Fijian Elections Office

22 October 2014

Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS ...............................................................................................................................................................................1
A NEW ELECTORAL SYSTEM ..................................................................................................................................................................3
KEY EVENTS /DATES AND TIME LINES ..............................................................................................................................................4
CORPORATE DIVISION .............................................................................................................................................................................5
HUMAN RESOURCES ......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 5
TRAINING FOR NON POLLING DAY STAFF ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6
POLLING DAY WORKERS ................................................................................................................................................................................................. 6
TRAINING OF PDWS......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 6
PROCUREMENT .................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 7
FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION .................................................................................................................................................................................... 8
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY .......................................................................................................................................................................................... 9
OPERATIONS DIVISION ........................................................................................................................................................................ 11
VOTER REGISTRATION ...................................................................................................................................................................................................11
PRE POLL..........................................................................................................................................................................................................................12
POSTAL VOTING ..............................................................................................................................................................................................................14
POLLING DAY ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................15
LOGISTICS .........................................................................................................................................................................................................................16
ELECTORAL EQUIPMENT ..................................................................................................................................................................... 17
BALLOT BOXES ................................................................................................................................................................................................................17
VOTING SCREENS ............................................................................................................................................................................................................17
BALLOT PAPER ................................................................................................................................................................................................................18
RESULTS ..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 19
RESULTS MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEM (RMIS) ......................................................................................................................................19
NATIONAL RESULTS CENTER ........................................................................................................................................................................................21
FINAL NATIONAL RESULTS ...........................................................................................................................................................................................22
ELECTORAL PROCEDURES DIVISION............................................................................................................................................... 23
REGISTRATION OF POLITICAL PARTIES PROCEDURES ..............................................................................................................................................23
DECLARATION OF ASSETS, LIABILITIES AND INCOME PROCEDURES ......................................................................................................................23
MEDIA REGISTRATION ...................................................................................................................................................................................................26
POLLING AGENT REGISTRATION ..................................................................................................................................................................................26
OBSERVER ACCREDITATION ..........................................................................................................................................................................................27
COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION............................................................................................................................................................. 28
CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATION ACCREDITATION UNDER SECTION 115 OF THE DECREE ...................................................................................35
NATIONAL MEDIA CENTER ...........................................................................................................................................................................................35
PUBLIC RELATIONS UNIT ..............................................................................................................................................................................................36
NATIONAL CANDIDATES LIST DRAW...........................................................................................................................................................................36
CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 37

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Ni Sa Bula Vinaka
On 17 September 2014, Fijians voted in the General Election to elect the new 50 member parliament
under the 2013 Constitution. The Fijian people came out in numbers on the day and took ownership
of the democratic process in a remarkable way that stands out amongst democratic nations.
A total of 84.6 per cent of Fiji's 591,101 registered voters voted in the 2014 General Election. Only
0.75 per cent or 3714 of the 500,078 ballots cast were invalid, a record low for an election in Fiji.
The low number of invalid votes amongst those voting demonstrates the strength of the new
electoral system, which gives every registered voter a single vote in a multi-member national
constituency. Every voter had one vote and all votes had equal value.
Voters chose one candidate to vote for under an open list system. Each candidate was randomly
assigned a unique three digit number prior to the election and these numbers appeared on the ballot
paper.
The 2014 election was significant for Fiji as it was the first time Fijians voted under a Common Voter
Roll. It was also the first time that Fijians voted for the same pool of candidates and did not have to
stand in different queues based on their race. We are very happy that the Fijians have responded so
positively to the new system.
The majority of voters cast their ballot on 17 September in what was also Fiji's first single day
election, with the remainder having voted either by postal ballot or pre-poll vote.
I take this opportunity to thank the Fijian Government and various government departments, the
Electoral Commission, the Fiji Police Force, foreign donor nations, Media Industry Development
Authority, and the Multi-National Observer Group, all of whom contributed to the successful
conduct of the 2014 election.
I would like to specially thank the staff at the Fijian Elections Office who maintained the highest
levels of professionalism and without whom the election simply would not have been possible. More
than 10,000 Fijians assisted with the election in one form or another and I would like to thank them
all for their good work over the past weeks and months.
Fiji has shown the world that it can achieve a peaceful and professional election, free from major
incident, and conducted to international standards. We have paid very close attention to all the
challenges that we faced throughout the entire election process to make sure that we learn from
these experiences for the next election.
This Report is a summary of the facts, issues and recommendations that has been put together by
the team at the Fijian Elections Office. It is intended that this document will provide the reader with
general information related to the Election and its conduct.
I would like to congratulate the people of Fiji and thank them for helping to make this election the
most successful in Fiji's history.

Vinaka Vakalevu
Mohammed Saneem
Supervisor of Elections

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A NEW ELECTORAL SYSTEM

The Constitution of the Republic of Fiji, 2013 [Constitution] introduced a new electoral system
for Fiji known as the Open List Proportional Representation System. The Electoral Decree 2014
[Decree] was promulgated to prescribe the manner in which elections were required to be
conducted under the new system.
Prior to the Constitution and the Decree, the Electoral (Registration of Voters) Decree, 2012, was
promulgated to prescribe the rules on registration of voters. The Political Parties (Registration,
Conduct, Funding and Disclosures) Decree, 2013 was promulgated to create a more prescriptive
and transparent registration process for Political Parties.
Below is a brief differentiation between the Electoral System pre 2013 and now:

Type
of
Electoral
System
Constituencies
Constituency
Delineation
Members of Parliament
Period of voting
Where to vote?

2006
Alternative Voting
71
Ethnic/ Race based
71
7 days
Vote anywhere

How to Vote?

Alternative Voting- Above the

line or below the line

Ballot Papers

Constituency papers with

Names and Party symbols
Centralized Counting

Counting
Threshold for a Seat

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

2014
Open List Proportional
Representation
1
One person, one vote, one value
50
1 day
Limited to Polling Station assigned
to voter
Either Circle or Tick or Cross
the number of the Candidate of
choice
Single Ballot paper with only
numbers of the Candidates
All votes counted at Polling Station
except Pre poll and Postal.
At least 5% of the total Valid Votes

KEY EVENTS /DATES AND TIME LINES

Electoral (Registration of Voters) Decree 28 June 2012

Registration of Voters Began - 03 July 2012
Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding & Disclosures) Decree- 15 January
2013
Promulgation of Constitution of the Republic of Fiji- 06 September 2013
Appointment of Electoral Commission- 09 January 2014
Electoral Decree - 28 March 2014
Appointment of Supervisor of Elections - 28 March 2014
Writ issued 04 August 2014
Voter Registration closed 4 August 2014
Party Registration closed 4 August 2014
End of Nomination Period by 12pm 18 August 2014
Withdrawal of Nomination by 12pm 19 August 2014
Objections to Nominations by 4pm 19 August 2014
Appeals on Nomination issues finalized 22 August 2014
National Candidates List- 23 August 2014
Application for Postal Vote closed 27 August 2014
Pre Poll commenced on 3 September 2014
Verification of postal ballot papers commenced on 11 September 2014
Election Day 17 September 2014
Final Results Announced - 22 September 2014
Electoral Commission returns Writ of Elections to President- 22 September 2014

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

CORPORATE DIVISION
The Corporate Division of FEO consists of the following sections led by the Director Corporate and
assisted by the four Heads of Department:

Human Resources and Training;

Procurement;
Finance and Administration and
Information Technology

The Corporate Divisions role is to facilitate the work of other operational departments by providing
the necessary support either in terms of staffing, procurement, technology or policy advice. The task
of the Corporate Division in the early preparations towards the election was to renovate the office
in Toorak to cater for the high demand during the election period. All the renovations were needed
urgently and were completed in 6 weeks.

