Arusha, Tanzania Website: www.african-court.org Telephone: +255-272-510-510 JUDGMENT SUMMARY The Court noted that the Applicants’ allegations revolving around the composition of the Electoral Commission, as at the time of the filing of the Application, were governed by both the Respondent State’s Constitution and the National Elections Act. The Court observed that the Applicants never approached any domestic courts for the determination of their grievances, and thus held that the Applicants failed to exhaust domestic remedies in respect of their claims relating to Article 74(1) of the Respondent State’s Constitution. The Court, therefore, held that the claim was inadmissible for failing to exhaust local remedies. Secondly, the Court considered the issue of exhaustion of local remedies in relation to the allegation that the manner in which article 74(3) of the Respondent State’s Constitution delineates those that are eligible to serve in the Electoral Commission contravenes the Applicants’ rights under Articles 1, 3, 13(1) of the Charter, Article 21 of the UDHR and Article 25 of the ICCPR. On this claim, the Court observed that the Applicants failed to demonstrate that they attempted to exhaust domestic remedies and held that the claim was inadmissible for failure to exhaust local remedies. Thirdly, the Court considered whether the Applicants exhausted domestic remedies in relation to the removal of the members of the Electoral Commission. On this claim, the Applicants contended that article 74(5) of the Respondent State’s Constitution compromises the independence of the Electoral Commission by giving the President the power to remove a member of the Electoral Commission from office on grounds that are subjective and unclear. On this issue, the Court also noted that the Applicants did not provide any evidence to show that they exhausted domestic remedies, and held that the Application did not meet the requirements on exhaustion of local remedies in respect of this claim. Fourthly, the Court considered whether the Application met the requirements on exhaustion of local remedies in respect of the allegations relating to the power of the courts to inquire into the actions of the Electoral Commission. The Applicants argued that article 74(12) of the Respondent State’s constitution and article 119(13) of the Constitution of Zanzibar violate 5