principle of “one person, one vote.” The new law ended the previous voting system, whereby voters were entitled to as many votes as the number of parliamentary seats allocated for their district.



Law Of Election To The House Of Deputies


Law No. 22 for the Year 1986



Published in the Official Gazette,

No. 3398 of 9 Ramadan 1406 A.H., being 17 May 1986 A.D.



CHAPTER ONE
Definitions

CHAPTER TWO
The Right to Vote

CHAPTER THREE
Electoral Lists

CHAPTER FOUR
Candidature for Membership of the House of Deputies

CHAPTER FIVE
Constituencies and Their Allotted Seats

CHAPTER SIX
Election Procedures

CHAPTER SEVEN
Canvassing Votes and Announcing Election Returns

CHAPTER EIGHT
Elections Publicity

CHAPTER NINE
Election Crimes

List Of Constituencies And The Seats Allocated To Each Constituency In The House Of Deputies





Elections Regulation
Published in the Official Gazette, No. 3429 of 13 Safar 1407 A.H., being 16 October 1986 A.D.

AMENDMENT
Provisional Law Number (23) for the Year 1989 Amending the Law of Election to the House of Deputies

Instructions Governing the Elections Identity Card
Issued in accordance with Article 35 of the Law of Election to the House of Deputies No. 22 for the year 1986 A.D.
Published in the Official Gazette, No. 3422, of 29 Safar 1407 A.H., being 1 November 1986 A.D.

Provisional Law Number (15) For The Year 1993 Amending The Law Of Election To The House Of Deputies
Published by: Press & Publications Department No. 6, November, 1993

Published in the Official Gazette,

No. 3398

of 9 Ramadan 1406 A.H., being 17 May 1986 A.D.

Regulation No. 60 for the Year 1986 A.D.

We, Al-Hussein I, King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, in accordance with Article (31) of the Constitution, and upon the decision of both The House of Notables and the House of Deputies, do hereby ratify the following Law, and order its issuance and addition to the laws of the State:

Law No. 22 for the Year 1986 A.D.

Law of Election to the House of Deputies






CHAPTER ONE

Definitions


Article 1 This law shall be called “Law of Election to the House of Deputies for the Year 1986,” and shall become effective as of the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.
Article 2 The following words and expressions, wherever they appear in this Law, shall have the meanings ascribed to them hereunder, unless the context indicates otherwise:


Jordanian: Every person, male or female, who has acquired Jordanian nationality in accordance with the provisions of the Law of Jordanian Nationality.

Elector: Every Jordanian who has the right to elect members to the House of Deputies.

Voter: Every Elector who exercises his right to elect.

Candidate: Every Jordanian whose application for candidature in parliamentary elections has been accepted in accordance with this Law.

Deputy: Every Jordanian who has been elected to membership of the House of Deputies.

Administrative Governor: The Governor of the relevant Governorate, the Mutasarref of the relevant District, and the Administrative Director of the relevant District, and the Administrative Director of the relevant Subdistrict, each within the area of his competence.

Constituency: Every part of the Kingdom for which a seat or more in the House of Deputies has been designated in accordance with the provisions of this Law.

Electoral Sub-district: Every part of the Constituency for which one or more Ballot Centers has been designated.

Polling Center: The location designated by the Administrative Governor within his Constituency for conducting the voting process.

Revision Committee: The committee formed in every Constituency, headed by the Administrative Governor, with the membership of a judge and a registrar in the Department of Civil Status.

Central Committee: The committee formed in every Constituency in accordance with the provisions of this Law.

Personal Election Card: The Personal Election Card of the Elector which is issued by the Minister of the Interior in accordance with the provisions of this Law.




CHAPTER TWO

The Right to Vote


Article 3 Every Jordanian, who has completed 19 Solar years of his age has the right to elect members of the House of Deputies if his name is registered in one of the Final Electoral Lists.

The right to vote shall be denied to:
Anyone who has been sentenced to a prison term exceeding one year for a non-political crime and has not been pardoned.

Anyone who has been declared bankrupt and has not been rehabilitated.

Anyone who has been interdicted for his person and the interdiction had not been lifted, or for any other reason and the interdiction has been lifted.