Human Resources
The Organization Structure marked was formulated in accordance with section 6 of the Electoral
Decree 2014.
Supervisor of
Elections
Mohammed Saneem

Personal
Assistant
Folaukitoga Logavatu

Deputy
Supervisor
Michael Clancy

Director
Operations
Robin Boyd

Director
Communications
Talei Tora (Act.)

Director
Corporate
Kamlesh Sharma

The staffing structure was designed on the basis that certain projects for the General Election would
require completion well before the date of the Election and this meant that some staff would have
short term or long term contracts. There were 54 ongoing positions that ranged from 2 to 4 years
and there were 647 short term positions ranging from 2 to 12 months.
The recruitment of all FEO staff were based on merit.
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Training for Non Polling day staff

All ongoing staff underwent Induction training as well as anti-bullying and harassment awareness
training whereas 200 staff who were on short term contracts underwent induction training.
Three (3) staff from the Communications Division underwent training in Basic Internet Marketing
at the University of the South Pacific.
Polling Day Workers
The recruitment drive for Polling Day Workers [PDW] was through open day recruitment in each
town throughout Fiji. The advertisements for open day recruitment drive for PDWs were published
in the print media and broadcast on the radio.
Each applicant completed the application form together with their bank details and provide a copy
of their Tax Identification Number letter and Fiji National Provident Fund number. The applicant
then sat an aptitude test. Recruitment was then carried out on the basis of the performance in the
test.
FEO received a total of 15,609 applications from all Fijians to work as either Presiding Officer,
Assistant Presiding Officer, Venue Coordinator or Polling Day Worker.
Of the 15,609 applications received, 63% of the applicants were female and 37% were males.
Applications were open to anyone who was a registered voter, including those already in
employment elsewhere provided their employer permitted them to undertake secondary
employment.
A database was custom designed for this purpose and funded by the Government of New Zealand.
Training of PDWs
The Training Manuals for Presiding Officers and for PDWs were developed by the Electoral
Procedures Division of the FEO in collaboration with the European Union and New Zealand Trainers.
The European Union funded three (3) electoral trainers and three (3) additional trainers were
provided by New Zealand.
The International Trainers conducted three (3) one week Training of Trainers workshops at the
Novotel in Lami. All persons attending the training were accommodated at the hotel to ensure
proximity to the International Trainers and also to other participants. This built collegiality and
allowed information sharing amongst the participants beyond the hours of the training.
A total of fifty-eight (58) persons were recruited and trained. Trainers were assessed on their
performance and skills during the workshop by the International Trainers and a final fifty (50) were
selected. Trainers were then grouped into teams of two (2) to be deployed to the field to conduct
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PDW Training. It was decided that twenty-three (23) teams be deployed throughout the country
while two (2) teams were on standby.
Where possible, training sessions were conducted in the localities where the PDW had applied from
to prevent unnecessary expenditure on the part of the PDW applicants. A total of 10,913 applicants
were trained in 959 training sessions.
Following the initial training, Trainer Teams then conducted 103 refresher courses for Presiding
Officers prior to Polling day.
Out of 10,913 trained, 9,030 workers were appointed to work for FEO as polling day workers on 17
September 2014. The breakdown is as follows:
Position Description
Presiding Officers
Assistant Presiding Officers
Venue Coordinators
Polling Day Workers
FEO staff and Teachers from Ministry of Education (backup)
Total

Number of
persons
1,472
1,469
425
5,540
124
9,030

During training, Presiding Officers were informed that they may be required to reorganize their staff
to facilitate the Polling on the day. On Polling Day, a number of staff did not turn up, however, the
Presiding Officer was able to implement the Training and reorganize their staff to ensure that
Polling was not disrupted.
Procurement
The objectives of the Procurement section was to acquire quality materials, items and services at
the best value from reliable vendors having regard to quality, timely delivery and back up services.
Suppliers were selected either through open tender or sourcing of three or more quotes. Suppliers
that best met the FEO's requirements were retained.
The Procurement section ensured that all procurements were conducted in a transparent and
accountable manner.
In order to achieve its objectives, Procurement Section advertised tenders for goods, services and
works the total value of which was excess of FJD $100,000.00. Goods, services and works of lesser
value were purchased after obtaining a minimum of three (3) competitive quotations.
The following tenders were called and awarded for materials and equipment:

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Item
Ballot Box
Polling Station Kits

Tenderer
RC Manubhai
Kriz
Signs
Limited
Ballot Papers
Star
Printery
Limited
Voter Instruction Guide
Quality
Print
Limited
Result Management Information Datec
System
Printing of Voter List
Quality
Print
Limited
Postal
Voting
Management George Fong
Software
KIT Laptop replacement
Office Products
Delivery & Return of Polling William & Gosling
Equipment
Postal Voting Courier
DHL Express
Total

Quantity
2,500
2,200

Value in FJD
94,598.00
785,711.00

715,000

173,925.00

800,000

402,000.00

187,720.00

2362 Books

24,000.00

35,000.00

100
1

237,000.00
190,000.00

12,000
satchels

Payment yet to
conclude
2,129,954.00

Apart from tender and purchase of materials, Procurement Section were also involved in the
building renovations, hire of vehicles, and charter of boats, helicopters and aeroplanes for the
polling teams.
FEO successfully managed to advertise and award tenders for all items and services required for the
General Election. Items procured via the tender process were also successfully delivered by the
vendors within the timeframe stipulated.
Finance and Administration
The Finance Section in consultation with all FEO divisions and the Electoral Commission, formulated
the budget. The forecasted FEO budget was FJD 42.15 million (inclusive of General Election,
Electoral Commission Expenses and operational requirements).
Much of the budget preparation exercise was done without any baselines as the demands of the
2014 Election were much different from the earlier elections Fiji has conducted. Since operational
strategies were not fully prepared at the time, it was more a predicted estimate based on
assumptions of the operational strategy. The 2014 Election will provide FEO with particulars of
expenses that will be required to conduct a one day election and will certainly help to design the
budget in the next election.

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Overall Government line budget given to FEO was FJD17,971,531 and FEO received FJD21,313,106
from International Donors. The total funding received by FEO for the 2014 Election was
FJD39,284,637. The following table shows the breakdown of the total funds received by the Fijian
Elections Office against the utilization as at 13 October 2014.
Funding
Provision in FJD
Expenditure
Balance
% Expenditure
as
at
13/10/2014
in FJD
Government
17,971,531
10,695,085
7,276,446
60%
Line Budget
Aid
PNG
18,540,001
11,277,358
7,262,643
61%
India
482,500
490,357
(7857)*
102%
Turkey
93,984
93,984
0
100%
China
1,449,770
914,730
535,040
63.1%
Japan
82,421
82,422
(1)**
100%
EU
664,430
664,430***
0
Total
39,284,637
23,553,936
15,730,701
60%
* Funding was provided for 10 Vehicles to be purchased from the local dealer. Additional costs were paid by FEO to
acquire the vehicles.
**Funding was provided for purchase of Ballot Boxes, however, FEO met the slight shortfall.
***Take note that that Funds from EU is yet to be transferred to FEO Trust Fund Account as EU audit is still in progress.

