First Schedule Constitution of Botswana 1966
ELECTION OF SPECIALLY ELECTED MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
1. 1. In this Schedule—
• “by-election” means an election to fill a vacancy among the Specially
Elected Members occurring otherwise than upon a dissolution of
Parliament;
• “general election” means an election to fill the vacancies among the
Specially Elected Members occurring upon a dissolution of Parliament;
• “the Speaker” means the Speaker of the National Assembly; and
• “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under paragraph 2 of this
Schedule.
1.2. At any time when the office of Speaker is vacant or the holder of that office is
unable by reason of absence or illness to exercise the functions vested in him or
her by this Schedule those functions may be exercised by the Deputy Speaker of
the National Assembly or, if there is no Deputy Speaker or the Deputy Speaker is unable by reason of absence or illness to exercise those functions, by such Member of the Assembly (not being the President or Vice-President or a Minister or Assistant Minister) as the Assembly may elect for that purpose.
2. Subject to the provisions of this Schedule the National Assembly may make rules
for the election of its Specially Elected Members.
3. Elections of Specially Elected Members shall be conducted by the Speaker and,
subject to the provisions of this Schedule and of any rules made under paragraph
2 thereof, shall be conducted in such manner as he or she may direct.
4.1. The President shall nominate six candidates for election in the case of a general
election and he or she shall nominate one candidate for election in the case of a
by-election.
4.2 The names of the six candidates or, as the case may be, the name of the one
candidate nominated for election by the President under the foregoing subparagraph shall be presented to the National Assembly in such manner as may be prescribed, and any Elected Member of the Assembly (other than the President if he is an Elected Member) shall thereupon be entitled to nominate six candidates for election in the case of a general election and one candidate for election in the case of a by-election.
4.3 A list of the candidates nominated for election by the President and the Elected
Members of the National Assembly under the foregoing provisions of this
paragraph shall be prepared, and each Elected Member of the Assembly shall be
entitled to vote—
a. in the case of a general election, for six candidates; and
b. in the case of a by-election, for one candidate,
on the list so constituted.
4.4 The vote of every Elected Member of the National Assembly shall be given by
ballot in such a manner as not to disclose how he or she has voted.
4.5 An Elected Member of the National Assembly shall not cast more than one vote
for any one candidate.
5.1. The Speaker shall cause elections of Specially Elected Members to be held—
a. in the case of a general election, as soon as practicable after the holding of a
general election of the Elected Members of the National Assembly and
before the Assembly first meets after that general election; and
b. in the case of a by-election, as soon as practicable after a vacancy has
occurred among the Specially Elected Members.
5.2 A meeting of the Elected Members of the National Assembly that is held for the
purpose of a general election shall be summoned by the Speaker.
5.3 No other business than the holding of a general election may be transacted at
any meeting of the Elected Members of the National Assembly summoned under subparagraph (2) of this paragraph and such a meeting shall not be regarded as a meeting of the Assembly for the purposes of any other provision of this Constitution.
6. When the votes have been cast, whether at a general election or at a by-election, a list shall be prepared showing the persons for whom votes have been cast in order according to the number of votes received by each of them, the person or persons who received the highest number of votes being placed first and those who received any lower number of votes being placed in descending order.
7. In the case of a general election, and subject to the provisions of paragraph 9 of
this Schedule, those persons shall be deemed to have been elected as Specially Elected Members who stand in the first and each succeeding place on the list
until the number of persons to be elected as Specially Elected Members has been completed.
8. In the case of a by-election, and subject to the provisions of paragraph 10 of this
Schedule, the person who stands in the first place on the list shall be deemed to
have been elected.
9. Where, by reason of an equality of votes between them, the number of candidates in any place on the list who would otherwise be deemed to have been elected under paragraph 7 of this Schedule exceeds the number of persons remaining to be elected as Specially Elected Members after the persons in the preceding places have been elected, none of the candidates in that place or in any succeeding place shall be deemed to have been elected and a further election shall be held to fill the vacancies still remaining among the Specially Elected Members; and the provisions of this Schedule shall apply in relation to that further election as if it were a general election where the total number of Specially Elected Members was equal to the number of vacancies still remaining to be filled.
10. Where, in a by-election, two or more candidates equally receive the highest
number of votes, no candidates shall be deemed to have been elected and a further by-election shall be held, in accordance with the provisions of this Schedule, at which only those candidates who received the highest number of votes in the original by-election may again stand as candidates.
See also:
Second Schedule Botswana Constitution 1966