Article 4 An Elector may not exercise his right to vote in a Polling Center other than the one in which his name is registered; furthermore, he may not exercise this right more than once in any one election.
Article 5 The right to vote is denied to members of the Jordanian Armed Forces, Public Security and Civil Defense throughout their actual service.



CHAPTER THREE

Electoral Lists


Article 6 Electoral Lists shall be compiled for every Constituency in which are included names of Electors, who belong to that Constituency or reside habitually therein, no Elector may register in more than one Electoral List.
Article 7 The Electoral Lists shall be compiled by one or more committees appointed by the Administrative Governor every city, town, village or neighborhood in his Constituency; this Committee shall be called the “Committee for Compilation of Electoral Lists” and shall be formed of a Chairman and two members, all of whom shall be Government employees.

The Committee or Committees provided for in Paragraph (A) of this Article shall compile Electoral Lists of Electors in accordance with the regulations, procedures and dates designated by the Minister of the Interior within the provisions of this Law.

Article 8 The Family Book, issued by the Department of Civil Status, and nothing else, shall be used to register whomever has the right to vote in the Electoral Lists; a mark shall be inscribed in the Family Book containing an indication of the registration of the Elector in the List designated for the Constituency in which he resides.
Article 9 The Electoral List shall contain the complete identity of the Elector as it is entered in the Family Book, including his name, place and date of birth, religion, occupation, place of residence, and the number and the place and date of issue the Family Book.

The Committee for the Compilation of Electoral Lists shall prepare the Electoral List in three copies, which it shall submit duly signed by it to the Administrative Governor within fifteen days of the date of the formation of the Committee. The Administration Governor shall sign the aforementioned copies and shall keep one of them. None of these copies may be modified, except as related to correction in accordance with the provisions issued therefor in accordance with the provisions of this Law. The two other copies shall be displayed within three days from the date of submission of the copies of Electoral Lists to him, one in a prominent place at the Administrative Governor’s Office, and the other in a prominent place in the relevant neighborhood or village to be designated by the Administrative Governor. The display shall continue for ten days. The Mukhtar, or the authority entrusted with the display, shall present a record, duly signed by him and by the Optional Panel proving that the List has been displayed in the described manner.

Anyone whose name was unjustly excluded from the Electoral List, or in whose record data an error occurred, may request that his name be included or that his data be corrected; furthermore, he may object to the inclusion of someone else who does not have the right to vote, or to the omission of the names of those have such right. The objection shall be submitted in writing, exempt from stamps, to the Revision Committee, formed in accordance with this Law, within seven days of the date of the announcement of the Lists.

The Revision Committee shall consider the objections submitted to it within three days of the date of submission of the objection, and its decisions shall be subject to review, exempt from any fees, by the district’s Court of First Instance within five days of the date of service. The Court shall finally consider the matter within five days. The Court of First Instance shall notify the Revision Committee within three days with all the decisions it has issued.

The Revision Committee shall compile final lists of all electors in the Constituency. The Administrative Governor shall adopt the measures provided for in Paragraph (B) of this Article.

The final lists shall be adopted for the general parliamentary elections or by-elections for the year up until the first half of August; the ballot process shall be conducted in accordance with these lists.