Transportation
FEO started with a total of three (3) vehicles however its core fleet was boosted in a timely manner
when FEO received four (4) brand-new Hyundai Santa Fe vehicles from the Government of Korea
as a donation.
FEO received a further donation of ten (10) Mahindra vehicles from the Government of India making
a total of seventeen (17) vehicles as its core fleet.
Even though FEO had a fleet of seventeen (17) vehicles, it had to hire rental vehicles to supplement
the logistical needs for the 2014 Election.
Reception and Security
A new customer service area had to be built at the Head Office in Toorak to cater for the surge in
demand during the election period. Security systems were also installed to control access into
respective offices.
Information Technology
The Information Technology Section [IT Section] played a vital role in the design and development
of IT based solutions of the modern era to facilitate the work of the FEO. IT section also carried out
hardware maintenance, networking solutions and provided technical support.
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The following upgrades were conducted to ensure uninterrupted support to the delivery of the
Election:
Telephone Upgrade
The telephone system was upgraded to enhance the FEOs internal and external communications.
The decade old PABX was removed and a latest PABX was installed. The new PABX came with
advanced features that enabled efficient communication between branch offices and was cost
effective.
Network Upgrade
The FEO internal network was entirely redesigned and was developed to facilitate the heavy
demand during the Election period. New structured CAT 6 Cables [new network cabling] were
installed in the entire FEO building and connected to the server room. This exercise enabled IT
section to install FEOs own Domain - FEO.Local.
A new domain controller and shared drive was setup together with setting up of the private network
data link to remote area offices and divisional offices to link all FEO Offices.
One of the features of this upgrade was that every staff member maintained their official data on the
FEO Server. This meant that there was continuity of information and also prevented loss of records
after staff moved on.
FEO Server Room
The FEO built a modern server room with raised flooring and server racks for internal information
storage. The data is also stored as a backup in FEO racks at the ITC data Center. There are a total of
10 blade servers of medium range for various applications with two backup UPS in case of electricity
failure.
This server room is fully secured and access is limited to authorized staff. It also has a direct line to
the ITC data Centre where backup of FEOs main server is kept.
The FEO has voter registration data of all registered voters and ensures the safety, security and
confidentiality of the data at all times.
Equipment upgrades
To be up to par with modern technology, the IT section acquired new blade servers, racks, Fort
iGATE firewall, Kaspersky antivirus, sixty (60) N Computing units, Result Management Information
System software with source code, Postal Voting Software with source code, 100 EVR KIT Laptops
to replace laptops supplied with the EVR software which were phased out, multimedia for voter
education, conference room sound system, Biometric for security and Time-in machines.

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OPERATIONS DIVISION
The objective of the Operations Division for the 2014 election was to ensure that every registered
voter was accorded an opportunity to cast his/her vote.
Voter Registration
Beginning in 2012, FEO conducted nationwide voter registration programs in Fiji and overseas as
well to allow all eligible Fijians to register to vote.
Voter registration centers were established in major areas around the country to provide a facility
for voters to register if they missed one of the voter registration teams. In addition, community
outreach registration teams attended field awareness programs, government rural visits/tours,
roadshows, Expos and other events to which FEO was invited. The FEO also visited high schools to
target students who had recently turned 18 and had not enrolled.
Events/Exercise
1
2
3
4
5
6

Dates

Phase I & II
3 July 7 December, 2012
Phase III
June 2013
Phase IV
31 May 5 July, 2014
Close of Rolls
31 July 4 August, 2014
Overseas
October 2013 July 2014
Registration
Other Registrations: Permanent Centers/Community Outreach
/Expos/Awareness etc.(2013 2014)

New
Registration
505,036
28,576
12,810
5976
3970
34,733

Statistics for the 2014 General Election:

Division
1
2
3
4
5

Central
Western
Northern
Eastern
Overseas
Total

Total
Registered
247,393
223,867
89,212
25,121
5508
591,101

The process of using mobile registration teams increased the accessibility of registration services.
Four major registration drives saw approximately 95% of the estimated 620,000 eligible voters
register.

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In addition the FEO travelled to a number of overseas countries to facilitate the registration of Fijian
citizens living there.
Overseas Registration Exercise Results:
Country
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Registration
New Registration
Dates
New Zealand 23-31October,
564
(Pilot)
2013
Australia
14-22
664
Phase I
February, 2014
PNG
14-19
May,
84
2014
Middle
26 May 2
150
East/Dubai
June, 2014
New Zealand 17-27
May,
874
Phase II
2014
USA Phase I
18-27
May,
322
2014
UK
and 15 June 6 July,
636
Europe
2014
USA Phase II 11-19
July,
330
2014
Canada
21-27
July,
39
2014
Australia
19-27
June,
307
Phase II
2014
Overseas Registration in Fiji
1204
TOTALS
5174
Grand Total

Correction
4
72
55
37
45
17
37
12
4
51

334
5508

Pre Poll
The venues for pre poll were identified using the criteria outlined in the Decree and incorporated
into schedules which were gazetted on 25 August 2014. Pre poll was scheduled between 3 to 15
September 2014. The schedules took into account factors such as low numbers of voters and
remoteness of the location. Other places visited included military bases and remand centers. An
awareness program to inform voters of pre poll schedules using Roko Tui, Provincial Administrator,
District Officer and Divisional Commissioners was conducted.
The material required by each pre poll team was prepared in Suva and provided to each team for
the commencement of their schedules. A variety of transport methods including road, boat,
helicopter and fixed wing aircraft was used. Pre polling teams were generally comprised of a Team
Leader (Presiding Officer) and up to 4 other staff.
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Division
Central
Eastern
Northern
Western
TOTAL

Total # of Polling Stations Total Registered

120
16,353
155
17,930
124
12,169
150
19,937
549
66,389

Total Voted
13,349
13,626
8,918
15,146
51,039

While teams were in the field, they had daily contact with their respective coordinator to report on
voter turnout or any issues that may have arisen during the day. Each team was accompanied by a
police officer at all times.
In the majority of cases pre poll schedules were adhered to as planned, however in some cases there
were amendments made due to unforeseen circumstances e.g. weather, tides, etc. Where it was
necessary to reschedule polling, approval was sought from the Electoral Commission and the
changes were made.
In most instances the amount of time allocated for pre polling at a particular venue was adequate
for the turnout of voters.
The recruitment and deployment of staff from Suva worked well for the purpose of pre poll. It
enabled the Divisional Coordinators to have good control on the engagement of pre poll staff and
input into their specific training needs.
The role of external stakeholders such as District Officers, Provincial Offices and Advisory
Councilors in ensuring that the schedule of visits was communicated to the various Communities
was also beneficial. FEO Area Officers maintained good relations with Turaga-ni-Koros and
arranged for staff accommodation with them.
The timely and coordinated approach given by the Fiji Police Force in terms of providing security
for the Election officials and materials allowed the FEO to demonstrate that there was an additional
layer of security on polling materials at all times.
Within Fiji there are polling venues with the same or similar names which caused confusion when
allocating resources such as the voter lists for pre polling. However, having become aware of these,
FEO responded quickly to ensure that voters were able to cast their vote.
In preparation for the 2018 election pre poll schedules can be prepared at least six (6) months in
advance allowing FEO to furnish it to the voters in the proposed areas well ahead of time.

