official translation

official translation official translation REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA LAW ON ELECTIONS TO MUNICIPAL COUNCILS 7 July 1994, No. I-532 Vilnius (New edition by 19 October 1999, No. VIII-1369, (as amended by 19 September 2002, No. IX-1080) Article 1. Revised Version of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Elections to Municipal Councils The Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Elections to Municipal Councils shall be amended and set forth to read as follows: “REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA LAW ON ELECTIONS TO MUNICIPAL COUNCILS FIRST CHAPTER GENERAL PROVISIONS Article 1. The Fundamentals of Elections of Municipal Councillors Members of municipal councils of the Republic of Lithuania (hereafter referred to as municipal councillors, councillors) shall be elected for a four-year term in multi-member constituencies on the basis of universal and equal suffrage, by secret ballot in direct elections according to the proportional election system. Article 2. Universal Suffrage 1. The right to elect municipal councillors shall be enjoyed by permanent residents (voters) of that municipality, who on the polling day are aged 18 years. Persons who have been declared legally incapable by the court shall not participate in elections. 2. Any permanent resident of a municipality who is at least 20 years of age on the polling day may be elected as member of the council of that municipality. 3. Persons who, with 65 days remaining before elections, have not completed a court-imposed sentence, as well as persons who have been declared legally incapable or insane by  the  court  may not be elected as councillors. A citizen of a foreign state whose passive right to be elected is limited by the court in the state whose citizen he is, may not be elected as a municipal councillor. 4. Persons who on the polling day are in the active or alternative national defence service, as  well  as officers, non-commissioned officers and re-enlistees of the national defence system, the police and the internal affairs service, officers on the payroll of other militarised  and security services who, with 65 days remaining before elections, have not retired from service may not be elected as municipal councillors. 5. Other direct or indirect abridgements of the right to vote of permanent residents of that municipality on the  grounds of their descent, political convictions, social  or  property  status, nationality, sex, education, language, religion, type and character of  their occupation  shall be  prohibited. 6. Permanent residents of a municipality shall be citizens of the Republic of Lithuania and persons who have a permit to permanently reside in the Republic of Lithuania and who have declared their place of residence under legal acts of the Republic of Lithuania in the territory of this municipality or the last known address of their place of residence is within the territory of this municipality, or they have indicated by public statement their place of residence in the territory of this municipality and such place of residence is, in a prescribed manner, regarded as their principal place of residence. Permanent residents of Vilnius, Kaunas, Alytus, Šiauliai and Panevėžys, which are the administrative centres of appropriate regions, who are linked with the communities of the appropriate regions by common public needs and interests, and who have informed in writing the Central Electoral Committee about this in accordance with the procedure established by such Committee, shall be regarded as residents of the appropriate regions. Article 3. Equal Suffrage Every permanent resident of a municipality who has the right to elect a council shall, in a multi-member constituency within the territory whereof he resides, have one vote to cast for a list of candidates to councillors  - a vote for a list (according to the sums of the votes cast for each list in a constituency it shall be established which list receives (or does not receive) what number of mandates of municipal councillors) and five additional votes to be cast for the preference of five candidates from the list for which he has voted  - preference votes (according to the sums of such votes in a constituency a place of each candidate on the list after elections shall be established). Votes for a list and preference votes shall have the same value as the votes of every other citizen who has the right to vote in the same constituency. Article 4. Direct Elections There shall be no voting by proxy in elections of municipal councillors. Article 5. Secret Ballot 1. Voters shall vote in person and by secret ballot. It shall be prohibited for a person to vote instead of another person or to vote by proxy. A voter who is unable to vote because of his physical disability, may vote with the assistance of another person whom he trusts, as it is provided for in Paragraph 5 of Article 63 of this Law. If someone gets to know the secret of another person’s voting, it shall be prohibited to divulge it. 2. It shall be prohibited to control the will of voters in elections. It shall be prohibited to influence the will of a voter to vote for or against any candidate or the list of candidates. A voter must be provided with the conditions to mark a ballot in secret and without interference. It shall be prohibited to act with a  ballot in such a way that the secret of voting might be revealed. Article 6. Announcement of the Date of Election to Councils 1. Members of all councils shall be elected at the same time. 2. Elections to councils shall be announced by the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania no later than five months prior to the expiration of the powers of the councillors. If, with four months remaining before the expiration of the powers of the councillors, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania has not announced the date of  elections to councils, council elections shall be held on the last Sunday from which at least a month remains before the expiration of the powers of the councillors. Elections to councils shall be held no earlier than four months and no later than one month prior to the expiration of the powers of the councillors. 3. If council elections must be held in time of war, a decision concerning holding of council elections shall be adopted according to special laws or other legal acts. 4. The day when ballots are cast in polling stations of polling districts shall be considered the day of elections to councils. Voting held not at polling stations (by post, etc.) shall be carried out on or before the polling day as it is provided for in this Law. The term which is calculated from the polling day and may be implemented only when the election results are proclaimed shall be started to be calculated from the day of proclamation of the election results.    5. The date of run-off elections in a constituency shall be announced by the Central Electoral Committee in cases provided for in this Law no later than within 15 days from the day when the necessity to hold such elections has occurred, unless otherwise provided in this Law. It shall also announce the election date in the case specified in paragraph 2 of this Article. Article 7. Openness of Preparation and Holding of Elections 1. Public notice about a forthcoming meeting of the electoral committee shall be put on the notice board placed in the premises where the electoral committee has its office, and the members of this electoral committee shall be personally notified about the forthcoming meeting at least 24 hours before the start of the meeting. 