Preparations for next year’s commune election begin early next week when staff for the National Election Committee will be appointed, according to the Committee for Free and Fair Elections.
Provincial Election Committee members and staff will be appointed in May, and commune election committees will be filled out in June. Both sets of committees will be responsible for the logistical details for elections in Cambodia’s more than 1,600 communes, which are now scheduled for Feb 3, 2002.
The elections for one of the more controversial commune ballot bodies, the NGO coordinating committee, will take place May 14. All three of the country’s election monitoring groups have complained that this new committee—in which they will each have only one seat—will dilute their power to observe the balloting.
Voter registration stations are scheduled to be announced June 24, with registration ending July 31. Preliminary voter lists will be posted Aug 30 and candidates can register from Sept 24 to Nov 11.
Candidates will be allowed to campaign only between Jan 18 and Feb 1, 2002, with polling to be held Feb 3. After counts are completed at the provincial level, official results are scheduled to be posted between Feb 18 and 21.