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Postal Voting
Postal Voting provided an opportunity to voters who were overseas and those who could not attend
a polling station on Election Day, to cast their vote.
When applications were received by the FEO they were checked for completeness and then when
approved the details were added to the Postal Database which was specifically procured for this
project. The details on the database were supplied to DHL, the courier company so that they could
prepare satchels pending receipt of completed packs from FEO.
Postal voting packs contained the following:
Voter Instruction Booklet
Ballot Paper
Secret Envelope
Transmission Envelope
Return Envelope
How to Postal Vote Brochure
DHL Information sheet
Prepaid DHL return envelope
Postal Ballots that were received by FEO were entered in a register and stored under Police Guard
at the Office in Toorak.
Postal Votes Returned
Total Sent
12190

Total Received
7948

On the 26th of September, DHL returned 2219 satchels of which 480 were categorized as received
too late and 1739 as undelivered.
The forms for application for Postal Vote were prepared after the Decree was promulgated which
meant that voters who had already registered would have to apply separately for a postal vote. The
initial registrations from overseas were not automatically registered as postal voters and rectifying
this was difficult as all of the voters had to be contacted and sent a postal vote application form.
Other issues arose with the interface between DHL and the FEO database which caused confusion
in the exact delivery address for the Postal Vote Pack. When this was realized, counter measures
were immediately put in place.

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Polling Day
Polling took place on 17 September 2014. Majority of the Polling Stations began operations at
7:30am and closed at 6pm to begin counting. Polling Agents and Observers were permitted into the
Polling Stations. FEO ensured that the maximum number of voters at any Polling Station were 500.
Voters were assigned to a Polling Station closest to their residential address.
Polling venues were identified and assessed as to their suitability for polling through a program of
visits by FEO staff well before the issue of the Writ. On completion of the assessment, arrangements
were made for temporary facilities to be hired where appropriate.
The provisional list of Polling Venues was first advertised in May 2014. The final gazette list of
polling venues was advertised in daily newspapers so that voters were aware of the physical
location of the polling station to which they were assigned.
Division
Central
Eastern
Northern
Western
Overseas

Total # of Polling
Venues
281
24
208
308
1
822

Total
Registered
231,040
7,191
77,043
203,930
5,508
524,712

All of the equipment required for polling including voter lists and ballot papers was delivered to
Presiding Officers at their polling station on Tuesday 16 September 2014. Staff who had been
recruited and appointed as PDW attended training including a briefing by their Presiding Officer on
polling eve.
All votes taken on Polling Day were counted at the respective polling stations. The results from the
Count were transmitted by Presiding Officers to a toll free dedicated number at the FEO results
center at the Vodafone Arena in Suva. On completion of the Count, all materials were packed and
collected by FEO staff for return to secure storage points depending on the location of the Polling
Station.
There were delays in the collection of material from polling stations in Suva and Lautoka areas due
to communication problems between Presiding Officers and Area Officers, however all material was
in secure storage by 18 September. Containers from the North were shipped to Suva for storage.
As with pre polling, the presence of police officers at polling stations and during the delivery and
collection of polling material was critical in demonstrating to the voting public that the process was
secure.
The training of PDW proved effective as the PDW applied the procedure consistently throughout
the country.
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Logistics
Once the number of polling stations had been finalized, the quantities of voting screens, ballot boxes,
polling kits and ballot papers were confirmed.
A comprehensive delivery and collection schedule was devised. Individual polling station kits within
a designated area were prepared and then dispatched to the Area Office or to a designated
distribution point. The polling equipment was then distributed to individual polling stations where
Presiding Officers accompanied by a police officer took charge of it.
The collection of the material was completed at the end of counting using cars and trucks to collect
and return the material to secure area. Tamper Evident Envelopes were returned to the National
Results Center in Suva on polling night or by 18 September 2014 at the latest.
The facility at Williams and Gosling was effective in providing a material preparation and
distribution point for all of Fiji. The quantities of materials in the kits assembled were accurate and
on polling day there were minimal reports of incorrect lists or shortages of critical items.

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Electoral Equipment
The 2014 General Election also saw the FEO take a modern approach in the equipment that would
be used in the process. As already noted, the Voter Registration that was undertaken captured
biometric fingerprint details and a Voter Identification Card was instantly issued following
registration.
Similarly, the FEO also adopted changes worthy of note in the following equipment:
Ballot Boxes
Voting Screens
Ballot Paper
Ballot Boxes
The FEO tendered the supply of Ballot boxes that were made of high strength plastic, transparent
and had a lid that would form an impenetrable closure when sealed and also had capacity for a flap
top to allow for ballot papers to be dropped into the box. It was also a requirement that the boxes
be of ISO standard. All boxes were required to have punched holes to allow seals to be fixed.
Given that there were Polling stations in Pre Poll that had fewer voters assigned to it, FEO ordered
Ballot Boxes in two sizes- 65+Litre capacity and 45+Litre Capacity. Below is a breakdown of
quantity ordered:
Ballot Box Description
65+ Litres
45+ Litres

Quantity Ordered
2100
400

In the past elections, wooden Ballot Boxes were used. These were heavy to lift, difficult to seal
properly and required greater storage.
The Japanese Government kindly paid for the cost of the Ballot Boxes.

Voting Screens
FEO used cardboard Voting screens in this election. This meant that one staff could carry the
allocated five (5) screens per station in their hands. The New Zealand Electoral Commission had
initially forwarded a demonstration piece and following the trials with the demonstration, it was
decided that the cardboard screens from New Zealand would be used.
The design of the screen is such that it folds out of a box- normally the size of a large pizza box and
it can also be packed into the same box after use. Screens came in sealed boxes and were easily
transported all over Fiji.
This allowed FEO to do away with the bulky wooden triangular voting screens. The screen package
also contained a portable voting screen that could be used for persons who may require to be seated
when casting their vote.
The New Zealand Government donated 2200 packs of 5 voting screens.

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Ballot Paper
The ballot paper for the 2014 General Election was significantly different from ballot papers in the
past Elections. One common ballot paper throughout the country required FEO to ensure that the
ballot paper design was safe and that sufficient security features were built into the ballot paper to
prevent duplication or fraudulent activity.
The printing of ballot paper was tendered to a commercial printer and the successful tenderer
organized with the FEO management to instill three (3) security features in all the ballot papers.
There were no reports of tampering or attempted fraud with ballot papers.
Ballot paper printing was done over two (2) weeks and a total of 715,000 ballot papers were
printed. 15,000 ballot papers were machine folded for use in Postal Voting whilst the remaining
700,000 were bound into books of fifty (50) after each ballot paper stub was numbered. Each book
was also serially numbered for tracking.
The Fiji Police Force was present at the printers during the printing and also provided security for
the transfer of ballot papers. Party Agents were given a tour of the printing process and they also
followed the ballot paper transfers.