2. Meetings and voting of electoral committees shall be open and may be  observed by representatives and observers of political parties (hereinafter referred to as "parties") and political organisations upon presenting certificates of the established form or credentials with the seal of the organisations which have authorised them; representatives of the mass media, upon presenting their authority or service cards. A candidate for municipal councillor may participate in the meeting of an electoral committee if: a decision concerning his personal activities or circumstances directly related to his person is being adopted or if he has been invited to participate in the meeting by  the chairman of the electoral committee. 3. Persons present in the conference room  may, from their seats, record, write down in shorthand or take down everything that is said at the meeting, photograph, film or make video recordings. Taking photographs, filming, and video recording which  requires walking about the hall or using special lighting equipment, as well as live radio or television broadcasting of meetings  shall be subject to the permission of the electoral committee chairman. 4. Electoral committees may not hold closed meetings. The Central Electoral Committee may prohibit anyone from entering the workroom of the service staff of electoral committees, document safe-keeping premises if it is necessary to guarantee undisturbed working conditions of the staff and  to protect election documents. 5. If there are reasons to believe that during a meeting a threat to the security of  its participants may arise, the chairman of the committee may instruct the police to check  the documents and belongings of the persons entering the conference room or carry out their personal search.  6. The electoral committee may remove from the meeting hall persons who interfere with the work of the committee. Article 8. Expenditure Related to the Preparation and Conduct of Elections Expenditure related to the preparation and holding of elections to councils shall be covered from the state and municipal budgets. The expenditure of electoral committees related to the organisation and conduct of elections and the work of the members of electoral committees and the service staff shall be covered from the state budget. Maintenance of premises of polling stations and the office space of constituency electoral committees and polling district committees, expenditure of purchasing and keeping of the equipment of polling stations shall be covered from  municipal  budgets.  If the municipality fails to provide adequate  premises and supplies for the office of the polling district and the polling station, by the decision of the Central Electoral Committee, state funds shall be used for this purpose. In such a case, the actual expenses for the polling station and its supplies shall be recovered without suit by the Central Electoral Committee from the municipality. SECOND CHAPTER CONSTITUENCIES AND POLLING DISTRICTS Article 9. Formation of Constituencies 1. For  the  organisation  and  execution  of  elections on the territory of a municipality one multi-member constituency shall be formed where all voters of such municipality who have the active right to vote shall cast their votes. 2. According  to  the proportional system of elections, in a constituency: 1) more than 500 000 residents shall elect 51 councillors; 2) from 300 000 to 500 000 residents shall elect 41 councillors; 3) from 100 000 to 300 000 residents shall elect 31 councillors; 4) from 50 000 to 100 000 residents shall elect 27 councillors; 5) from 20 000 to 50 000 residents shall elect 25 councillors; and 6) up to 20 000 residents shall elect 21 councillors. 3. The Central Electoral Committee shall, at least 85 days prior to the elections, announce constituencies and the number of councillors to be elected. Article 10. Formation of Polling Districts 1. With a view of making it more convenient for  a voter to reach a polling station and with account of the number of voters, the territories of cities and regions  shall be divided into polling districts. 2. The division of the territory of a city or region, which shall be permanent when organising and conducting various elections and referenda, into polling districts shall, on recommendation of the mayor, be approved and be changed, where necessary, by the Central Electoral Committee. The Central Electoral Committee shall publish a list of approved polling districts, and changes made therein in the Valstybės žinios ( The Official Gazette). 3. No more than  5 000 voters must reside within the territory of a polling district.  4. The boundaries of a polling district and  the address of a polling station shall be changed, where necessary, but no later than 100 days prior to the election. In his recommendation to approve the division of the territory of the municipality into polling districts, the mayor shall specify the proposed name of a polling district, the addresses belonging to the polling district, the number of voters in the district, the address and telephone number of a polling station. The recommendation on changes in the division of the municipality into polling districts shall specify the changes it is proposing. These changes must be submitted to the Central Electoral committee at least 110 days prior to the election. In the event when it is impossible to have polling at the polling stations established earlier, the Central Electoral Committee, on the recommendation of the  constituency electoral committee, may change the address of the polling station  within a shorter time limit than the one specified in this Article.     Third CHAPTER ORGANISATION of Elections    Article 11. Electoral Committees 1. Elections to councils shall be organised and conducted by: 1) the Central Electoral Committee; 2)  constituency electoral committees; and 3) polling district electoral committees. 2. A citizen of the Republic of Lithuania may be proposed to an electoral committee provided he has the right to be elected as Seimas member (without taking into consideration the minimum age limit set for a candidate for Seimas member, but who is not younger than 18 years of age on the polling day) and has not been removed from the electoral committee or referendum commission during the last three elections to the Seimas, office of the President of the Republic, councils, or the referendum for the violations of laws on elections or the Law on the Referendum.   3. The same person cannot concurrently be: a member of  the electoral committee and a candidate for councillor; a candidate for councillor and a representative of a party, political organisation for elections (hereinafter referred to as “representative for the elections”); a representative for the elections and a member of the electoral committee; a candidate for councillor and an observer of the elections; a member of the electoral committee and an observer of the elections. Provided that a member of the electoral committee is willing to be a candidate for election as councillor, he must, no later than 10 days prior to giving consent to become a candidate, resign in writing from the post of a member of the electoral committee. If the member of the electoral committee has not done so, he shall be relieved from the electoral committee for the violation of this Law and shall be not registered as a candidate for councillor or shall be removed from the candidates for councillor. Article 12. Repealed 1 August 2002 Article 13.  