From 1965 to 1986, elections were conducted by the Office of the President under the direction of Permanent Secretary to the President. The Supervisor of Elections conducted elections from 1987 to 1997. Following a decision reached by Government and the All Party Conference a national referendum was held in 1997 which resulted in the amendment of the Constitution to accommodate the establishment of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC). The IEC was established by Section 65A of the Constitution of Botswana in 1997.

Establishment and Composition
The Commission comprises seven (7) members headed by a Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson. As stipulated in Section 65A, the Chairperson of the Commission shall be a Judge of the High Court while the Deputy Chairperson shall be a Legal Practitioner. The two are appointed directly by the Judicial Service Commission. The Judicial Service Commission also appoints five other members from a list of persons recommended by the All-Party Conference.n

Responsibilities/Mandate of the Commission
The responsibilities of the Commission are outlined in Section 65A of the Constitution as follows:

* To conduct and supervise elections of members of the National Assembly and Local Authorities;
* To conduct referenda;
* To ensure that elections are conducted efficiently, properly, freely and fairly;
* To give instructions and directions to the Secretary of the Commission with regard to their responsibilities under the Constitution and Electoral Laws generally;
* To perform such other functions as may be prescribed by an Act of Parliament.

http://www.iec.gov.bw/