Centralised vote counting is not compulsory under Fiji’s amended electoral laws, with the independent Electoral Commission retaining the authority to determine whether votes are counted at polling stations or designated counting centres.
Minister for Justice and Minister Responsible for Elections Filimoni Vosarogo has clarified this in response to concerns raised by civil society organisations regarding the introduction of centralised counting under the Electoral (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 2026.
Vosarogo acknowledged the concerns raised, emphasising that transparency, accountability, security and public confidence remain fundamental to the conduct of free, fair and credible elections.
He explains that the insertion of Section 89A into the Electoral Act 2014 does not abolish polling-station counting or require all ballot boxes to be transported to a central location.
Vosarogo says instead, the amendment allows the Electoral Commission to approve counting at one or more designated centres and establish special procedures for their operation, taking into consideration the circumstances and logistical requirements of an election.
The Minister stresses that the integrity of an election depends not simply on where votes are counted, but on the safeguards governing the transportation, handling, storage, verification and counting of ballot papers.
He highlights that centralised counting remains optional and requires approval from the Electoral Commission.
He also stresses that proper security and accountability measures must be maintained throughout the transportation, receipt, verification and custody of ballot papers.
Vosarogo also emphasised that political party agents, candidate agents, accredited observers and the media must continue to have meaningful opportunities to observe and scrutinise the counting process.
He says the Electoral Commission retains the independence to determine the most appropriate counting arrangements without Government direction or control, adding that centralised counting could provide opportunities for improved supervision, consistent counting procedures, better resource allocation and stronger quality assurance.
Vosarogo has also explained that centralised counting could allow political party agents, candidate agents, accredited observers and the media to scrutinise the consistency of the counting process across approximately 700,000 votes cast nationwide, compared with around 650 votes at an individual polling station.
However, he stresses that these potential operational advantages do not mean centralised counting would necessarily be appropriate in every circumstance.
He acknowledges that concerns surrounding the transportation and custody of uncounted ballot papers were legitimate operational matters that must be properly addressed.
Vosarogo says where centralised counting is adopted, transparency must extend from the closure of polling stations and sealing of ballot boxes through transportation, receipt and verification to the counting and declaration of results.
The Minister further reaffirmed that the Electoral Commission is an independent, non-partisan constitutional body mandated under Section 75 of the 2013 Constitution to conduct free and fair elections.
He explains that while Government may provide the necessary legislative authority for election administration, the Electoral Commission independently determines how that authority is exercised.
The Justice Minister says amendment therefore provides operational flexibility without removing the requirement for appropriate electoral safeguards, transparency and independent scrutiny.
The Government maintains that public confidence in elections must be supported by clear procedures, effective security measures and accountability at every stage of the electoral process.
Vosarogo adds that ultimately, every ballot paper must be properly accounted for, securely protected, accurately counted and subject to independent scrutiny, regardless of where counting takes place.
They say in simple terms, ballot boxes containing uncounted votes can now be moved away from polling stations, transported to another location, stored and eventually opened and counted elsewhere.
Meanwhile, civil society organisations warn that allowing uncounted ballot boxes to be transported away from polling stations creates unnecessary opportunities for electoral manipulation and undermines established safeguards for transparent vote counting.
In a joint statement, the Centre for Democracy and Dialogue, Fiji Council of Social Services
Fiji Women’s Rights Movement, Social Empowerment and Education Programme, FemLINKpacific and Transparency and Integrity Fiji have strongly condemned the Government’s amendment to the Electoral Act 2014 last Friday permitting ballot papers to be counted at centralised counting centres rather than at the polling stations where votes are cast.
The organisations say they consider this one of the most concerning and regressive amendments to Fiji’s electoral framework, introducing unnecessary risks of electoral manipulation and undermining the transparent and independently verifiable vote-counting procedures established over the last three general elections.
They say the amendment introduces a new section 89A, allowing the Electoral Commission to approve the counting of ballot papers at one or more counting centres instead of polling stations, and to approve special procedures for such counting.
They say in simple terms, ballot boxes containing uncounted votes can now be moved away from polling stations, transported to another location, stored and eventually opened and counted elsewhere.
The organisations say this fundamentally changes the safeguards that have protected the integrity of Fiji’s election-day voting process.