Formation of Constituency Electoral Committees 1. The  Central   Electoral  Committee shall for the period of elections form constituency   electoral committees no later than 74 days prior to the elections. 2. Constituency electoral committees shall be composed of: 1) one person who resides or works in that city, region, has higher  legal  education,  and  who  is  nominated  by  the Minister of Justice; 2) one person  who resides or works in that city, region,  has higher legal  education,  and who is nominated by the Lithuanian Bar Association; 3) one career civil servant who works in the administration of the municipality of that city, region and who is nominated by the mayor of that city, region; 4) persons nominated by parties, political organisations, their coalitions which  have received the  mandates of Seimas member in the multi-member constituency; and 5) persons nominated by the parties, political organisations, their coalitions which, during the last elections to the council, have received not less than 3 mandates of the members of this council. 3. The Minister of Justice, the Lithuanian Bar Association and the city, region mayor may propose more candidates. 4. Parties, political organisations, their coalitions which have received the mandates of  Seimas member in the multi-candidate constituency shall each have the right to propose two representatives (hereinafter referred to as “candidate”) for one such list of candidates (joint list)  nominated  in  the  multi-member constituency to constituency electoral committees. The parties, political organisations, their coalitions which, during the last elections to the council, have received mandates of the members of this municipal council according to the list (joint list) of nominated candidates, shall each have the right to propose one candidate to constituency electoral committees for one such list of candidates (joint list) nominated in the constituency. If the party, political organisation may propose candidates according to the results of elections to the Seimas and elections to the council as well, then it shall propose candidates according to the results of only one of these elections for choice. If one of the organisations, which has participated in the election coalition, does not propose candidates or refuses to propose them, or chooses to propose them according to other, as the coalition was formed, election results, the other organisations, which have participated in this coalition, shall have the right to propose candidates in its absence. Parties, political organisations, their coalitions shall submit a list of candidates to the Central Electoral Committee not later than 81 days prior to elections. If candidates for membership meet the requirements of this Law, the Central Electoral Committee may  not reject said candidates. In the event that candidates for membership have not been proposed, the Central Electoral Committee may additionally appoint as members of the committee persons who are proposed by the Minister of Justice, the Lithuanian Bar Association or city, region mayor. 5. In all  cases, not less than three committee members shall be the persons  appointed to a constituency electoral committees from the candidates proposed by the Minister of Justice, the Lithuanian Bar Association and the city, region mayor. If these people make up  less than three members of  the committee, the committee shall be enlarged from the persons proposed by the Minister of Justice, the Lithuanian Bar Association or the city, region mayor. 6. If elections to the Seimas or to the office of President of the Republic, or the council, or a referendum are concurrently  held on the same day, the same electoral committees of polling districts or referendum commissions shall be formed. The Central Electoral Committee shall form a single - city, region, constituency or referendum - committee on a separate electoral, referendum territory and shall establish its functions in organising and carrying other elections or a referendum. 7. The Central Electoral Committee shall appoint chairman of the constituency electoral committee from the committee members. 8. During its first sitting,  the constituency electoral  committee shall elect a deputy chairman and a secretary of the committee. Article 14. The Powers of Constituency Electoral Committees The constituency electoral committee shall: 1) in the manner prescribed by the Central Electoral Committee, inform  the voters who reside in the constituency about the  boundaries  of  polling  districts,  their offices, working hours and polling stations; 2) supervise  the implementation of this Law in the constituency; 3) form polling district electoral committees; 4) distribute the funds allocated for the elections among polling district electoral committees, control the utilisation of these funds and report to the Central Electoral Committee on the funds used for the elections; 5) register election observers and issue them with certificates; 6) accept application documents of nomination of candidates of parties, political organisations, examine them, register the lists of candidates for election as councillors, candidates for councillor, issue registered candidates with certificates, register coalitions which are being formed or recalled, establish numbers of the lists of the candidates of coalitions; 7) make up a list of health care, social guardianship and care institutions, military units and places of confinement situated in the territory of a constituency, and together with the head of the post office have care of the organisation of voting by post in those places; 8) draw  up the  vote counting record of  the constituency, establish election results and direct them the Central Electoral Committee for approval; following the decision of the Central Electoral Committee, publish the list of the elected councillors in the press; 9) consider complaints against decisions and actions of the polling district electoral committees and adopt decisions concerning them; revoke decisions which are not in compliance with the requirements of laws and other legal acts; and 10) exercise  other powers provided for in this Law. Article 15.  Formation of Polling District Electoral Committees 1. No later than 65 days prior to the election, the constituency electoral committee shall establish the number of the members of each polling district electoral committees, which must be a multiple of the number of the parties and political organisations which have the right to propose candidatures. If the number of proposed candidatures is insufficient or there is a vacancy in the committee, the mayor of a municipality on the territory whereof the polling district is formed may propose the lacking candidatures. 