Article 10 During the first half of August of every year, the Revision Committee shall review the Electoral Lists for the Constituency that falls within its competence, perform the additions thereto and deletions therefrom relying on the data and information coming to it from the relevant official departments, and shall record the reasons for the additions and elections in the column assigned to remarks in those Lists, provided that these data and information do not contradict the entries of the Department of Civil Status. Every person may request the Committee to register his name in the Electoral List if he satisfies the legal requirements.
Article 11 The competent courts in all the Constituencies shall provide the Revision Committee in that Constituency within the period from the 15th to the 30th of July of every year with a list containing a summary of judgements regarding bankruptcy and interdiction, as well as those imposing prison sentences exceeding one year for non-political crimes which had not been pardoned. Furthermore, the Department of Civil Status shall provide the said Committee within the aforementioned period with a list of persons who have completed nineteen years of their age, or those who have died during the twelve months preceding the period covered by the revision procedures of the Electoral Lists.
Article 12 Immediately after the end of the period specified pursuant to the provisions of Article (10) of this Law for the completion of its work, the Revision Committee shall display lists containing the names of Electors in the Constituency after performing the addition and deletion proceedings thereto for a period of one week in a prominent public place designated by the Administrative Governor, and shall advertise them in the local newspapers.
Article 13 Every person whose name was unjustly excluded from the Lists provided for in Article (12) of this Law, or an error has been made in the data pertaining to this entry in those Lists, may submit an objection thereto to the Revision Committee within ten days of the date of their display. Furthermore, every person registered in the Electoral Lists may object within the same period to the entry of any other person in those lists, who the objector thinks does not have the right to elect, or to the omission of a person, who the objector thinks has such a right.
Article 14 The Revision Committee shall issue its decisions concerning the objections submitted to it pursuant to Article (13) of this Law within three days of the end of the objection period, and shall notify its decisions to the objectors once they are issued. The decisions shall be subject to appeal before the Court of First Instance in the Constituency within three days of the date of its notification. The Court shall rule on the objections within five days of their submission; its decisions shall be final and not subject to appeal before any other authority. The Court shall notify the Chairman of the Revision Committee with its decisions within three days of the date of their issuance in order to implement them.
Article 15 After the Electors Lists have achieved their legal status, because there were no objections against them in accordance with the provisions of Article (13) of this Law, or because the decisions on objections against them have become final in accordance with the provisions of Article (14) of this Law, the Revision Committee shall compile for every Constituency final Electors Lists of all Electors in the concerned Department. The Committee shall send a copy of these final lists to the Ministry of Interior for safekeeping.
Article 16 The Electoral Lists compiled in final form, in accordance with the provisions of Article (15) of this Law, shall be adopted for the general parliamentary elections or by-elections that are conducted during any year.



CHAPTER FOUR

Candidature for Membership of the House of Deputies


Article 17 After the King has issued his Decree to hold the elections for the House of Deputies, in accordance with Paragraph (1) of Article (34) of the institution, the Council of Ministers shall decide to designate a date for the election, which shall be announced by the Prime Minister and published in the Official Gazette.
Article 18 A candidate for membership in the House of Deputies must meet the following conditions:

That he has been a Jordanian national for at least ten years and that he does not claim foreign nationality or protection.

That he is an Elector registered in one of the final Electoral Lists.

That he has completed thirty solar years of his age on the day the candidature period ends.

That he has not been sentenced to a prison term exceeding one year for a non-political crime from which he has not been pardoned, and that he has not been convicted of a moral felony or misdemeanor.

That he does not belong to an unlawful organization, defined as any party or organization whose principles, objectives and aims contradict the provisions of the Constitution.

That he does not have a material interest in any of the Government departments by virtue of a contract, other than contracts of land and property tenancy. This does not apply to anyone who is a shareholder in a company owned by more than ten persons.

That he is not a relative of the King to a degree specified by special legislation.

Article 19 Anyone may nominate himself for membership in the House of Deputies in only one Constituency.
Article 20 Employees of Government Ministries and Departments and public official organizations who draw their salaries from the Government’s Treasury or public funds subject thereto or supervised thereby, as well as employees of international organizations and chairmen of municipal and rural councils, may not nominate themselves for membership in the House of Deputies, unless they have submitted their resignations from their positions at least one month prior to the date designated for the election. The concerned official department may accept or deny the resignation, but it shall be considered accepted by force of law if no decision has been taken thereon within the days of submission thereof.
Article 21 Candidacy for membership in the House of Deputies shall start twenty-five days before the day designated for the election and shall continue for three days; no candidacy shall be accepted after the expiry of this period.
Article 22 Anyone wishing to nominate himself for membership in the House of Deputies shall pay the Treasury Director in the Constituency in which he wishes to nominate himself the amount of (500) five hundred Dinars, which shall be entered as income for the Treasury and shall not be returnable under any circumstance.
The candidate shall present his candidacy application in duplicate to the Administrative Governor in the Constituency in which he wishes to nominate himself, including his name, place of birth, region, place of domicile, and the seat for which he nominates himself; he shall attach the corroboratory documents and all the other declarations that are required in accordance with the provisions of this Law. The Administrative Governor shall give the applicant advice of receipt of the application which may be submitted on the form determined by the Minister of the Interior.