They explain that for the 2014, 2018 and 2022 General Elections, Fiji had a highly transparent system of polling-station voting and ballot handling.
The organisations says before voting commenced, empty ballot boxes were displayed and secured with numbered seals, with the seal numbers recorded in the presence of party polling agents and observers.
They say ballot boxes remained at the polling station throughout voting, where party polling agents and observers could observe the process from the first ballot cast to the last.
The civil society organisations say once polling closed, the seals were checked against their recorded numbers, the boxes were opened, and ballot papers were reconciled and counted right there at that same polling station, under the scrutiny of polling agents and observers.
They say the results were recorded in a Protocol of Results and communicated to the National Results Centre for publication through the election results system.
The organisations say crucially, a copy of the Protocol of Results was also posted outside the polling station, allowing political parties and members of the public to independently verify the results against those subsequently released nationally.
They say from the moment the empty ballot box was sealed, through the casting of the first and last ballots, to the counting and public posting of results, the ballot box was in full view of party polling agents and observers, allowing no scope for ballot tampering or stuffing.
The organisations say the amendment now creates a significant new stage between voting and counting, during which uncounted ballot papers may be transported and held elsewhere.
Yet, they say the amendment establishes no specific new statutory chain-of-custody requirements for this process.
They stress that it does not expressly prescribe how uncounted ballot boxes must be transported, who must accompany them, how every transfer of custody must be documented, or how polling agents and observers can independently verify that boxes have not been interfered with before counting.
The organisations say this creates potential opportunities for ballot tampering, substitution, ballot-box stuffing, unauthorised access and disputes over the integrity of ballot materials.
The organisations say centralised counting introduces additional vulnerabilities for electoral manipulation that require stringent safeguards, which they argue are not expressly established in the amendment.
They also question the practical justification for moving ballot boxes when counting at polling stations has proven to be quick and efficient.
They say the Fijian Elections Office plans to have 2,149 polling stations across election-day and pre-poll venues for the upcoming General Election, with a maximum of 650 voters assigned to each polling station.
The organisations point out that this relatively small number of voters makes counting immediately after polling closes both practical and efficient.
They say in April this year, the Electoral Commission itself acknowledged that the majority of polling-station counts during previous elections were completed within four hours.
The organisations question why thousands of uncounted ballot boxes would need to be transported across the country before counting when most polling stations can complete the process within a few hours.
The organisations also refer to the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Good Commonwealth Electoral Practice, which recommends that, wherever practicable, votes should be counted at polling stations immediately after voting concludes.
They say counting at polling stations reduces unnecessary handling and transportation of uncounted ballots while allowing political parties and observers to scrutinise the process at its source.
While acknowledging that centralised counting may be appropriate in particular circumstances, they stress that it requires strong safeguards and a compelling justification.
The organisations are calling on the Government to publicly explain the rationale for the amendment, including what deficiencies in the existing system necessitated the change and what evidence supports centralised counting as a better alternative.
They are also questioning why detailed chain-of-custody safeguards were not incorporated into the legislation.
They further call on the Electoral Commission to clarify publicly whether it intends to use its new powers for the upcoming General Election and how it will guarantee continuous independent oversight of uncounted ballots.
The organisations are urging the Government to reconsider the amendment and retain immediate polling-station counting as the standard procedure for ordinary election-day ballots.
They are also urging the Minister not to bring the Electoral (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 2026 into force, saying Fiji should be strengthening the safeguards developed over the last three General Elections rather than introducing what they consider unnecessary vulnerabilities into the electoral process.
Meanwhile, Minister for Public Works Ro Filipe Tuisawau has told the civil society organisations to read the clarifications from legitimately elected representatives in Parliament rather than from unelected commentators or civil society whose actions and misleading statements undermine the democracy they purport to uphold.
Meanwhile, Minister for Public Works Ro Filipe Tuisawau has told the civil society organisations to read the clarifications from legitimately elected representatives in Parliament rather than from unelected commentators or civil society whose actions and misleading statements undermine the democracy they purport to uphold.
He says some NGO leaders are confused and they need to make a decision now on whether temain a NGO leader or become a politician and stand in elections.
Ro Filipe stresses they cannot be both.
