Pakistan’s election law allows the ECP to delegate its full powers and functions to any of its officers.
During elections, most citizens deal not with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) itself but with District Election Commissioner, Returning Officers (RO), District Returning Officers (DRO), and other election officials posted in their areas. Those officials may not merely be acting in a support capacity. They may be exercising the Commission’s own statutory powers as provided under the Elections Act 2017.
What does the law say?
Section 6(1) of the Elections Act 2017 authorises the Commission to delegate to the Commissioner (Chief Election Commissioner), any of its members, or any of its officers the power to exercise and perform any of the Commission’s powers and functions under the Act. There is no restriction on which powers may be delegated. The Commission determines the scope of each delegation.
Why does this matter?
This provision has direct, practical implications for citizens interacting with election officials. If a Returning Officer in your constituency makes a ruling on a nomination, rejects a complaint, or takes an administrative decision during an election, that officer may be acting under formally delegated ECP authority. Their decision carries the same legal weight as a decision of the Commission.
This means two things. A local election official’s ruling cannot simply be dismissed as a bureaucratic technicality that a higher body will automatically overturn. And when challenging such a decision, it matters to understand what authority the official was exercising and under what terms. Voters and candidates may ask their Returning Officer at the outset of any election process what powers the Commission has delegated to that office.
Source: Elections Act 2017, Section 6(1)
This post is part of FAFEN’s series on electoral literacy. Read more of this series here