Article 23 The Administrative Governor shall verify whether the candidate’s application, documents and declarations conform with the conditions for candidacy provided in this Law; accordingly, he shall decide to approve or deny the application within a period not exceeding three days of the date of submission thereof.
Article 24 If the Administrative Governor decides to reject the candidacy application because it does not conform with the provisions of the Law, the applicant may submit an objection thereto before the Court of First Instance whose jurisdiction covers the Constituency, and within two days of the date of receipt of notification of the Administrative Governor’s decision. The Court shall finally rule upon the objection within three days of its submittal. The Administrative Governor must specify the reasons for rejection in his decision.
Article 25 The Administrative Governor shall keep a copy of the candidacy applications which he has accepted, or those accepted by a ruling of the Court of First Instance, and shall enter the same in a special register in the chronological order of the date of submission. After the candidacy applications have acquired final and absolute status and have been published in at least two local newspapers, the Administrative Governor shall compile a list of the names of the candidates for display in prominent public places in the relevant Constituency.
Article 26 Every Elector may appeal the acceptance of the candidacy of any candidate in his constituency before the Supreme Court of Justice within three days of the date of display of the lists of candidates provided for in Article (25) of this Law; the Court shall rule upon the appeal within five days from the date of submitting the appeal to the Court.
Article 27 Immediately after being notified thereof, the Administrative Governor shall announce any amendments to the Lists of Candidates made by virtue of rulings of the Supreme Court of Justice in the same manner that he announced the List of Candidates pursuant to the provisions of Article (25) of this Law: This list shall be the Final List of Candidates for the parliamentary elections.
Article 28 If the number of candidates in the Final List in any Constituency is equal to the number of parliamentary seats designated for that Constituency, these candidates shall be announced winners in the uncontested election.
Article 29 All petitions, objections and appeals submitted in accordance with this Law, as well as the rulings made thereon by courts, panels, committees and the Administrative Governor, are exempt from fees and stamps.
Article 30 Any candidate may withdraw his candidacy application before the end of official hours on the day immediately preceding the Election Day.



CHAPTER FIVE

Constituencies and Their Allotted Seats


Article 31 As of the date it is decided to hold the first general election to the House of Deputies conducted after the effective date of this Law, in accordance with the procedures set out therein, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan shall be divided into a number of Constituencies in accordance with the schedule appended to this Law and each Constituency shall be allocated the parliamentary seats specified for it therein.

CHAPTER SIX

Election Procedures


Article 32 Voting to elect the deputies shall be general, secret and on one level.
Article 33 Voting for the election of members of the House of Deputies shall be conducted on the same day for all the Constituencies. The Minister of the Interior, however, may designate a special day for every Constituency, or for any number thereof, if the safety of the election and the public interest necessitated such action.
Article 34 In every Constituency, a Central Committee shall be formed headed by the Administrative Governor and having as members the Chief Judge of the Court of First Instance in the Constituency, or a Magistrate Judge in Constituencies that have no Court of First Instance, as well as a Government employee appointed by the Minister of Interior. This Committee shall perform the functions provided for in this Law.
Before they carry out their work, the President and members of the central Committee shall take an oath before the Minister of the Interior to perform their task with honesty and impartiality.

Article 35 The Minister of the Interior shall issue a Personal Election Card to every Elector, containing a photograph of the Elector, the complete particulars of his identity taken from the Family Book issued by the Department of Civil Status, his Constituency, the Polling Center in which he may vote, and his number in the List of Electors in that Center. The Personal Election Card shall be valid for the period, circumstances and conditions decided by the Minister of Interior in the Card itself, or in accordance with any instructions he may issue thereon.
Article 36 Within thirty days of the date when the registration or review procedures of the Electoral Lists in the relevant Constituency are completed and have become final in accordance with the provisions of Articles (12) and (15) of this Law, the Administrative Governor shall issue a decision, to be published in the Official Gazette, and in any other means he deems necessary, containing the following:

Dividing the Constituency into Electoral Sub-districts.
Designating one or more Ballot Centers for each Electoral Sub-district and specifying the number of voters in each Center, provided that they do not exceed 700 voters in any case.
Inviting the Voters registered in the Final Electoral Lists to obtain, within the period he specifies in his decision, their Personal Election Card from the concerned authorities.

