Does every Vietnamese citizen have the right to vote in Vietnam?

Hoàng Phan

Local Election (local legislature in provinces / cities)

People's Council (Hội đồng Nhân dân) is the local legislature of provinces and municipalities of Vietnam, responsible for passing resolutions (formal orders from superior organs of the state) and acting on behalf of the constitution. The council is also charged with forming plans for their area’s socio-economic development, setting the budget, and providing defense and security at the local level.

° People’s Councils of the centrally-administered cities and provinces

° People’s Councils of districts

° People’s Councils of the provincial-level cities/towns

° People’s Councils of communes, wards and towns

People in the provinces or municipalities elect a People's Council via a direct system. The number of councilors of People's Council depends on the population of that province or municipality. The People's Council is elected for a five-year term. The Chairman of People's Council is elected from the councilors.

The People's Council elects a People's Committee (Ủy ban Nhân dân) as the executive body, thus an indirect system. The People's Committee consists of a Chairman and a number of commissioners.

° Provincial level: consisting of services, subcommittees, other organs administered by the People’s Committees and the People’s Committee offices

° District level: consisting of departments, sections, other organs administered by the People’s Committees and the People’s Committee offices

° Communal level: sections and the offices.

The Judge of the People's Court (Tòa án Nhân dân) of each province or municipality is appointed by the Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Court of Vietnam.

National Assembly (Vietnam’s legislative body)

All citizens have the right to stand for election

° Candidate lists are presented by the Viet Nam Fatherland Front*

° At least 18 percent of candidates must be from ethnic minorities and at least 35 percent of candidates must be women.

° Each voter has the right to cast a ballot for one National Assembly deputy and three People’s Council members at three local levels, province/city, district and commune/ward.

*Fatherland Front is an umbrella group of mass movements (currently include members from Disabled Peoples Organisations, Women’s Union, Farmer’s Union…) aligned with the Communist Party of Vietnam and is described by the Vietnamese government as "the political base of people's power."

Because the Front's power base is mass participation and popular mobilisation, it is seen as representative of the people, and both Vietnam's constitution and laws give it a special role. The Front has a particularly significant role in elections. Specifically, endorsement by the Front is generally required (in practice, if not in theory) to be a candidate for election. Almost all candidates are nominated by (and members of) the Front, with only a few "self-nominated" candidates avoiding the Front's veto. But more importantly, the Front is supposed to supervise the activity of the government and of government organizations.

The Front is intended to have a significant role in society, promoting "national solidarity" and "unity of mind in political and spiritual matters." Many of the government's social programs are conducted through the Front. Recently, it has been given a role in programs to reduce poverty. The Front is also responsible for much of the government's policy on religion, and has the ability to determine which religious groups will receive official approval.

The members of the National Assembly were elected from 184 multi-member constituencies using the two-round system, with a maximum number of 500 candidates to be elected; candidates had to receive at least 50% of the vote in the first round to be elected, with a second round held on a plurality basis.

The National Assembly decides the fundamental domestic and foreign policies, the socio-economic tasks, national defense and security issues, the major principles governing the State machinery, the social relations and activities of citizens. The National Assembly exercises the right to supreme supervision of all activities of the State.

The National Assembly has the highest authority to make Constitution and Laws. Legal documents promulgated by the National Assembly are the Constitution, codes, laws and resolutions.

National Election

The President of Vietnam (Chủ tịch nước) is elected by the National Assembly, thus an indirect system. The Prime Minister of Vietnam (Thủ tướng) and Chief Justice (Chánh án Tối cao) of Vietnam are appointed by the President and approved by the National Assembly. The Ministers are then appointed by the Prime Minister and also approved by the National Assembly.