2. The following shall have the right to propose an equal number of candidates to a polling district electoral committee: 1)  each party, political organisation or their coalition which  has  received  the  mandates of Seimas member in a multi-member constituency during the last elections to the Seimas. If the party, political organisation has received mandates of Seimas member while being in the coalition, it may propose candidates together with the organisations which participated in the coalition; 2) the party, political organisation or their coalition which has received the mandates of councillors from the list of nominated candidates (joint list) in the last elections to the council. If the party, political organisation has received mandates of councillors while being in the coalition, it may propose candidates together with the organisations which participated in the collation. 3. If the party, political organisation may propose candidates according to the results of the elections to the Seimas and to a municipal council as well, then it shall propose candidates according to the results of only one of these elections for choice. If one of the organisations which have participated in the election coalition, does not propose candidates or refuses to propose them, or chooses to propose candidates according to other, as the coalition was formed, election results, other organisations which have participated in this coalition shall have the right to propose candidates in its absence. 4. Parties, political organisations shall submit their lists of candidates to the constituency electoral committee no later than 48 days prior to the elections. 5. Constituency electoral committees shall for the period of elections form polling district electoral committees no later than 45 days prior to the elections. If a candidate, proposed by the party, political organisation, meets the requirements set forth in this Law, the constituency electoral  committees  may  not  reject the candidate. 6. If no candidates have been proposed or the proposed candidates do not meet the requirements of this Law, or they have been proposed after the set period of time, a constituency electoral committee may decrease the earlier established number of the members of the polling district electoral committee or address the mayor to propose the lacking number of candidates for polling district electoral committees. The candidates proposed by the mayor may not be the members of parties, political organisations or to become such prior to the expiration of the powers of a member of an electoral committee. If during a sitting not less than three members of the constituency electoral committee, while appointing a member of the polling district electoral committee, object to the appointment of the candidate proposed by the mayor, to be a member of the polling district electoral committee, this candidate may not be appoint a member of the committee.  7. Constituency electoral committees shall  appoint chairmen of polling district electoral committees from the members of the committees. 8. During its  first sitting  the  polling district electoral  committee shall  elect deputy chairman and secretary of the committee. Article 16. The Powers of the Polling District Electoral Committee The polling district electoral committee: 1) shall receive  voter lists  from the constituency electoral committee, provide conditions for voters, representatives for the elections to familiarise themselves with said lists, hand  voter certificates to voters or distribute them in some other manner, inform the constituency electoral committee about inaccuracies noticed in the voter list of the polling district; 2) shall consider complaints concerning errors made in the voter list of a polling district; 3) shall, in the manner prescribed by the Central Electoral Committee, supervise the course of  voting by post on the territory of a polling district, and monitor the provision of opportunities for voting by post in all health care, social guardianship and care institutions, military units and the places of confinement situated on the territory of the polling district; 4) shall, together with a representative of the municipality, have care of preparing polling stations, voting booths and ballot boxes in due time pursuant to the requirements provided in this Law; 5) shall organise voting in the polling district on the polling day; 6) shall count votes and draw up the vote counting records of the polling district; 7) shall consider the complaints  of the voters and observers of that polling  district on issues concerning the preparation of the elections, organisation of voting, vote count, drawing up of vote counting records, and shall adopt decisions related thereto; and 8) shall exercise  other powers provided for in this Law. Article 17. Written Pledge of Electoral Committee Members 1. A member, chairman of an electoral committee shall start holding the position in the electoral committee upon having given a written pledge. 2. The Central Electoral Committee shall establish the procedure for giving a written pledge by members and chairmen of electoral committees of constituencies and polling districts. The text of a written pledge of the member and the chairman of an electoral committee shall read as follows: 1) “I, (name, surname) swear to be faithful to the Republic of Lithuania, observe its Constitution and laws, conscientiously and honestly perform my duties in the electoral committee and refrain from actions violating laws and human rights. So help me God.”; 2) “I, (name, surname) swear to be faithful to the Republic of Lithuania, observe its Constitution and laws, conscientiously and honestly perform my duties in the electoral committee and refrain from actions violating laws and human rights." 3. The person who has given a written pledge shall sign at the foot of the pledge. The text of he written pledge may not be altered. The pledge shall be effective for the whole duration of the appointment to work in the electoral committee. 4. The written pledges of the members, chairmen of the electoral committees shall remain in the custody of the electoral committee which has administered them. 5. When appointing an electoral committee member, the Central Electoral Committee or a constituency electoral committee shall fix the date by which he must give a written pledge. The person who has not given a written pledge within 15 days after his appointment shall be removed from his position in the electoral committee.    Article 18. Organisation of the Work of Electoral Committees 1. Sittings of  electoral committees  shall be valid provided that at least three-fifths of the members of the committee are in attendance. Decisions  made by the committees shall be adopted by open vote of the majority of the committee members participating in the sitting. In  the event  of a tie vote, the committee chairman's  vote  shall  be casting. Committee members who  do not agree with a decision shall have the right to state a separate opinion in writing, which shall then be appended to the minutes of the sitting and shall be an inseparable part thereof. 