In the decision he issues in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph (A) of this Article, the Administrative Governor shall pay deference to the number of Voters in the designated Electoral Sub-districts and the Ballot Centers he designates for each of them and the available ways and means of transportation in the Sub- district with the view of facilitating the arrival of the Voters to these centers.

Electoral Sub-districts and the Ballot Centers designated in the Administrative Governor’s decision issued in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph (A) of this Article, and in any subsequent amendment thereof, shall be endorsed as valid in any general parliamentary elections or by-elections conducted at any time subsequent to the publication of such decision or amendments thereof as the case may be, provided that such Electoral Sub- districts and Ballot Centers be published again when general elections or by-elections are held.


Article 37 Any Elector may object to the Minister of the Interior against the decision issued by the Administrative Governor, in accordance with the provisions of Article (36) of this Law, to establish a Ballot Center in the Electoral Sub-district in which his name is registered or to move any Ballot Center therein, provided that such objection be submitted within three days of the date of the publication of the said decision and that the Minister shall issue within three days of the date of submission his ruling thereon which shall be final, not subject to appeal before any administrative or judicial authority.
Article 38 Supervision of each Polling Center shall be the responsibility of a Balloting Panel, comprised of Government employees appointed by the Administrative Governor, who shall also appoint as Chairman one of them whose grade is not lower than Grade Seven. Furthermore, the Administrative Governor may appoint other employees to assist the Panel in carrying out its tasks; but, no Government employee related up to the fourth degree to one of the candidates in the Constituency may be appointed in the Balloting Panel.

Before the beginning of the voting, the Chairman and the two members of the Balloting Panel shall take an oath before the Central Committee of the Constituency to perform their task with honesty, integrity and complete impartiality.

If the members of the Balloting Panel, or its Chairman, or either of its two members are absent, the Administrative Governor shall immediately appoint another Balloting Panel or a replacement for its absent Chairman or member, as the case may be.

Article 39 Voting begins on the designated day for general parliamentary elections or by-elections at 7 o’clock in the morning and ends at 7 o’clock that evening.
Article 40 Any Candidate, or whomever he delegates in writing, may be present at any Polling Center to observe the voting process; no Candidate, however, may have more than one delegate at the same time at any one Center.
Article 41 The Chairman of the Balloting Panel shall prohibit any action or attempt thereto in the Polling Center if such action is likely to influence the freedom of the voters in casting their votes. He may also request anyone committing or attempting to commit such action to leave the Polling Center and may ask Public Security officers to evict such person by force if he refuses to leave.
Article 42 In spite of provisions of this Law, the Chairman and member of the Balloting Committees, the employees charged with assisting them, the candidates and their delegates may exercise the right to vote in the Polling Center designated for them. In this case, the names of these Electors shall be compiled in an additional list in which are entered the names of those who have exercised their right in the elections in that Center and the reason why each one of them voted in a Center other than the one in which his name is registered.
Article 43 Voting shall be carried out on papers on which the phrase “Ministry of the Interior” is printed, and are stamped with the seal of the Constituency and signed on the back by the Chairman of the Balloting Panel.

Before beginning the ballot, the Balloting Panel shall ascertain the number of papers it has received. If the number is less than the required number, the Committee Chairman shall immediately request the Administrative Governor to complement the shortage of papers.

Article 44 Ballot boxes shall be constructed in a unified form approved by the Minister of the Interior and every Ballot Box shall have three different locks and one slot large enough for only one Ballot Paper.

Before the voting, the Chairman of the Ballot Committee shall open the Ballot Box in the presence of the present candidates or their delegates to ascertain that the box is empty. He shall then close the box with the three locks; he and each of the two Balloting Panel members shall keep one of the three keys. He also shall minute the proceedings in a record to be signed by the Committee, a well as those present who may with to sign it.

Article 45 Each Polling Center shall have at least one booth, placed therein in such a manner that does not conceal from those present the voting process taking place in the Center. Inside the booth, a list of the candidates in that Constituency shall be displayed and pens shall be provided for the voters to use.
Article 46 The voter shall appear before the Ballot Panel at the Polling Center where his name is registered in the Electoral List of that Center. After the Committee Chairman has ascertained that the Elector’s name is registered in that List and verified the Elector’s identity in accordance with his Personal Election Card, he shall enter a sign in the Elector’s entry in the List indicating that the Elector has come to vote and hands him a Ballot Paper which he has signed and asks him to go to the booth to exercise his right to vote. No one shall be permitted to vote unless he produces his Personal Election Card to the Balloting Panel.

