Constitutional Council Annuls Order Invalidating Elections in Chokwé District

"Indeed, clause d) of article no. 2 of the Republic's Constitution concentrated the competence to validate election results in the Constitutional Council, so it is exclusively up to the CC to validate the results. This is a concentrated model of validating election results, which excludes any claim by first-instance electoral courts to exercise this power," the Council stated in a ruling released yesterday.

At issue is the decision of the Chokwé Judicial Court to annul the elections in that municipality and to repeat the vote, considering that the Nova Democracia (ND) party, an extraparliamentary force, was prevented from monitoring the voting.

The city of Chokwé is part of the Gaza province, an electoral district dominated by Frelimo, the ruling party, and often the scene of political violence during election times.

In the rationale of the Constitutional Council (CC), as first-instance courts, district judges should "suspend proceedings regarding these serious irregularities and refer the matter to the CC for assessment and final decision on the declaration of election nullity", a process that, according to this body, occurs after the conclusion of all tallying.

"It is therefore clear that the Chokwé Judicial Court could not overturn the local election, such as declaring the election null and void and ordering its repetition," the ruling adds.

On the other hand, the CC continued, the decision to annul the vote requires consideration of the effects of the violation on a "case-by-case basis", in conjunction with other elements that the entity does not yet possess at this stage of the process.

The Constitutional Council acknowledges that the Chokwé District Commission, which submitted the appeal to challenge the court's decision, did not interpret and apply the electoral law, adding that the electoral body should have made a decision on accreditations in sufficient time for the interested party (ND) to appeal promptly if deemed necessary.

"The decision of the District Election Commission not to issue credentials for the ND party's candidacy delegates breached the principle of electoral transparency in the October 11 elections, so it is illegal. However, the consequences of this fact for the validity or not of the local election in the city of Chokwé will be determined in a separate process, i.e., in the process of validating the local elections by the Constitutional Council," the ruling details.

Although it annuls the order invalidating the vote, the CC "confirms" the part of the court's decision to refer to the Public Prosecutor's Office any indications of acts that may constitute electoral offences.

The sixth local elections in Mozambique took place in 65 municipalities across the country on October 11th, including 12 new municipalities voting for the first time.

In addition to Chokwé, at least four other district courts have already acknowledged irregularities in the elections and ordered the repetition of several electoral acts, in some cases with the electoral bodies and the ruling party submitting appeals to the CC in contestation of the district courts' judgments, rulings, and orders.