Anti-Defection Provisions in Selected Countries

1. Bangladesh

Article 70 of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh:^[1]

“A person elected as a member of Parliament at an election at which he was nominated as a candidate by a political party shall vacate his seat if he –

(a) resigns from that party ; or

(b) votes in Parliament against that party ;

but shall not thereby be disqualified for subsequent election as a member of Parliament.”

2. Belize

Article 59(2)(e) of the Belize Constitution Act:^[2]

“A member of the House of Representatives shall also vacate his seat in the House

…

(e) if, having been a candidate of a political party and elected to the House of Representatives as a candidate of that political party, he resigns from that political party or crosses the floor.”

3. Fiji

Article 63(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of Fiji:^[3]

“The seat of a member of Parliament becomes vacant if the member—

…

(g) resigns from the political party for which he or she was a candidate at the time he or she was elected to Parliament;

(h) votes or abstains from voting in Parliament contrary to any direction issued by the political party for which he or she was a candidate at the time he or she was elected to Parliament, without obtaining the prior permission of the political party; or

(i) is expelled from the political party for which he or she was a candidate at the time he or she was elected to Parliament and—

(i) the expulsion was in accordance with the rules of the political party relating to party discipline; and

(ii) the expulsion did not relate to any action taken by the member in his or her capacity as a member of a committee of Parliament.”

4. India

Item 2 in the Tenth Schedule to the Constitution of India:^[4]

“… a member of a House belonging to any political party shall be disqualified for being a member of the House—

(a) if he has voluntarily given up his membership of such political party; or

(b) if he votes or abstains from voting in such House contrary to any direction issued by the political party to which he belongs or by any person or authority authorised by it in this behalf, without obtaining, in either case, the prior permission of such political party, person or authority and such voting or abstention has not been condoned by such political party, person or authority within fifteen days from the date of such voting or abstention.”

5. Malawi

Article 65(1) of Malawi’s Constitution:^[5]

“The Speaker shall declare vacant the seat of any member of the National Assembly who was, at the time of his or her election, a member of one political party represented in the National Assembly, other than by that member alone but who has voluntarily ceased to be a member of that party or has joined another political party represented in the National Assembly, or association or organization whose objectives or activities are political in nature.”

6. Namibia

Article 48(1)(b) of the Namibian Constitution:^[6]

“Members of the National Assembly shall vacate their seats:

…

(b) if the political party which nominated them to sit in the National Assembly informs the Speaker that such members are no longer members of such political party”

7. Nepal

Article 89(e) of the Constitution of Nepal:^[7]

“The seat of a member of the Federal Parliament shall become vacant in any of the following circumstances:

…

(e) if the political party of which he or she was a member when elected provides a notification in accordance with the Federal law that he or she has defected from the party.”

8. New Zealand

Section 55A of the Electoral Act 1993:

“55A Member of Parliament ceasing to be parliamentary member of political party

(1) This section applies to every member of Parliament, except a member elected as an independent.

(2) The seat of a member of Parliament to whom this section applies becomes vacant if the member of Parliament ceases to be a parliamentary member of the political party for which the member of Parliament was elected.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (2), a member of Parliament ceases to be a parliamentary member of the political party for which the member of Parliament was elected only if—

(a) the member of Parliament delivers to the Speaker a written notice that complies with section 55B; or

(b) the parliamentary leader of the political party for which the member of Parliament was elected delivers to the Speaker a written notice that complies with section 55C.

Section 55A: inserted, on 4 October 2018, by section 5 of the Electoral (Integrity) Amendment Act 2018 (2018 No 39).”

9. Nigeria

Article 68(1)(g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria:^[8]

“A member of the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall vacate his seat in the House of which he is a member if –

…

(g) being a person whose election to the House was sponsored by a political party, he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which that House was elected;

Provided that his membership of the latter political party is not as a result of a division in the political party of which he was previously a member or of a merger of two or more political parties or factions by one of which he was previously sponsored.”

