The electoral law exclusively covers the following elections: • • • • • • referendum ; election of the President of the Republic ; election of Members of the National Assembly ; election of member of the Department Council and the commune ; election of Senators. In article 4 of this law, it is stated that «suffrage is universal, free, equal and secret. It may be, according to provisions of this law, direct or indirect». To avoid fraud, article 7 stipulates that : « Electoral rolls shall be drawn up by the authorities of each administrative constituency or each diplomatic mission abroad. These rolls shall be permanent and shall be revised every year. However, by a Ministry of the Interior decree, extraordinary revisions of the voters lists can be carried out. ». It is incumbent on the National Electoral Commission to organise elections. This formula is strongly contested by the opposition parties which are clamouring for an Independent Electoral Commission whereas article 18 of the electoral stipulates that : « The National Electoral Commission consists of representatives of the State, political parties, and civil society». In the same vein, article 12 stipulates as follows : « A local electoral commission shall be established in each administrative constituency. The local commissions shall comprise of representatives of the State, political parties and civil society. ». In line with the provisions of article 19 of the 20 January, 2002 Constitution enshrining the freedom of expression, the electoral law stipulates as follows : « During elections, candidates shall have access to the radio and television for the purposes of propaganda. ». The number of seats at the National Assembly are limited to 137. As regards the eligibility criteria, provisions have been made for all stakeholders Article 55 of the electoral law, stipulates: « For legislative elections, candidates shall be: * Congolese nationals; * at least twenty-five years old ; * reside in the national territory at the time of presentation of electoral lists, excepting diplomatic or consular staff, persons sent on missions abroad by the State and international civil servants; * entitled to their full civil and political rights; *free from any crimes or criminal offences 19