Access to Justice and Electoral Integrity
I. Rule of law and access to
justice as cornerstones
of electoral integrity
Introduction
The challenges of preventing rigged elections, guaranteeing a level
playing field during electoral competitions and correcting flaws in vote
tabulation to ensure truly representative electoral processes are some of
the main concerns by academics and practitioners who study democracy
through elections.2 Less attention has been given to an essential democratic condition: the availability of mechanisms to uphold the rule of law
and to promote and protect human rights linked to political participation
and representation. Broad public access to justice at the local, national,
regional and international levels must be available against violations to
those rights, along with the corresponding reparation and remedies.3
Political rights are human rights;4 thus, the connection between the
rule of law and electoral integrity is self-evident. For instance, regarding
national action for elections with integrity, the Global Commission on
Elections, Democracy and Security noted that:
“The effort to protect and promote the integrity of elections has to be an ongoing commitment. Legal frameworks
need to be reviewed to ensure that: there is a genuine
opportunity for political contestants to compete fairly;
effective remedies can be applied by administrative bodies
and the courts; political competitors can turn to legal
redress, rather than violence or other extra-legal measures;
and citizens have confidence that they can overcome any
3