Article 109(1)(g) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria:^[9]

“A member of a House of Assembly shall vacate his seat in the House if –

…

(g) being a person whose election to the House of Assembly was sponsored by a political party, he becomes a member of another political party before the expiration of the period for which that House was elected:

10. Pakistan

Article 63A(1) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan:^[10]

“If a member of a Parliamentary Party composed of a single political party in a House –

(a) resigns from membership of his political party or joins another Parliamentary Party;

(b) votes or abstains from voting in the House contrary to any direction issued by the Parliamentary Party to which he belongs, in relation to –

(i) election of the Prime Minister or the Chief Minister;

(ii) a vote of confidence or a vote of no-confidence; or

(iii) a Money Bill or a Constitution (Amendment) Bill;

he may be declared in writing by the Party Head to have defected from the political party … ”

Article 63A(1)(4) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan:^[11]

“Where the Election Commission confirms the declaration, the member referred to in clause (1) shall cease to be a member of the House and his seat shall become vacant”

11. Sierra Leone

Article 77(1)(k) of the Constitution of Sierra Leone:^[12]

“A Member of Parliament shall vacate his seat in Parliament—

…

(k) if he ceases to be a member of the political party of which he was a member at the time of his election to Parliament and he so informs the Speaker, or the Speaker is so informed by the Leader of that political party”

12. Seychelles

Article 81(1)(h) – (j) of Seychelles’s Constitution:^[13]

“A person ceases to be a member of the National Assembly and the seat occupied by that person in the Assembly shall become vacant

…

h. if, in the case of a proportionately elected member-

i. the political party which nominated the person as a member nominates another person as a member in place of the first-mentioned person and notifies the Speaker in writing of the new nomination;

ii. the person ceases to be a member of the political party of which that person was a member at the time of the election; or

iii. the political party which nominated the person as a member is dissolved or otherwise ceases to exist;

i. if, in the case of a directly elected member who was nominated for election by a political party

i. the person notifies the Speaker in writing that the person has ceased to be a member of that political party; or

ii. the political party which nominated the person for election notifies the Speaker in writing that the person has ceased to be a member of the political party and the Electoral Commission has received a written petition requesting the holding of fresh election for the purpose of electing a new member to represent the electoral area which the member represents signed or marked to the satisfaction of the Commission by at least one third of the number of registered voters who are entitled to vote in the electoral area;

j. If, in the case of a person who was directly elected as an independent member, the person notifies the Speaker in writing that he is a member of a political party.”

13. Singapore

Article 46(2)(b) Constitution of the Republic of Singapore:

“The seat of a Member of Parliament shall become vacant —

…

(b) if he ceases to be a member of, or is expelled or resigns from, the political party for which he stood in the election.”

14. Ukraine

Article 81(6) of the Constitution of Ukraine:^[14]

“The authority of a People’s Deputy of Ukraine terminates prior to the expiration of the term in the event of:

…

6) his or her failure, as having been elected from a political party (an electoral bloc of political parties), to join the parliamentary faction representing the same political party (the same electoral bloc of political parties) or his or her exit from such a faction.”

15. Zimbabwe

Article 129(1)(k) of Zimbabwe’s Constitution:^[15]

“The seat of a Member of Parliament becomes vacant.

…

k. if the Member has ceased to belong to the political party of which he or she was a member when elected to Parliament and the political party concerned, by written notice to the Speaker or the President of the Senate, as the case may be, has declared that the Member has ceased to belong to it.”

^[1] http://bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd/act-367/section-24624.html

^[2] https://web.oas.org/mla/en/Countries_Intro/Cap%204%20Belize%20Constitution%20Act.pdf

^[3] https://www.laws.gov.fj/ResourceFile/Get/?fileName=2013%20Constitution%20of%20Fiji%20(English).pdf

^[4] https://www.mea.gov.in/Images/pdf1/S10.pdf

^[5] https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Malawi_2017.pdf?lang=en

^[6] https://www.lac.org.na/laws/annoSTAT/Namibian%20Constitution.pdf

^[7] https://www.lawcommission.gov.np/en/archives/category/documents/prevailing-law/constitution/constitution-of-nepal

^[8] http://www.nigeria-law.org/ConstitutionOfTheFederalRepublicOfNigeria.htm#QualificationForMembershipOfNatAss

^[9] http://www.nigeria-law.org/ConstitutionOfTheFederalRepublicOfNigeria.htm#QualificationForMembership_of_HouseAss

^[10] https://na.gov.pk/uploads/documents/1333523681_951.pdf

^[11] Ibid.

^[12] https://www.wipo.int/edocs/lexdocs/laws/en/sl/sl003en.pdf