2. Upon the end of elections, the powers of the chairmen, members of electoral committees of polling  districts, constituencies shall be terminated. The decision to terminate the powers shall be adopted by the electoral committee which appointed the committee members, when this committee, its chairman have fulfilled all the tasks assigned to him according to the Law. 3. The chairman or member of an electoral committee who has given a written pledge shall be prohibited from any  form of election campaigning or attempts to influence the voters' will in any other way. Individuals who have violated this requirement, a written pledge of a committee member must be dismissed from the committee and may be held liable under law. Article 19. Appeals Concerning Decisions of Electoral Committees which are Adopted prior to the Completion of Voting 1. Parties and political  organisations  which  have nominated a candidate for councillor, a candidate for councillor, representative for the elections, election observer may  appeal  against  the decision of the electoral committee which has been adopted prior  to the  completion of voting, or any other activity thereof: 1) that of the polling district electoral committee - to the constituency electoral committee; 2) that of the constituency electoral committee - to the Central Electoral Committee; and 3) that of the Central Electoral Committee - to the High Administrative Court of Lithuania. 2. A voter, representative of a political party, a political or public organisation, who does not agree with the decision of the polling district electoral committee which has been adopted on his appeal concerning the errors made in the voter list because of which the voter may not implement his right of voting (he has been incorrectly put on or struck off the voter list or if the data about the voter has been inaccurately entered into the voter list), may appeal against the decision of the polling district electoral committee  to the administrative court of an appropriate county. 3. The appeal must be investigated within 48 hours from the filing thereof. Non-working days shall be included in this time limit. The decision of the court shall become effective after its pronouncement. The appeals which have been filed not in compliance with the procedure established in this Article, shall not be investigated and shall be transferred to that electoral committee which must investigate them. A polling district electoral committee, a constituency electoral committee may not transfer to the Central Electoral Committee for consideration the appeals which are within their own jurisdiction and which have not been investigated by them. Article 20. Support of Electoral Committees 1. State and municipal institutions, enterprises, agencies and organisations, as well as their officers must assist  electoral  committees  in exercising their powers and must furnish them with necessary information. 2. State and municipal institutions, enterprises, agencies and institutions, as well as their officers must consider requests submitted by electoral committees and  give the  electoral committee a justified response within 3 days. 3. Electoral committees  may  employ  the  required  number  of personnel for assistance work. 4. Local authorities of cities and regions, state institutions and organisations must provide electoral committees with proper premises and equipment for the preparation and execution of elections. Article 21. Payment for Work of Electoral Committee Members 1. For their work in electoral committees, the chairmen and members of  electoral committees shall be receive payment at the rates submitted by  the Central Electoral Committee and approved by the Government.. 2. Repealed 1 August 2002. Article 22.  Changing the Composition of Electoral Committees 1. The chairman or member of an electoral committee may be removed from his position in the committee by the electoral committee which approved the composition of said committee, or the Central Electoral Committee. 2. The electoral committee may consider only the justified proposal of a party or political organisation to recall the member of the electoral committee whom it has proposed. 3. When necessary,  new chairman or member of the electoral committee  may   be  appointed  according  to the procedure established by this Law even upon expiration of the time limits set in paragraph 1 of Article 13 and paragraph 5 of Article 15. FOURTH CHAPTER Voter Lists and VOTER CERTIFICATES Article 23. Voter Lists 1. For  the organisation and holding of elections, the following voter  lists shall be  compiled: 1) the list voters of the Republic of Lithuania; 2) lists of voters of  constituencies; and 3) lists of voters of polling districts. 2. Voter lists shall be drawn up twice - provisional and final. These lists may be used only for organisation and execution of elections. 3. The procedure for compiling voter lists must be such that every person who is entitled to vote shall be registered in voter lists. No one may be registered in a voter list more than once. 4. At the request of the parties which have nominated candidates and for the purpose of election campaigning general voter lists of a concrete constituency may be drawn up and presented. The parties which are registered in the State Register of Personal Data Controllers may obtain general voter lists (in electronic storage media or printed). The following shall be laid down in general voter lists: voter's name, surname, address and date of birth. Actual expenses related to drawing-up of such lists shall be covered by the party which has ordered them. If a voter has, in manner prescribed by legal acts, expressed his disagreement that his place of residence or date of birth would be made public in general voter lists, only his name and surname shall be indicated in these lists. Parties may not submit general voter lists to the third persons and use them for the purposes other than election campaigning. They must destroy the obtained data within 30 days following the proclamation of the final election results. 5. The voter list of the Republic of Lithuania and the voter lists of constituencies which are drawn up and kept by the keeper of the population register, shall be made in electronic storage media. Voter lists of polling districts shall be printed. The procedure and form of  compiling of lists, method of compiling and the procedure for their use shall be established by the Central Electoral Committee. When drawing up voter lists, the following informational shall be used: 1) in the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania: name, surname, person's number, date of birth, number of the document confirming citizenship, address of a place of residence and grounds for entering the address in the population register; 2) in the voter list of constituencies: name, surname, person's number, date of birth, address of a place of residence and grounds for entering the address in the population register; 3) in the voter list of polling districts: name, surname and the address of a place of residence. The address of the voters who have expressed disagreement that their address would be announced in the voter list of a polling district, shall be indicated only in the annex of the voter list of the polling district and in the voter certificate. 6. Every voter shall enjoy the right to disagree that the address of his place of residence would be publicly announced in the voter list of a polling district, and that both the address of his place of residence and his date of birth or either of them  would be indicated in the general voter lists which are furnished to the parties. The Central Electoral Committee shall together with the keeper of the population register create conditions for a voter to carry out his right to disagree that the address of his place of residence would be announced in the polling list of a polling district and that the address of his place of residence and his date of birth would be announced in the general voter lists. Article 24. General Procedure for Registering Voters of the Republic of Lithuania in Voter Lists 1. All persons who have the right to vote shall be registered in the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania according to the data of issuance of the passport, identity card or a permit for permanent residence in the Republic of Lithuania, and according to the population register of the Republic of Lithuania. Public institutions which issue documents confirming the identity of a person, keep the data pertaining to the declaration of persons' place of residence, register the deaths of persons and the loss of citizenship, shall be also responsible for accurate and timely recording of relevant changes and verifications in the population register of the Republic of Lithuania. Lists compiled according to the data of the population register of the Republic of Lithuania shall be provisional. 