Municipal elections 19 march 2023 : Information for future candidates

©Direction de la Communication - Michael Alesi

Given the importance and complexity of the role that financial agents are asked to play under amended Act No. 1.389 of 2 July 2012, it would seem useful, at this point, to issue some recommendations aimed at future candidates standing at the next Municipal Council election on the appointment of agents and the initial measures that they will be required to take.

a) Appointment of a financial agent

In accordance with the provisions of Chapter III of the amended Act of 2 July 2012 each candidate must appoint a financial agent, who must be declared when the candidate submits their nomination papers.

The Act (Article 9) requires that the financial agent be declared and that his or her identity be specified when the nomination papers are submitted. It is, however, highly desirable for candidates to appoint their financial agent no later than the beginning of the preliminary campaign, i.e. 20 October 2022.

While there is no specific required format for the declaration, it must:

• be made in writing;
• include all the information necessary to identify the financial agent.

In addition, a copy of the appointment declaration should be sent or submitted without delay to the General Secretariat of the Electoral Campaign Audit Committee (General Secretariat of the Board of Auditors, 2a Boulevard des Moulins, 98000 Monaco. Telephone number: 98.98.83.66/98.98.92.26 – email address: jveglia@gouv.mc/vvarinot@gouv.mc ).

b) Selection of a financial agent

Amended Act No. 1.389 of 2 July 2012 gives candidates broad freedom in selecting their financial agent.

The following recommendations are not therefore binding in any way, but simply intended to ensure that the procedures established by the Act are carried out properly, and as consistently and conveniently as possible.

The campaign accounts for municipal elections pertain to the candidates or lists involved. In the case of agents for lists, each must group and justify all expenditure by all candidates on the list, as well as all of the list’s electoral income. The fewer financial agents there are, the easier it will be to manage this complex process. It would be desirable if, wherever possible, candidates on the same list could agree to select the same name, which will normally be the agent who will present the list accounts to the Electoral Campaign Audit Committee.

c) Primary obligations of financial agents

The role and responsibilities of financial agents are established by law. It will therefore be sufficient to emphasise here that, following their appointment, agents must (Article 11) immediately open a campaign bank account in the candidate’s name.

The provisions of Act No. 1.453 of 16 October 2017, which amended Act No. 1.389 of 2 July 2012 on electoral campaign financing, stipulated that the preliminary campaign period begins on the 150^th day before the polling date, i.e. 20 October 2022. Expenditure incurred and income received from this date onwards should therefore be considered as electoral expenditure and income and be included in the campaign accounts.

Finally, appointed agents and the candidates themselves are advised to make contact with the General Secretariat of the Committee, so that the latter can explain to them, as soon as possible, the conditions for drawing up and producing the campaign accounts and the appendices and supporting documents that should accompany them (see contact details above).

Further information may be obtained from the Secretariat of the Electoral Campaign Audit Committee via the contact details listed above.