Election Commission of Malaysia - Constitutional Mandate

Constitutional Mandate

Under Article 114, the Commission is empowered to "conduct elections to the House of Representatives (Dewan Rakyat, the lower house of Parliament) and the Legislative Assemblies of the States". Under the Constitution of the independent Federation of Malaya, the Commission comprised one Chairman and two members, but after Malaya merged with Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore to form Malaysia, the Commission's membership was expanded by constitutional amendment to provide for an additional member from Sabah or Sarawak. A 1981 amendment to the Constitution added another member and created the post of Deputy Chairman.

The Commission has the power to delimit constituencies, revise the electoral roll of registered voters, and regulate the manner in which elections are conducted. Although the Constitution does not refer to the Commission as being a body independent from influence by the government or otherwise, constitutional scholars have generally considered the Constitution as intending to protect the independence of the Commission. Among other things, commissioners are protected by tenure, and may only be removed through the same procedure as a judge of the Supreme Court. The terms of remuneration of a commissioner cannot be altered to his disadvantage after he has been appointed.

Members of the Commission are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King), who must consult with the Conference of Rulers and appoint a Commission which has the confidence of the public. Although the Constitution does not expressly require consultation with the Prime Minister in this regard, it has been argued that under Article 40 of the Constitution, the King cannot act on his own discretion unless explicitly stated; in all other cases, he must acquiesce to the advice of the Prime Minister, and as such the appointments to the Commission are made with the advice of the Prime Minister. Members of the Commission retire at the age of 65.