2. Compiling, checking and execution of voter lists shall be organised by the Central Electoral Committee on the basis of the information furnished by state, municipal institutions and constituency electoral committees. 3. The following persons shall be struck from the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania: 1) a diseased voter; 2) a person who has lost the citizenship of the Republic of Lithuania on the basis of international agreements of the Republic of Lithuania; and 3) a citizen who has been declared legally incompetent by the court. 4. Provisional voter lists with changes done therein and acknowledged in the procedure established by the Central Electoral Committee shall be not more than 7 days prior to the election approved as final voter lists. Changes in final voter lists may be done only with the consent of the Central Electoral Committee. Article 25. Voter Lists of Electoral Areas The voter list of  a constituency shall be  made in electronic storage media by  the Central Electoral Committee according to the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania and the place of residence of a voter indicated therein (the last known place of residence of the voter), and shall be delivered to the constituency electoral committee at least 39 days prior to the election. Concurrently, lists of voters whose place of residence is unknown shall be drawn up. Article 26. Voter Lists of Polling Districts The voter list of a polling district shall be drawn up by the constituency electoral committee according to the voter list of a constituency and the place of residence indicated therein, and shall be delivered to the polling district electoral committee at least 26 days prior to the election. A list of voters whose place of residence is unknown shall be also compiled. Article 27. Public Announcement of  Voter Lists and  Access to Voter Lists 1. The polling district electoral  committee shall, at least 25 days prior to  the  election, provide conditions for the voters to have access to the voter list of a polling district. Voters shall be provided with data of an annex of the polling district voter list which concern only them. It shall be prohibited to make copies of voter lists of a polling district or to copy or distribute such lists in any other manner. At the entrance to the premises of an electoral committee, a notice must be posted indicating duty hours of the committee members, and telephone numbers through which the voters may check whether they are included in the voter list. Upon the expiration of the time limit, specified in this Law,  for issuing voter certificates, notices indicating the duty hours of the polling district electoral committee and its contact telephone numbers must  be also posted in the stairways of multi-family apartment buildings. 2. The voter list of the Republic of Lithuania and voter lists of constituencies shall not be announced publicly, however,  a voter may be provided with data regarding his registration in the voter list by telephone as well. Article 28. Voter Certificate 1. A voter certificate shall be a document issued by an electoral committee specifying in the voter list of which polling district a voter is registered. One cannot vote by post without this certificate. 2. A voter certificate shall contain: 1) the name and surname of the voter; 2) the birth date of the voter (year, month, day); 3) the address of the voter; 4) the name and number of a constituency in which the voter votes; 5) the name, number of  the polling district in the voter list of which the name of the voter has been included, as well as the address of the polling station; 6) the successive number of a voter in the voter list of a polling district; and 7) the election date, polling time at a polling station of the polling district; it shall also advise that this certificate is required for voting by post, and may include other information significant to the voter. Article 29. Delivery of Voter Certificates 1. The delivery of voter certificates to voters shall be organised by a polling district electoral committee. 2. The delivery of voter certificates shall be noted in the provisional voter list of a polling district. A voter certificate shall be either delivered to the voter personally or to the other person who lives together with the voter, or to the neighbour of the voter who knows the voter and undertakes to deliver the voter certificate to the voter. The delivery of voter certificates to voters must be finished at least 20 days before the election. 3. The voter who has not received a voter certificate in due time or who has received a voter certificate with inaccuracies, must without delay inform the polling district electoral committee on whose service territory  he is residing, about this and to produce his passport, identity card or a permit for permanent residence in the Republic of Lithuania to the electoral committee. If the voter is registered in the voter list of this polling district, the polling district electoral committee must write out a new voter certificate to the voter and issue it to him immediately.  If the voter is not registered in the voter list of this polling district, but the address of the place of residence declared in the manner prescribed by legal acts by the voter according to the population register data is assigned to this territory of the polling district or the voter announces publicly that he resides on the territory of this polling district, the constituency electoral committee shall provide a request blank, the form whereof is prescribed by the Central Electoral Committee, to be filled in by the voter to include him in the voter list of this polling district (or a member of the polling district electoral committee shall fill in this request himself), and shall immediately inform the constituency electoral committee about this, which must have care of registering the voter in the voter list of this polling district. The voter certificate shall be written out and delivered to the voter  upon checking the accuracy of voter lists. 