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Results
Results Management Information System (RMiS)
RMiS was the application software used by FEO to capture the data contained in the Protocol of
Results forms and consolidated these results into the National Results tally for progressive display
of results. RMiS also provided the consolidated results to the Supervisor of Elections and the
Electoral Commission to prepare the Final National Results Tally.
RMiS used two (2) modes to progressively display the results:
Provisional Mode - The mode of operation of RMiS where the Results of Count for
each Candidate from each polling station is entered rapidly into RMiS for immediate
publication. The provisional mode only operated on election night and was replaced
by the reporting of final results once the original Protocol of Results was received at
the National Results Centre.
Official Mode - The mode of operation of RMiS where comprehensive information
from the original Protocol of Results, including all reconciliation fields, are entered
into RMiS. Official data is entered using double blind data entry, data validation and
is subject to audit mechanisms prior to release into the Final National Results Tally.
The Official mode was used to produce the official results of the election.
RMiS used echelons of screenings to accurately display the results, the levels were as follows:
Double blind entry of results from the official Protocol of Results received from each
polling station. This involved the results being entered into the database by one
operator and then being independently re-entered by another operator. If there is any
discrepancy between the two results an audit trigger is activated and this is then
investigated and if required the data is re-entered.
Supervisor checks the data entry and allocates the work to the operators as required.
Audit checks (if an audit is triggered) are undertaken when any data entry
discrepancies are identified.
Audit Manager checks and obtains Supervisor of Elections decision on any problem
results sheets.
RMiS database included the information listed below, to record the data for consolidated reports.
Results were able to be reported by the following categories.
1. Division
7. EVR list
2. Polling Venue
8. Registration Summary
3. Polling station
9. Polling Summary
4. Area
10. Polling results
5. Party
11. Audit
6. Candidate
The following number of Protocols of Result were entered into the RMIS system:
Polling day (including postal) 1489
Pre-poll 549
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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

The following reports were produced for the Supervisor of Elections and the Electoral Commission.
These reports were also projected and displayed at the National Media Centre for viewing by
stakeholders and the public.
National results tally votes by party by candidate
Candidate results votes by candidates
General report votes by individual candidate by polling stations
The RMiS system worked effectively and was an efficient way to produce the Final National Results
Tally for the FEO to provide to the Electoral Commission for the allocation of seats.
It is recommended that this system or a similar system be used in the next election.
The RMiS system was developed with funding from the British Government and developed with the
assistance of Mr Ronan McDermott.

National Results Center

The Vodafone Arena was the venue for the National Results Center. On election night, 17 September
2014, the Center had two functions:
Call Center for the receipt of results phoned in from the polling stations
Counting Center for Pre Poll and Postal Votes

Call Center for the receipt of results phoned in from the polling stations
All polling stations were allocated one of four discrete telephone numbers to telephone the results
to.
The Call Center at the Vodafone Arena had 160 telephone operators, who were split into four
groups. The operators recorded results phoned in and these were then given to RMiS and were
reported as provisional results on the night of 17 September. The final results were entered into the
system after the original protocol of results was returned to the Vodafone Arena.

Counting center for counting of pre-poll and postal votes

All pre-poll and postal votes were counted at the Vodafone Arena commencing from 6pm on 17
September and continued until 20 September. All counting was undertaken in the presence of
polling agents and/or international observers. Initially there were 20 counting stations set up. This
was eventually increased to 50.
There were two (2) shift managers working 12-hour shifts each while counting teams were divided
into three (3) 8-hour shifts 4pm to 12 midnight, 12 midnight to 8am and 8am to 4pm. Shift
managers ensured that the correct procedure for the counting of ballot papers were followed by the
counting teams and also liaised with polling agents, international observers and police.
In total, ballot boxes from 549 pre poll stations and 12 postal ballot boxes were counted. A copy of
the Protocol of Results from each station that was counted was displayed at the Arena.
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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

The Vodafone Arena was suitable premises for this exercise. It provided sufficient working area,
storage area, well ventilated, catering area, sufficient rest rooms that were always clean and suitable
security features.
It must also be noted that all counting of ballot papers and movements of ballot boxes were
undertaken with security provided by the Fiji Police Force.
After counting and processing of results, each ballot box was stored in containers under 24-hour
security provided by the Fiji Police Force. Polling agents and international observers were given
access to view the containers after they were brought in to the Vodafone Arena (before being
opened, to see the seals) and before they were moved out of the Vodafone Arena to FEO storage
facility at Wailekutu (Williams & Gosling).
The Vodafone Arena was also the receiving point for all original Protocol of Results where they were
logged in and filed until they were transferred to the Data Entry Centre at the FMF Gymnasium.
Final National Results
The Final National Results Tally was handed to the Electoral Commission on 22 September 2014.
Below is the table of the results by party:
Name
FijiFirst
Social Democratic Liberal Party
National Federation Party
Peoples Democratic Party
Fiji Labour Party
One Fiji Party
Fiji United Freedom Party
Independent Roshika Deo
Independent Umesh Chand

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Votes
293714
139857
27066
15864
11670
5839
1072
1055
226

Electoral Procedures Division

The Electoral Procedures Division was responsible for developing procedures for the 2014 General
Election pursuant to the Electoral Decree 2014, Electoral (Registration of Voters) Decree 2012,
Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding and Disclosures) Decree 2013 and any other
subsequent amendments to the mentioned Decrees.
New procedures had to be drafted as the Electoral System was entirely new. In developing the
procedures the Division ensured that it was drafted in such a way so that it was understood clearly.
The following procedures were developed by the department in liaison with the Supervisor of
Elections, Deputy Supervisor of Elections, Operations Division and International Technical
Advisors.

Registration of Political Parties Procedures

These procedures ensured that there was a systematical way of registering all proposed political
parties intending to contest the 2014 Election. Upon receiving the applications to be registered as a
political party, data input was carried out by entering party members details and verifying it with
the EVR database to check on duplication within the party, duplication with other registered parties,
error in the EVR number or member not a registered voter.
This process allowed FEO to confirm whether the proposed party met the minimum criteria of
having 2,000 members in the Central Division, 1750 members in the Western Division, 1000
members in the Northern Division and 250 members in the Eastern Division.
If the proposed party meets the abovementioned requirements, further verification is carried out
in accordance with section 6 of the Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding and
Disclosures) Decree 2013 to establish if the proposed party meets the criteria to be registered.
The following Political Parties were registered for the 2014 General Election:

Fiji Labour Party [FLP]

National Federation Party [NFP]
Social Democratic Liberal Party [SODELPA]
Peoples Democratic Party [PDP]
FijiFirst
Fiji United Freedom Party [FUFP]
One Fiji Party [One Fiji]

Declaration of Assets, Liabilities and Income Procedures

Under section 16, 23, 24 and 25 of the Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding and
Disclosures) Decree 2013 all registered political parties, their individual candidates and
independent candidates were to declare their assets, liabilities and income for stipulated periods.
For this provision to be complied with, the FEO drafted a Declaration of Assets, Liabilities and
Income Form to be completed by office holders of all registered political parties, their candidates
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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

and independent candidates. The FEO is required to publish the Declarations once received from
the Political Parties and Registered Officer and Office Holders of the Party.
The following table lists the publication dates of the Declaration of Assets, Liabilities and Income
Form in the gazette and Fiji Sun.