The voter shall write the names of the candidates he wishes to elect on the Ballot Paper given to him by the Chairman of the Balloting Paper and shall return to the Ballot Box to deposit the Ballot Paper therein. An illiterate voter may ask the Chairman of the Balloting Panel to write the names of the Candidates the Elector wishes to elect; after having written down the names, the Chairman shall read the names out within earshot of the Balloting Panel.

Article 47 The Balloting Panel shall immediately settle any objections submitted by the candidates or their delegates regarding the progress of the voting procedures; the Panel’s decisions thereon are final.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Canvassing Votes and Announcing Election Returns


Article 48 Following the completion of the polling process, the Balloting Panel shall minute a record to be signed by the candidates and their delegates who are present and wish to do so; the record shall include the following:
The number of registered Electors in the Electoral List in the Polling Center.

The number of Electors who exercised their right to vote.

The number of Ballot Papers received by the Balloting Panel.

The number of Ballot Papers used in the voting, the number of those unused, and the number of those destroyed and the reason for such destruction.
The record mentioned in Paragraph (A) of this Article together with the unused Ballot Papers, shall be placed atop the upper side of the Ballot Box and wrapped therewith with a piece of cloth sealed with a knot to be stamped with the seal of the Balloting Panel.

The Balloting Panel shall transport the Ballot Box with its three keys, as well as the Panel’s seal and the Electoral List, to the Constituency Headquarters, where it shall deliver same to the Central Committee against an official receipt thereof signed by the Central Committee Chairman.

Article 49 The canvassing of votes shall be conducted under the supervision of the Constituency’s Central Committee, which may form sub- committees to assist it in its tasks, including the canvassing of the votes, provided that each sub-committee be formed under the chairmanship of a civil or a Shari’a judge, or a government employee whose grade is not lower than Grade Two, with two other employees as members.

The Central Committee shall appoint two or more clerks for each canvassing sub-committee to assist them in counting the votes which each of the Candidates receives.

Before they carry out their task, the Chairman and members of the Canvassing Sub-Committees, as well as the clerks, shall take an oath before the Central Committee to perform their task with honesty and impartiality. Any candidate or whoever represents him by virtue of a written letter endorsed by the Administrative Governor has the right to attend and observe the canvassing process; no one else may exercise this right.

Article 50 The Chairman of the Canvassing Sub-Committee shall open the Ballot Box in the presence of its two members and in front of the candidates or their delegates who are present. If any or all of the three keys to the Box are lost, the chairman of the Committee shall take the necessary measures to open the Box in the manner or means that he deems necessary. After the Ballot papers in the box have been counted by the Committee, the Chairman, or one of the Committee members, shall start to read the names written thereon loud enough to be heard by those present, and in such a manner that permits them to see the Ballot papers when they are being read. The Canvassing Committee shall supervise the entering of the votes which each candidate receives in two separate lists which shall be signed by the Committee Chairman and its two members.
Article 51 If, after the votes in any Ballot Box have been canvassed, the number of Ballot papers therein is more or less by more than 5 percent than the number of voters for that Box, the ballot for that Box shall be considered null and void and the voting shall be repeated the next day or the day after that in accordance with the Administrative Governor’s decision.
Article 52 If any Ballot Paper contains a number of candidate names exceeding the number of deputies to be elected, the excess of names shall be omitted from the bottom of the paper for every category of the Constituency’s deputies, and the rest of the names shall be taken. But, if the number of candidates in the Ballot paper is less than the number of deputies to be elected, then the names therein shall be taken.

If the Ballot paper contains the name of a person who is not a candidate, this name shall be omitted therefrom, and the other names shall be taken. If, however, the name of a candidate is repeated, his name shall be taken only once and the repetitions thereof shall be omitted from the Ballot paper.

If the name of any candidate in the Ballot paper is not clearly readable, but the paper contains enough presumptions to indicate it and prevent any confusion, then the name shall be considered as that of the candidate.