4. A constituency electoral committee may, in the manner prescribed by the Central Electoral Committee, write out a voter certificate for the voter who is on the voter list of another constituency, provided he is unable to return to his permanent place of residence to receive or otherwise get the voter certificate. The voter must request this in writing and produce the passport, identity card or a permit for permanent residence in the Republic of Lithuania. Article 30. Checking the Accuracy of Voter Lists before Drawing up Final Lists 1. The accuracy of provisional voter lists shall be checked when transferring a voter from one voter list of a polling district, constituency into another, striking from or registering a voter in the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania. 2. The voter shall be transferred from one voter list into another if it becomes clear that the address of his place of residence in the provisional list is incorrect or it has changed after said list was drawn up. 3. Transferring of the voter from the voter list of one polling district into another in the same constituency shall be executed by the constituency electoral committee and it shall inform the Central Electoral Committee about the changes made in voter lists of polling districts. Transferring of the voter from the voter list of one constituency into another shall be executed by  the Central Electoral Committee on the recommendation of the constituency electoral committee and shall inform the constituency electoral committees about the changes made. Only the Central Electoral Committee may register a voter in or strike him from the voter list of the Republic of Lithuania in the cases provided in Article 24 of this Law. Article 31. Registration of Servicemen, Voters who are in Places of Confinement in Voter Lists 1. Voters performing the active service or alternative national defence service shall be included in the voter lists of the polling district on the territory of which they had permanently resided before they were summoned for the active service or alternative national defence service. 2. Officers, non-commissioned officers and re-enlistees of  the national  defence system and the internal affairs service shall be included in the voter lists of  the polling district on the territory of which they permanently reside. 3. Voters who are in places of confinement shall be registered in the voter list of the polling district on the territory of which they had permanently resided before they were placed in confinement. If a person who is in a place of confinement requests in writing, he shall be registered in the voter list of the polling district on the territory of which the place of confinement is situated. Article 32. Checking the Accuracy of Voter Lists upon Compiling Final Voter Lists, as well as on the Polling Day If following the approval of the final voter lists, but no later than until 6 p.m. on the polling day, a voter addresses the polling district electoral committee and submits the passport, identity card or a permit for permanent residence in the Republic of Lithuania and the document about the declared place of residence (the place of residence must be assigned to the territory of this polling district), but the voter is not registered in the voter list of this electoral district, the polling district electoral committee shall register the voter in the additional voter list of the polling district and shall allow him to vote according to the procedure  established by the Central Electoral Committee, and shall immediately inform the constituency electoral committee about the voter’s surname, name, personal number, his passport number and the address recorded in the passport. The constituency electoral committee shall check if the voter is registered in the voter list of the constituency and take actions to guarantee that the voter would not be able to vote twice or the ballot papers filled by him will be counted only once. If the voter has voted twice, only that vote shall be counted which was put in the ballot box of the polling district. The other vote of the voter, received by post or when cast according to the additional voter list of the polling district shall not be counted. Article 33. Complaints Concerning Voter Lists 1. A voter or a representative for the elections may, no later than 7 days before the election, lodge complaints with the polling district electoral committee concerning the errors made in voter lists due to which the voter is not registered in the voter list  in the manner prescribed by this Law or is registered in several voter lists. The polling district electoral committee must consider the complaint and adopt a decision thereon either immediately or within 2 days of the receipt thereof, if  more than 10 days are left until the polling day. 2. The decision of the polling district electoral committee may be within 3 days appealed against to the administrative court of an appropriate county, which shall consider the complaint within 2 days. The decision of the court shall be final. 3. Complaints and comments shall not be considered after the expiration of  the term  established for filing comments or complaints. 4. Polling district electoral committees shall report to the constituency electoral committee about  the received complaints and changes made in the voter lists by the court’s decision, and the constituency electoral committee shall report to the Central Electoral Committee as soon as possible but no later than within 12 hours. FIFTH CHAPTER NOMINATION OF CANDIDATES FOR COUNCILLOR Article 34. Nomination of Candidates for Councillor 1. A party or political organisation which has been registered pursuant to the Law  on Political  Parties and Political Organisations no later than 65 days prior to the election, may nominate candidates for councillor. 2. The party, political organisation shall nominate candidates for councillor by presenting a list of candidates in which candidates are recorded in such succession as established by the party or political organisation. The number of candidates on the list may not be less than 10 candidates and not more than twice the number of mandates established in that constituency. Candidates must meet the requirements specified in Article 2 of this Law. Article 35. Application Documents for the Nomination of Candidates for Councillor 1. A party, political organisation must file with the Central Electoral Committee the following application documents: 1) an application  for  the  participation  in  the  election; 2) a copy of its registration documents, as well as it may submit the programme, election programme of the party, political organisation; 3) the list of constituencies in which the party, political organisation intends to nominate candidates; 4) a power of attorney for a representative for the elections to represent it in the Central Electoral Committee, as well as the powers of attorney to represent it and the candidates nominated by it in constituency electoral committees; 5) the document evidencing the payment of the election deposit; 6) a copy of the declaration concerning the last year’s financial activities, which had to be submitted to the tax inspectorate pursuant to the Law on Political Parties and Political Organisations, approved by this inspectorate, and it may also submit a copy of the account (report), which had to be publicly announced according to the Law on Political Parties and Organisations, concerning the budget receipts and their sources, expenditures and their purpose. 2. If the party, political organisation nominated candidates or candidates’ lists during the preceding elections to the Seimas or councils, it shall have the right to submit a copy of the report published in the press, which had to be published in pursuance of the laws on the elections to the Seimas and municipal councils, concerning the sources and use of funds for election campaign. 