Party Name(s)
NFP
PDP
One Fiji/NFP/FLP/FijiFirst
SODELPA
FUFP
Declaration of all Candidates

Date of Publication in Gazette and Fiji

Sun
6 August 2014
6 August 2014
27 August 2014
1 September 2014
2 September 2014
6 September 2014

Nomination of Candidates Procedures/Internal Procedure for Candidate Applications

Officer
The Electoral Procedures Division drafted these procedures pursuant to sections 25 & 26 of the
Decree. Furthermore the Division also developed a Nomination Form for Political Party Candidates
called the Party List and Independent Candidates Nomination Form.
After receiving the completed nomination forms, the details of each candidate was verified with the
Judicial Department, Fiji Police Force, Fiji Immigration Department and the Office of the Official
Receiver before accepting the candidates nomination.
Listed below is a summary of nomination forms received and processed.

Political
Party/Independent
NFP
FLP
SODELPA
FUFP
One Fiji
PDP
FijiFirst
Independent
Total

No.
of
Received

Nominations No. Rejected

50
42
50 (1 withdrawal)
4
14
50
50
2
262 (1 Withdrawal)

1
5
1
1
1
4
Nil
Nil
13

No. Approved
49
37
48
3
13
46
50
2
248

It was noted that nomination of candidates was done by most parties on 18 August 2014. This
effectively prevented them from replacing any nomination that was not accepted. Only FijiFirst

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

nominated before 18 August and were able to replace one of their candidates before the close of
nominations.
To facilitate the process, FEO was open during the weekend on 16 and 17 August to receive
nominations if any were to be made.

Postal Voting Procedures

These procedures were prepared pursuant to section 67 of the Decree. Postal Vote Application
forms were designed expeditiously following the promulgation of the Decree to facilitate early
registrations by those who wished to apply.
The secret envelope, Transmission envelope, Postal Voting Declaration Form and the Postal Voting
Guidelines for postal voters were also developed by the Electoral Procedures Division.

Pre-Polling Procedures
These procedures were mainly focused on how pre poll was to be conducted and outlined the
security procedures for PDWs in regards to packaging and safe keeping of sensitive materials and
ballot boxes.
A Presiding Officer Record Book was specifically designed for pre polling and this enabled Presiding
Officers to note all key events that took place at their scheduled pre polling venues.
Packaging of materials for pre poll was important and step by step instructions were also
highlighted in the record book for Presiding Officers to follow upon completion of the pre poll
voting.

Polling Day Procedures

In ensuring that polling took place efficiently and smoothly on 17 September 2014 procedures were
designed to allow both voters and Election Officials to understand the process of voting.
With reference to PDWs, the section worked closely with Technical Advisors from the European
Union to design a Presiding Officers Operation and Training Manual and CD, Polling Day Workers
Booklet and Polling Day Workers Task Sheets. All these materials highlighted procedures for
preparing a polling station, voting process, counting process and packaging of materials upon
completion of count.
A Presiding Officers Record Book for Polling was also developed, which contained all the relevant
forms required for the polling process. A Voter ID Verification Form was formulated specifically for
voters who on polling day may turn up to the polling station without their EVR Card or any other
valid form of identity.

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Counting Procedures
The Counting procedure was designed to ensure that counting was carried out thoroughly by
Polling Day Workers at each polling station and counting staff at the National Results Centre.
The sorting of ballot papers into column number ranges, counting then sorting each column number
range by individual candidate numbers resulted in the ballot papers being counted within a 4 hour
period on polling night. This resulted in the provision of results to the National Results Centre much
quicker than anticipated.
The Counting procedures ensured transparency and also allowed the counting team to thoroughly
cover the entire process by following the step by step procedure.
Accreditation Procedures
Under the Electoral Decree it was a requirement for media, polling agents and international
observers to be accredited before participating in the electoral process.

Media Registration
A Media Registration Form was developed. Media personnel were required to complete this form
upon receiving a certificate from the Media Industry Development Authority. As a condition of the
registration, a Code of Conduct was developed for the Media.
A total of 387 media personnel were accredited representing 34 media organizations. No
applications were rejected.
An information session for media was organized in September 2014 to highlight their roles and
responsibilities whilst covering and reporting on the electoral process.

Polling Agent Registration

A Polling Agent Appointment Form was also created. However, this form was provided in soft copy
version to all registered political parties and independent candidates who then had the
responsibility of printing the form onto their letterhead and providing a copy of the same to any
polling agent that was appointed by them.
The parties were provided with a Code of Conduct for polling agents as well. Polling agents were
expected to comply with it whilst performing their duties.
In addition a Polling Agent Booklet was designed and distributed to parties during the information
session for Polling Agent Trainers that was facilitated by FEO in September 2014. This session was
designed to train Parties to train their polling agents about the roles and responsibilities of the
polling agents.

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Observer Accreditation
The FEO also accredited ninety-two (92) International Observers who were part of the MultiNational Observer Group. They also had their briefing session advising them of their roles and
responsibilities during the 2014 election.
The international observers also had their own Code of Conduct which was drafted to ensure that
the objectives of the Electoral Decree, 2014 were not breached by these respective groups.
To facilitate the accreditation process, identity tags were created for ease of access to polling
stations, National Results Centre and Media Centre.

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION
The Communications Division developed a strategy to create awareness amongst Fijians on how to
vote. The division engaged a multi-media and multi-lingual voter awareness approach based on four
(4) general themes:
When to vote?
Where to vote?
How to vote?
All Fijians should vote.
A special voter education session for persons with disabilities was also held at the Fiji National
Council of Disabled Persons in Suva. Television advertising on What to do at your polling station
with sign language was also aimed at persons who required special attention.
Staff in the Voter Education Program were recruited from within their own divisions which added
value to the awareness teams who had local knowledge of the area and spoke the dialect.
Voter Information Guide
The Voter Information Guide was produced as the main booklet containing all relevant electoral
information for the voter. The information included pictorials and was translated into i-Taukei and
Fijian Hindi languages.
The information below highlights the distribution of the Voter Information Guide across the
country.
Total printed and distributed - 510, 000 including:
170, 000 English
50,000 Hindi
50,000 i-Taukei
240,000 Tri-lingual
Since Voter information was being disseminated in numerous media, the Voter Information Guide
proved to be a good launch platform to raise awareness about the new voting system. It was later
replaced by more precise brochures about specific aspects of the Election.

