Election Investigations Guidebook tion process. For example, while there are no strict legal requirements for the timeline of an investigation, the Australian Electoral Commission’s objective is to resolve complaints within 10 working days.103 Because the resolution of electoral disputes requires prompt decisions and actions, the procedures and timelines should differ in speed and complexity from those provided for general civil disputes or criminal cases.104 While the resolution of most election disputes and complaints requires a compressed timetable,105 reconciling the seriousness of election-related grievances and the pressure for investigative bodies to act quickly is difficult in practice. Abbreviated timelines may undermine the investigative process. For instance, South Africa’s Electoral Court, in Mvelase v. Electoral Commission, found that “[in] the best of times…investigation cannot be completed within the narrow limit of three days” prescribed for the Independent Election Commission.106 In Kenya, the Supreme Court has noted that additional time is needed for presidential election petitions in case certain verification exercises—such as a vote recount or scrutiny process—are required. This challenge leads to questioning the purpose of such deadlines if they cannot be reasonably followed. The requirement for prompt resolution is a significant challenge because it involves critical consideration of the efficiency of the investigation and the complicated relationships between investigative, electoral administration, and dispute resolution bodies. States should establish reasonable deadlines and timetables for investigations within the electoral legal framework.107 A reasonable timeframe for an investigative process in an election case depends, among other things, on the circumstances of the case, the conduct of parties and authorities, and the interests at stake. These interests may include recovery and preservation of evidence and witness statements and the timetables prescribed by election 103 Australian Election Complaints Management Policy, supra note 8 (“We aim to provide a response to all complaints within ten working days, unless we have informed the complainant it will take longer.”). 104 Denis Petit, OSCE Office of Democratic Insts. & Human Rights, Resolving Election Disputes in the OSCE Area: Towards a Standard Election Dispute Monitoring System 11 (2000), http://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/17567. 105 Robert Dahl, Electoral Complaint Adjudication and Dispute Resolution: Key Issues and Guiding Principles, Remarks at the 2008 General Assembly of the Association of Asian Election Authorities (July 22, 2008) 106 Myelase and Another v. Electoral Commission and Others 2009 (1) ZAEC 2 (S. Afr.) (The regulatory framework requires the Independent Election Commission to consider and decide upon election objections within three days of receipt. The commission must either (i) reject the objection; (ii) amend the declared result of the election; or (ii) rescind the declared result of the election.); see Electoral Commission Act 51 of 1996 § 65(4) (S. Afr.). 107 52 Griffith & Carr, supra note 96, at 379.