Article 53 In deference to the other cases in which the ballot paper is deemed null and void in accordance with the provisions of this Law, a ballot paper is considered null and void and does not enter in the count of votes in any of the following cases:
If the paper was not stamped with the seal of the Ministry of Interior and the seal of the Constituency and was not signed by the Chairman of the Balloting Panel.

If it was not possible to read any of the names of candidates therein.

If it contained insulting expressions.
The invalid ballot papers shall be added to the minutes of the Canvassing Sub-Committee and signed by the Committee members, who shall write on every paper the reason (s) for its invalidity.

Article 54 The Central Committee shall settle the objections submitted during the vote canvassing procedure and shall issue thereon the decisions it deems appropriate and as soon as necessary for the canvassing procedure.
Article 55 At the conclusion of canvassing the votes, every canvassing sub- committee shall minute a record in duplicate, signed by its Chairman and the two members and containing the following:
The number of Electors registered in the Polling Center.

The number of those who actually voted.

The number of votes received by each Candidate.

The number of papers used in the election, the number of unused papers, and the number of destroyed papers and the reason for the destruction thereof.

The number of Ballot papers which the Canvassing Committee decides neither to accept nor to reject.
To the record provided for in Paragraph (A) of this Article shall be attached the Electors Lists, on which are marked the names of those who actually voted, as well as the papers used and unused in the canvassing procedure. These shall all be immediately handed over to the Central Committee.

Article 56 The Central Committee shall count the votes received by each candidate and announce the results openly in the presence of the candidates or their delegates. It shall, furthermore, minute the results in a record, a copy of which, together with all the Committee’s decisions and the papers related to the election, shall be sent to the Ministry of Interior for safekeeping for at least six months.
Article 57 The Candidate who receives the largest number of votes shall be deemed the winner of the Election. If two or more Candidates for the same seat receive the same number of votes, then the Election between or among them, as the case may be, shall be repeated on the day designated by the Minister of Interior, provided that this election shall take place not later than seven days from the date of Election.
Article 58 Results of the General Election, as minuted in the records of the Central Committees of the Constituencies, shall be announced by the Minister of Interior not later than two days of the arrival of said records to the Ministry of Interior. The Minister of Interior shall issue an “Election Certificate” to every person who has been elected member of the House of Deputies and shall publish same in the Official Gazette.
Article 59 Every Deputy may appeal the validity of electing any person to the House of Deputies and submit the appeal to the General Secretariat of the House within fifteen days from the date of announcing the election results in his Constituency, including the grounds of law upon which his appeal is ****d.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Elections Publicity


Article 60 According to the provisions of this Law, Election publicity shall be free and every Candidate may resort thereto from the date of the beginning of the candidature period until the day immediately preceding the day designated for the Election, on which any kind of Elections Publicity is prohibited and subject to the penalties provided for in this Law.

The organization and convening of Electoral meetings and the delivery of electoral speeches is prohibited in places of worship, institutions of learning and buildings occupied by Government ministries and departments and official public institutions or those under the supervision of the Government.

Article 61 Candidates may publish advertisements and publications containing their objectives, as well as statements related to their plans and courses of action, provided that they bear the Candidate’s explicit name. Such advertisements, publications and statements are exempt from fees.

The official Government Emblem may not be used in election meetings, advertisements and publications and in all other types of writings, drawings and pictures used for the purposes of election publicity. Furthermore, the use of loudspeakers in transport vehicles is prohibited in election publicity.

Article 62 The publication or posting of any placard, sign or election tract, including pictures, drawings and writings on the walls and other places, is prohibited. Places for such placards, signs or tracts shall be designated by the municipal and rural councils in the cities, towns and villages. The local municipal authorities may at any time remove any violation of this ban at the expense of the relevant Candidate without any warning.
Article 63 Speeches, publications, advertisements, and other election publicity vehicles, issued or made by the candidate, may not include, directly or indirectly, any insinuation or slander of any candidate, or agitate sectarian, tribal or regional bias among the various groups of citizens.
Article 64 Employees of the Government, official public institutions and local authorities are prohibited from making election publicity for the benefit of any candidate.
Article 65 In their election publicity campaigns, Candidates are prohibited from presenting gifts, contributions or monetary or in-kind assistance, or any other benefits, or from promising to provide same to a natural or judicial person, be that directly or through others, with the purpose of influencing the voting; furthermore, anyone is prohibited from soliciting such gifts, contributions, or assistance, or the promise thereof from any Candidate.



