How to Run Party Primaries Across a Constituency

Running primaries across a constituency is like running a small general election in a few weeks. The party that plans its people, places and paperwork early has fewer disputes and fewer chaotic scenes on the day.

Start with the rules and the calendar

Your party’s constitution and nomination rules decide how candidates are chosen: a direct vote by members, delegates, consensus or another method the rules allow. The elections board publishes the timetable.

Primaries must finish in time to submit your candidates to IEBC before its deadline. Work backwards: IEBC submission, then time for internal appeals and the tribunal, then primary day, then the cleared-aspirants list, then applications.

Make sure every official knows the rules. Print them and hand them out.

For each contest, confirm

Plan venues, people and materials ward by ward

For each ward, list the venues (schools, halls), the officials for each venue, the materials (ballot papers, boxes, register extracts, results forms and seals), transport and security. Inform the police in advance.

Train your officials, and don’t appoint aspirants’ relatives or close allies. Ask every official to declare any conflict of interest.

Let each aspirant have an agent at every venue. The same logic applies as in a general election.

Use one results form and one report format

Every venue fills the same results form. The presiding officer and the aspirants’ agents sign it, a copy is posted at the venue and a photo goes to the returning officer.

Report incidents in one format: where, when, who is reporting, what happened and what is needed.

A simple primary results form shows

Handle disputes fairly and fast

Record every complaint: who made it, when, what it says and what evidence came with it. Don’t decide a dispute on the first phone call. Look at the forms and the evidence first.

Disputes go first to the party’s internal appeals process, then to the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal. Time is short, because your candidates must reach IEBC by its deadline.

Close out and issue certificates

Tally and declare the winner of each contest and record it. Issue nomination certificates only after results and appeals are settled under your rules.

Reconcile materials, payments to officials and incident reports.

Write down lessons while people still remember. Many of the same people will be agents and officials in the general election. UshindiOS connects party organisation, aspirant records, nominations and election-day operations. Your party still sets the rules and should take legal advice where needed.

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