545 Call Center

A total of 88,789 calls were received by the call center from 29 July, 2014 to 22 September, 2014.
The call center was outsourced to Vodafone Fiji Limited. Vodafone Fiji call center staff were trained
by the FEO Communications Division to answer Frequently Asked Questions [FAQs]. These FAQs
were developed and continuously updated by the Communications Division. Sixteen (16) staff
operated the call center from 7am to 9pm daily.
Having a call center allowed common voter queries to be addressed in a timely manner. Queries
that could not be handled by the call center were escalated to the FEO and the query was then
referred to specific FEO staff in the specific area to which the query related to.
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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

The following table represents the top ten (10) types and numbers of queries received.
Type of Query
Polling Station Details
FEO Office Location
FEO Vacancy enquiry
Voter Card Loss
Voter Card Info
Voters Register
How to vote?
Number check
Website queries
Counting enquiries

Number of Calls
30,831
31,771
1,486
753
284
274
186
179
166
117

Text 545 platform

A free SMS platform where voters could text their voter registration number to 545 was developed
to allow a free and easily accessible mechanism for voters to access information about their polling
station. The platform which was hosted by Vodafone Fiji Limited and Digicel was available for use
by all mobile uses in Fiji, Vodafone, Digicel, Inkk Mobile and Telecom Fiji Limited.
This platform was designed to assist the voter to find the Polling Venue that they have been assigned
to. Nearer to the Election, FEO was able to put further details such as the exact Polling Station on
this system. This greatly assisted voters to be better informed as to which queue they needed to
join.
The total number of SMS received on Election Day was 116,311 while the total number of SMS
received from 28 June to 17 September was 701,180 for all networks.

Village and Community visits

The Voter Education teams visited villages and communities in the four divisions in Fiji. The visits
included a power point and/or flip chart presentation on the electoral processes leading to the 2014
election as well as informing voters about the voting process.
The presentations which were translated into i-Taukei, Rotuman, Rabi, Tuvaluan and Fijian Hindi
introduced voters to the new voting system where the presentation culminated in a mock voting
exercise.
Voter awareness collaterals were also distributed to voters and feedback forms were given to the
communities after the presentations.
The following figures below detail the number of communities and villages visited by the Voter
Awareness teams.

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Number of communities by division (Central, Northern, Eastern and Western)

DIVISION
Central
Western
Eastern
Northern

TOTAL
366
424
275
371

Turaga-ni-Koros (TNK) and District Advisory Councilors (DAC) awareness

The Voter Awareness Program was introduced to community headmen in the villages and
communities. The program included educating the Turaga-ni-Koro and District Advisory Councilors
on the voter awareness program as focal points of information within their communities.
The training was well received and proved to be an effective mode of voter information to villages
and communities. Below is an illustration of the number of focal points trained.
DIVISION
Central/Eastern
Western
Northern

TOTAL
423
360
166

House-to-House voter awareness

The house-to-house awareness program commenced from 25 August to 5 September to target
mostly suburban homes from 12pm to 8pm daily. The teams were made-up of persons who were
likely to be appointed as Presiding Officers following their training. It allowed the would-be
Presiding Officers to develop a good understanding of the public expectation and the areas where
the voters may be confused.
Below is an illustration of the number of houses visited against the number of Fijians visited by
teams:
DIVISION
TOTAL
Voters visited
Central
31,124
108,760
Western
13,920
38,192
Northern
7,738
20,434
Radio and Television advertising
A comprehensive radio and television voter education campaign was launched in June, 2014. Radio
advertising in English and the vernaculars, Fijian Hindi and i-Taukei, proved to be an effective mode
of disseminating voter information especially to the rural areas where radio is the main source of
information.

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

The voter awareness, pre-poll and PDW recruitment, training and payment announcements were
effectively transmitted via radio. Pre-recorded or announcer mentions were employed to relay the
voter awareness information.
Television commercials were instrumental visuals in the How to Vote? process as well as short
sharp infomercials for voters. Sign language was used in the 60 second What to do at your polling
station? infomercial which assisted in the FEOs endeavour to include persons with hearing
impairments.
The information below outlines the number of advertisements and from which commercial service
provider by medium.
Infomercials
Television ads
Fiji Broadcasting Corporation Limited
Type of advertisement
Number of ads
30, 60 second, 2 and 5 1377 advertisements
minute
television
advertisements.

Total spend
$323,114.21 from 17 April
to 19 September, 2014

Fiji Television Limited

Type of advertisement
Number of ads
30, 60 second, 2 and 5 1777 advertisements
minute
television
advertisements.

Total spend
$477,741.97 from 17 April
to 19 September, 2014

Mai TV
Type of advertisement
Number of ads
30, 60 second, 2 and 5 508 advertisements
minute
television
advertisements.

Total spend
$21,535.65 from 17 April
to 17 September, 2014

Radio
Fiji Broadcasting Corporation Limited
Type of advertisement
Number of ads
30, 60 second, 2 minute 3312 advertisements
advertisements
and
announcer mentions.

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Total spend
$349,037.34 from 20 May
to 17 September, 2014

Communications Fiji Limited

Type of advertisement
Number of ads
30, 60 second, 2 minute 4695 advertisements
advertisements
and
announcer mentions.

Total spend
$358,987.45 from 20 May
to 17 September, 2014

Talkback programs
Talkback programs on radio and television provided an interactive mode of voter awareness
because it enabled the voter to call the FEO speaker to ask questions relating to elections. Callers
from as far as the Lau group and from the interior of Fiji, Naitasiri, utilized the shows to seek
clarifications on voter issues. The talkback programs were organized by the Ministry of Information
in collaboration with the stations.
Type of talkback shows
English, Hindi and i-Taukei

Number of talkback
Attendees
shows
34
Supervisor
of
Elections,
Mr
Mohammed Saneem, Acting Director
of Communications, Ms Talei Tora,
CSO Partnership Coordinator, Ms
Losana McGowan, Former Director of
Communications, Mr Josua Tuwere,
Acting Communications Coordinator,
Ms Sheenal Sharma, Divisional
Coordinator Eastern, Mr Viliame
Vuiyanuca, Training Coordinator, Ms
Asenaca Kolinivala, HOD Polling, Mr
Paula Navunisaravi.

Live Outside broadcasts

Live outside radio broadcasts was an effective tool for enticing voters to voter awareness
roadshows, FEO open days and the PDW recruitment drive. The live updates from the locations with
interviews from voters and FEO officials was an interactive method of engaging the voter.
The table below outlines the number of live outside broadcast by station.
Station
Fiji Broadcasting
Corporation
Communications
Fiji Limited

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Type of outside broadcast

No. of broadcasts
Polling Day worker, Western and Northern voter
4
awareness roadshow and open days
Polling Day worker, Western and Northern voter
10
awareness roadshows and open days

Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

Newspapers & Magazines

Newspapers and magazines provided an integral component of the voter awareness program. Full
page advertisements, voter awareness schedules, PDW recruitment schedules, training and
payment schedules, pre-poll schedules as well as general voter information advertising were
effectively communicated to voters in the vernacular including Mandarin.
The newspaper agencies also allowed for vital insertions of the Voter Information Guide and the
Voter Instruction Booklet and was an effective means of getting these booklets to the voter.
The table below highlights the types of advertisements that were published in newspapers and
magazines.

