Draft Elections (Jersey) Amendment No. 2 Law 202- (P.104/2025): amendment

STATES OF JERSEY

DRAFT ELECTIONS (JERSEY) AMENDMENT No. 2 LAW 202- (P.104/2025): AMENDMENT

Lodged au Greffe on 7th January 2026 by the Comité des Connétable s

Earliest date for debate: 3rd February 2026

STATES GREFFE

DRAFT ELECTIONS (JERSEY) AMENDMENT NO. 2 LAW 202- (P.104/2025): AMENDMENT

1  PAGE 7, ARTICLE 2 –

In Article 2, in the substituted definition "counting station", for "has the meaning given in Article 47(3)(a)" substitute "means a place designated under Article 47 as the location, or 1 of the locations, for the count of votes in an election".

2  PAGE 8, ARTICLE 6 –

For paragraphs (2) to (4) substitute –

2. Paragraph (1) is deleted.
3. In paragraph (2) –

1. "and 2 or more polling stations in the electoral district," is deleted;
2. for "one or more of the polling stations in the electoral district as locations" there is substituted "at least 1 place in the relevant parish as a location".

4. In paragraph (3), for "one or more of the polling stations in those electoral districts as locations" there is substituted "at least 1 place in at least 1 relevant parish as a location".
5. In paragraph (4), for "1 or more of the polling stations in the electoral districts in the parish as locations" there is substituted "at least 1 place in the parish as a location".
6. In paragraph (5), for "the parish that is the electoral district or in which the electoral district is located" there is substituted "the relevant parish".
7. After paragraph (7) there is inserted –
   8. In this Article, "relevant parish", in relation to an electoral district, means the parish that is the electoral district or in which the electoral district is located.

COMITÉ DES CONNÉTABLES

REPORT

The Privileges and Procedures Committee is proposing draft amendments to progress what it refers to as "two very small administrative changes to the Law which will assist in operational matters for the Elections in 2026".

Ballot papers

The Comité is presenting separate comments on the proposed change to Article 24, to switch the responsibility  for  the  production  of  ballot  papers  for  a  public  election  from  the  Electoral Administrators to the Judicial Greffier, which it does not support.

The count

The Autorisé and Electoral Administrator are responsible for managing the polling station and are best placed to also determine the arrangements for the count. There is provision under Article 49 for when the count cannot proceed immediately thus the count may be held on another day.

Whilst the second amendment widens the options for the venue for the count it also removes the decision from the Autorisé and Electoral Administrator and places it instead with the JEA.

The amendment proposed by the Comité therefore –

• Retains the responsibility for the Electoral Administrator and Autorisé to determine the arrangements for the count (this includes the venue and the timing e.g. on polling day or a following day).

• Provides that the place for the count need not be the polling station but the location is within the Parish as determined by the Electoral Administrator and Autorisé.

• The arrangements for public and parish elections will be the same so there is no need to make different provisions.

• The designation would continue to be notified to the candidates in the election and made public no later than 7 days before the day of the poll.

Financial and staffing implications

The proposals will not result in additional financial or staffing implications for the States.

Children's Rights Impact Assessment

We consider that this proposition has no direct or indirect impact on children and that the duty to have due regard to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child does not arise. Accordingly, a Children's Rights Impact Assessment is not required under the Children (Convention Rights) (Jersey) Law 2022.