Laws of the People's Republic of China

PROVISIONS OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE OF THE NATIONAL PEOPLE'S CONGRESS FOR THE DIRECT ELECTION OF DEPUTIES TO PEOPLE'S CONGRESSES AT OR BELOW THE COUNTY LEVEL

(Adopted at the 26th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Fifth National People's Congress on March 5, 1983)

To facilitate the implementation of the Electoral Law of the National People's Congress and Local People's Congresses of the People's Republic of China, the following provisions are made with respect to certain questions concerning the direct election of deputies to local people's congresses at or below the county level:

1. An election committee shall be established in every county, autonomous county, city not divided into districts, municipal district, township, nationality township and town. Members of the election committee in a county, an autonomous county, a city not divided into districts or a municipal district shall be appointed by the standing committee of the people's congress at the corresponding level. Members of the election committee in a township, a minority nationality township or a town shall be appointed by the standing committee of the people's congress of a county, an autonomous county, a city not divided into districts or a municipal district.

An election committee establishes an office to handle specific matters related to the election.

2. The functions and powers of an election committee shall be:

(1) assume responsibility for the election of deputies to the people's congress at the corresponding level;

(2) conduct the registration of voters, examine the voters' qualifications and publish the name list of voters; handle and decide on petitions concerning the name list of voters;

(3) divide electoral districts for the election of deputies to the people's congress at the corresponding level and allocate the number of deputies to be elected in each electoral district;

(4) decide on and publish the official list of candidates for deputies on the basis of the opinions of the majority of voters;

(5) fix the date for the election;

(6) determine the validity or invalidity of the election results and publish the names of the deputies elected.

The election committee in a county, autonomous county, city not divided into districts or municipal district directs the work of the election committees of the townships, nationality townships and towns.

3. Mentally ill persons unable to exercise their voting rights shall not do so after confirmation of their cases by an election committee.

4. Upon decision by a people's procuratorate or a people's court, people who are held in custody for involvement in counterrevolutionary cases or in other serious criminal cases and who are subject to investigation, prosecution or trial shall be suspended from exercising their voting rights as long as they are in custody.

5. The following persons shall be allowed to exercise their voting rights:

(1) those who are sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment, who are undergoing criminal detention or who are under public surveillance without the additional penalty of deprivation of political rights;

(2) those who are being held in custody and who are subject to investigation, prosecution or trial without having been suspended from exercising their voting rights by decision of a people's procuratorate or a people's court;

(3) those who are awaiting trials on bail or subject to residential surveillance;

(4) those who are undergoing rehabilitation through labour; and

(5) those who are being punished by detention.

The above-mentioned persons may participate in the elections at movable ballot boxes or entrust their relatives who have voting rights or other voters to vote on their behalf as may be decided jointly by the election committee and the institutions effecting the imprisonment, custody, detention or rehabilitation through labour. Those who are sentenced to criminal detention, who are being punished by detention or who are undergoing rehabilitation through labour may also go back to their original electoral districts to participate in the elections on the election day.

6. If the people's government of a county or an autonomous county is seated in a city, workers and staff members of its affiliated government agencies, people's organizations, enterprises and institutions may participate in the election of deputies to the people's congress of the county or autonomous county, and not in the election of deputies to the people's congress of a city or a municipal district.

7. The workers and staff members of enterprises and institutions which are located in a township, a nationality township or a town but are not affiliated to a government below the county level may participate only in the election of deputies to the people's congress at the county level, and not in the election of deputies to the people's congress of the township, the nationality township or the town.

8. The size of an electoral district shall be determined according to the principle that one to three deputies may be elected from each electoral district.

9. With the permission of the election committee of their residential areas, voters who are temporarily doing manual or other work or are living in other places and who cannot go back to their electoral districts to vote may write a statement and entrust their relatives who have voting rights or other voters to vote on their behalf in their respective electoral districts.

Voters who have actually moved out to live in other places but who have not changed their permanent residence registration accordingly may take part in the election in the electoral districts of their present places of residence after obtaining a certificate of their qualifications as voters in their original electoral districts.

10. The number of candidates for deputies recommended by any voter (seconded by three or more voters) shall not exceed the number of deputies to be elected from the electoral district.

All candidates for deputies as recommended by voters or political parties or people's organizations shall be included in the list of candidates for deputies, and the election committees may not replace or delete any of the names or add more names.

Candidates for deputies determined through pre-elections shall be listed officially in order of the numbers of votes they have received.