Protection of critical infrastructure (facilities) in the process of organizing elections in Poland

Abstract

This paper analyses the concept of critical infrastructure (CI) in the context of electoral process organization. I will determine whether the seats of circuit electoral commissions (CECs) meet the relevant criteria. How can such facilities be effectively protected? What does international, European, and national law prescribe in this regard? I will examine doctrine and the provisions of the current legal system, including the documents of the National Electoral Commission (NEC). I adopt the statutory1 assumption whereby critical infrastructure should be understood as systems and their functionally interdependent facilities, including buildings, equipment, installations and services that are essential to the security of the state and its citizens, serving to ensure the proper functioning of public administration bodies, institutions and entrepreneurs. Critical infrastructure is comprised of systems which, for example, ensure the continuity of public administration.