Fiji Times
Type of ads

No.
advertisements
Register to Vote, Registration Centres, Close of Voter
164
Registration, Voter Awareness Roadshow/schedules,
Postal Voting, Postal Vote Process, Sample Ballot Paper,
Using the Voter Instruction Booklet, Assisted Voting,
Lost Voter ID cards, Voter ID replacement, Assistance for
Persons with Disabilities, Polling Day Worker schedules,
Pre-poll schedules FEO vacancies

of Total Spend
$461,968.90

Fiji Sun
Type of ads

No.
of Total Spend
advertisements
Register to Vote, Registration Centres, Close of Voter
165
$779,402.26
Registration, Voter Awareness Roadshow/schedules,
Postal Voting, Postal Vote Process, Sample Ballot Paper,
Using the Voter Instruction Booklet, Assisted Voting, Lost
Voter ID cards, Voter ID replacement, Assistance for
Persons with Disabilities, Polling Day Worker schedules,
Pre-poll schedules FEO vacancies

Magazine
Media agency
Turaga Magazine

Type of advertisements
Postal Voting

Mai Life Magazine

Seven Steps of Voting

Islands Business Magazine

How to vote

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Draft 5_Final report by Supervisor of Elections

No. of advertisements
15

Brochures
FEO distributed 983,712 brochures in roadshows, corporate events, community, schools, religious
organizations, business houses and house-to-house voter awareness sessions, inserts in postal
boxes, displays at major retail outlets, major sporting events Battle of the Giants Tournament,
Pacific Nations Cup and national festivals. At these events booklets were placed at each bucket seat
in the grandstand and handed out to spectators on the ground.
Brochures were more specific and mostly addressed a particular aspect of the Election. Brochures
were made for the following topics:
How to Vote?
Postal voting
Voter Registration
Voting options
Allocation of seats
In the weeks closer to the Election, a small take home card was designed and distributed in the
schools for the students to take home.
Social Media
Social media provided an interactive medium for the FEO and voters. The FEO ensured constant
Facebook and Twitter updates for the more technologically savvy. The high volume of web queries
that were answered twice daily ensured that the voter had other mediums for voter information
and clarification.
Below is a table showing FEOs interaction on social media:
Facebook
24,514 likes

Twitter
926 followers

Web queries
2372

FEO also operated an up to date website which provided detailed information on its activities. The
Website was of particular significance during the last few days before the Postal Vote application
deadline when it was flooded with queries and numerous downloads of the Application form.
All FEO Tenders and EOIs were uploaded to the website. The Website also contained all the FEO
forms that were required by Parties, Candidates, Prospective staff and general information seekers.
All FEO vacancies were advertised on the Website and updates regarding vacancies were uploaded
for those who had applied.
Voter awareness materials were also uploaded to the website. This increased the accessibility of
information for those voters who are technologically savvy.
The website also contained a detailed log of all press releases issued by the FEO and all of them are
available for download and reference. FEO also uploaded the results of the Election on the Website
for download.
www.electionsfiji.org
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Civil Society Organization Accreditation under section 115 of the Decree

The Decree mandated all CSOs to seek approval from the FEO for voter awareness and education
programs that they wished to conduct.
The Electoral Commission and the FEO, having received the application would inspect the proposed
Voter Awareness Program to check for consistency with the Decree and also checked for accuracy
with the electoral information and procedures developed by the FEO to conduct the election. The
FEO ensured that if any matter of inconsistency or inaccuracy was discovered, the relevant
organization was promptly contacted to remedy the error before approval was given.
The information below highlights the number of applications that were received, approved and or
rejected by the FEO.
Applications
received
17

Applications Applications rejected

approved
12
5

FEO did not approve three (3) applications from organizations not registered in Fiji as the FEO
required the organization to be first registered in Fiji and/or alternatively show permission to
operate in Fiji. However, the organizations did not fulfil this requirement which lead to a refusal of
their application.
One application was made after the organization had already carried out the activity which was
found to have breached section 115 and consequently, their application was not approved by the
Electoral Commission. In another application, a group of Civil Society Organizations sought
permission under section 115 to operate a Local Observer Group. This application was beyond the
ambits of section 115 and was therefore rejected. The Civil Society Organizations were informed to
make the application in accordance with the Decree.

National Media Center

A National Media Center was established for the 2014 General Election at the FMF Gymnasium. The
center was shared with the Results Management Information System and included an office for the
Electoral Commission.
The center catered for 300 local and overseas media. A large LED screen was erected which
displayed the polling results and provided an interactive platform for the media. The FEO press
conferences and major announcements were also held at the center which acted as a media
headquarters for all journalists during the election.
The FEO provided free 4G speed wifi and coffee and tea facilities for journalists in an open plan type
set up with sufficient space for press conferences and work stations.
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Public Relations Unit

The Public Relations Unit [PR Unit] was responsible for FEOs press releases, press conferences,
media training, queries and analysis and media liaison.
The unit conducted training for local media on the FEOs road to elections plan, tenets of the Decree
pertaining to media reporting on Election Day and the allocation of seats in Parliament. An
interactive question and answer session with the Supervisor of Elections during the training
allowed journalists the opportunity to clarify issues relating to reporting on Election Day as well as
understand the DHondt formula that was applied in the allocation of seats in Parliament.
Closer to elections, the PR unit in collaboration with the Media Industry Development Authority
(MIDA) conducted briefings for senior reporters and editors of all local media. These briefings
enabled the FEO and MIDA to setup guidelines in compliance with the Decree. Overseas media were
invited to the editors briefing towards elections.
The unit conducted vital media reporting analysis for the FEO at the start of pre polling, which
allowed the Communications Division to target and address media with regards to balanced and
well informed reporting.
The PR Unit organized 47 press conferences and issued 42 press releases from April to September,
2014.

National Candidates List Draw

Pursuant to section 36 of the Decree, a draw for the National Candidates List was conducted on 23
August 2014 at the Fijian Elections Office. Two machines (one as back-up) were specially designed
and built for this purpose. The draw was broadcast live on television. 248 (number of candidates
whose nominations were accepted) white table tennis balls were numbered from 135 to 382.
On the day of the draw, after verification by political parties, nominated candidates, international
observers and members of the public the balls were placed inside the machine used for the draw.
The Supervisor of Elections demonstrated how the machine was to be rotated and then invited
members of the public present to have a turn at rotating the machine.
A blindfolded person was led into the room where the draw was being held, seated beside the
machine and he drew a numbered ball from the candidates one by one from the cylinder. The
Supervisor would then call out the number for the candidate. The entire process was repeated until
numbers had been allocated to every candidate.
The National Candidates List contained the candidate number, name of the candidate and the
photograph of the candidate. National Candidates List was prepared and published in the Gazette
and in all daily newspapers the following day, as well as broadcast on radio and free-to-air
television. Copies of the National Candidates List were provided to the Electoral Commission,
registered political parties, nominated independent and party candidates and a copy displayed at
the Fijian Elections Office for public viewing.
The Voter Instruction Booklet was prepared containing the National Candidates List. This booklet
was widely distributed by the FEO and was also provided to every voter as they entered the Polling
Station.

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Conclusion
The 2014 General Election preparations proper began in April 2014. The FEO ensured that it
adhered to the 2013 Constitution and the Decree to deliver the Election. At all times, the FEO was
committed to honesty, integrity and transparency in its transactions. As an independent body, the
FEO stressed professionalism and the highest standards of conduct and practice.
There have been various matters that the FEO has found in its internal assessment and through
feedback from voters, parties and other institutions which the FEO will address in its planning for
the next Election.
The continuation of the FEO from this election to the next is a solid step towards developing sound
electoral capacity in Fiji and will greatly benefit Fiji and the Pacific in years to come.
The FEO looks forward to a challenging yet rewarding future.

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