CHAPTER NINE

Election Crimes


Article 66 A court of First Instance shall punish with a prison term of not less than three months and not more than one year, or a penalty of not less than two hundred Dinars and not more than five hundred Dinars, or both penalties, anyone convicted with any of the following acts:

Assuming the personality or name of another person with the intent of voting in the election.

Exercising his right to vote more than once.

Carrying a firearm or any type of weapon or an instrument perilous to public security and safety in any polling center on the election day.

Entering by force the polling or canvassing center to influence or delay the election procedures or to come up with wrongdoing against any of the officials in charge of the election.

Influencing the freedom of the election or hindering the election procedures in any way whatsoever.

Tampering with any of the ballot boxes or Electoral Lists or papers prepared for voting, or stealing or destroying any of these lists or papers, or committing any act with the intention of affecting the integrity and secrecy of the election procedures. In this case he shall be served with the maximum punishment provided in this Article.

Committing any of the prohibited acts provided for in Articles 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, and 65 of this Law.

Article 67 Anyone who seizes or tries to seize a ballot box before the Polling papers therein have been canvassed shall be punished with hard labor for a period of not less than five years and not more than ten years and with a penalty of not less than one thousand Dinars and not more than five thousand Dinars. Anyone who intervenes in carrying out this crime or instigates or assists in the perpetration thereof shall be served with the same punishment.
Article 68 If any committee member appointed to compile or review the Electoral lists, or to conduct the voting and canvassing procedures, or to count the votes; or any employee entrusted with supervising any of these procedures in accordance with the provisions of this Law, committed any of the following acts, he shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one year and not more than three years, or by a penalty of not less than five hundred Dinars and not more than one thousand Dinars, or by both penalties:

Deliberately entering in any Electoral List the name of a person who does not enjoy the right to vote in accordance with the provisions of this Law, or deliberately omitting from or not entering in such Lists the name of any person who enjoys the right to register therein as a voter in accordance with the same provisions.

Knowingly making a false statement in the application or announcement of candidacy, or in any of the statements therein, or in the date of the submission thereof, or in any of the records minuted in accordance with the provisions of this Law, or in the submitted objection to the Electoral Lists, or in any other document drawn in accordance with the provisions of this Law.

Unjustly seizing or hiding any of the documents pertaining to the election, or committing any forgery therein, including the destruction, tearing or smearing thereof.

Delaying without grounds of law the time designated of the candidates or their delegates before beginning the voting process to make sure that it is empty.

Failing to open the ballot box in the presence of the candidates or their delegates before beginning the voting process to make sure that it is empty.

Refraining from implementing any provision of this Law pertaining to the processes and procedures of voting and vote canvassing, or violating that provision with the intent of influencing the result of the election.

Article 69 Any attempt to commit any of the election crimes laid down under this Law, as well as the penalty therefor, shall be punishable in accordance with the provisions of the effective Penal Law in light of the penalty specified therefor in this Law.
Article 70 The perpetrator of any violation of the provisions of this Law for which no penalty has been provided shall be punished by imprisonment for a period of not less than a month and not more than three months, or with a penalty of not less than fifty Dinars and not more than two hundred Dinars, or with both penalties.

Article 71 All election crimes provided for in this Law shall abate by prescription after the lapse of six months from the date of announcing the election results.
Article 72 The Council of Ministers may issue the regulations necessary for the implementation of the provisions of this Law.
Article 73 The Minister of Interior may issue the instructions necessary for the implementation of the provisions of this Law and the regulations issued in accordance therewith, provided that such instructions do not violate the provisions of the Law or the Regulations in any shape or form.
Article 74 The Law of Election to the House of Deputies No. (24) for the year 1960, as well as the amendments thereto and the regulations issued in accordance therewith are repealed; the procedures in accordance with which the members of the House of Deputies existing when this Law is issued shall, however, remain valid and legal until the term of that House expires for any reason whatsoever.
Article 75 The Prime Minister and the Ministers are charged with the implementation of the provisions of this Law.

April 29, 1986 Al-Hussein Bin Talal