3. The party, political organisation must file with the constituency electoral committee the following application documents: 1) the list of nominated candidates in which candidates are placed in a numerical order, signed by a representative for the elections of the organisation nominating lists of candidates; 2) written consents of the nominated candidates to be nominated by this party, political organisation in this constituency, a questionnaire for a candidate for councillor filled in by the candidate himself, as well as the extract containing the basic data from his income and property declaration, presented to the State Tax Inspectorate, approved by that tax inspectorate to which the declaration has been submitted; and 3) the certificate issued by the Central Electoral Committee, concerning the registration of the organisation, nominating lists of candidates, for the participation in the elections to this council. 4. In the questionnaire of a candidate for councillor, a person who is nominated as a candidate for councillor must fill in the following data himself: name, surname,  number of the passport or other document confirming identity of the person, personal number, date of birth, address of the permanent place of residence, whether his court-imposed sentence has expired, whether or not he is a person who is in the active service or alternative national defence service, whether or not he is a serviceman of the professional military service who is transferred to the reserve or has retired from the service, whether or not he is an officer of a statutory institution or agency whose participation in political activities are restricted by special laws or statutes, also whether he is a member of the elective administration body of another state; he must answer the questions indicated in Article 88 of this Law and sign. If a candidate is a citizen of another state, he must also indicate whether his passive right to vote is not limited in the state whose citizen he is. Other questions, additionally established by the Central Electoral Committee may also be included in the questionnaire of a candidate for councillor, and the person may not answer them. 5. The filing of application documents shall commence 65 days before and shall end at 5 p.m., 34 days before the day of the election. Article 36. Registration of Candidates for Councillor 1. Upon the commencement of registration of candidates, at the request of the Central Electoral Committee the Ministry of Justice shall within one day confirm officially which parties, political organisations are registered, and the activities of which parties, political organisations have been suspended or terminated. 2. Upon receiving the application documents of a party, political organisation, the Central Electoral Committee must not later than the next working day apply to the Ministry of Justice regarding confirmation of the fact of the registration of the party, political organisation and the validity of the submitted statutes. The Ministry of Justice must give a written reply within two days and submit to the Central Electoral Committee a transcript of effective statutes. The Central Electoral Committee shall, within 7 days following the receipt of the application documents, issue the representative for the elections of the organisation nominating lists of candidates, a certificate concerning the registration of the organisation nominating lists of candidates to participate in the elections. 3. While checking the application documents filled in by  a candidate for councillor, the constituency electoral committee shall determine whether the candidate meets the requirements of Article 2 of this Law. When necessary, the Central Electoral Committee may appeal to the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Internal Affairs, Justice or other state institutions to furnish the data important for registering the candidate. Such appeal of the Central Electoral Committee must be considered in the extra urgency procedure, and a written reply must be given within 7 days, but not later than 32 days before the election. 4. Upon checking out the submitted application documents and establishing that they meet the requirements of this Law, the electoral committee must adopt a decision concerning the registration of a candidate within 10 days following submitting of the application documents, but not less than 31 days prior to the election. 5. If the application documents are incorrect, the electoral committee must immediately inform the appropriate representative for the elections about them. Article 37. A Representative for the Elections 1. A representative for the elections shall represent the party, political organisation which has authorised him on all issues in the Central Electoral Committee or a constituency electoral committee. In sittings of the electoral committee he shall have the right of deliberative vote and the right to express a separate opinion on all issues under consideration. The representative for the elections shall, on the territory of the constituency electoral area whereof he is authorised to represent, have all the rights of an election observer. Upon announcing the date of the elections to councils, powers of attorney by parties, political organisations to represent them in electoral committees may be filed with the Central Electoral Committee on the day following the formation of an appropriate electoral committee. If the candidature of the representative for the elections meets the requirements of this Law, the Central Electoral Committee shall within 3 days register the power of attorney given to him and shall issue a representative’s for the elections certificate. The power of attorney for a representative for the elections shall expire after the lapse of 20 days following the proclamation of the final results of election. 2. Until the polling day, a party, political organisation may revoke a power of attorney at any time and to authorise another person to be a representative for the elections. In this case, a representative for the elections must be registered, a certificate must be issued to him, and the registration of the previous representative for the elections must be terminated within 3 days. Article 38. Electoral Deposit 1. The electoral deposit for registering one list of candidates for councillor in a constituency shall be equal to one most recent average monthly wage of the national economy (AMW). 2. The electoral deposit for changing the place of one candidate on the list, for entering a new candidate on the list - half of the AMW, for joining the candidates’ lists together - 0.3 of the AMW for each joint list. 3. Election deposits for registration of the list of candidates shall be doubled for that party, political organisation which at the preceding elections to the Seimas or  municipal councils nominated candidates or the list  (lists) of candidates and did not furnish a copy of the report published in the press concerning the sources and use of the funds for election campaign.  4. Within 40 days following the final proclamation of the election results, the Central Electoral Committee shall refund the electoral deposit to the party, political organisation which has furnished it, if the list (joint list) of candidates nominated by it becomes eligible for distribution of mandates in a multi-member constituency and the report on the sources and use of the funds for election campaign, which has to be published pursuant to this Law, has been published …