An agent is an individual who has powers from another person to act on their behalf.
An attorney-in-fact is a person who has powers from another individual to act on his or her behalf . The agent, therefore, represents the other person and acts on their behalf .
For example: “The issue is in the hands of my agent,” “The soccer player's agent stated that the matter will only be resolved at the end of the championship,” “Gómez accused his agent of scamming him and keeping his money.”
Legal representative
For law , the empowerment process takes place through the document known as a power of attorney . This is a unilateral manifestation of the subject who grants it and must be authenticated before a notary. In this way, the individual authorizes his agent to make agreements on his behalf.
The limits and scope of the agent's task depend on what is established by the power of attorney. This prevents the agent from exceeding his or her duties and acting in a way that is not endorsed by the agent. It should be noted that the represented party is responsible for the actions of his or her agent.
The figure of the agent is common among artists and athletes, who delegate power to another person for the negotiation of contracts or the management of commercial operations. The notion of attorney, in this case, is used as a synonym for representative or agent .
A poll representative represents a political party or a candidate in an electoral event.
The figure in an electoral act
In an election process, the electoral representative is the one who represents the interests of a list of candidates and who is in charge of representing the candidacy in electoral events and operations. This is a person who can make complaints about the scrutiny.
In Spain , the person who represents a political party or an independent candidacy is known as a poll representative ; It enjoys the right to speak, although without voting , and must attend certain electoral events , such as the Vote Receiving Tables (an electoral body that receives the votes cast during an electoral or plebiscite process, and carries out the counting, among others). functions) to observe them.
There are two fundamental requirements to become a poll representative, which are the following: being a citizen who has the right to vote and not having received any conviction for any of the crimes sanctioned by the laws that govern the Public Electoral System.
On the other hand, the following people cannot be appointed as table representatives, regardless of whether they meet the two points just stated: governors and regional councilors, mayors, undersecretaries, ministers of state , mayors, senior heads of service, legal and police judges. local, magistrates of the Superior Courts, regional ministerial secretaries, comptrollers general of the Republic, members of Public Order and the Armed Forces, blind, illiterate and foreigners.
Power to become a table representative
Depending on the case, the power can be granted by:
- A general representative, both titular and alternate, who is located at the site where the electoral event is held. This is valid for representatives of the electoral office and polling stations;
- An electoral manager, who must proceed with the authorization in the presence of a notary. These are the requirements for the designation of a general power of attorney, holder or substitute, and for powers before scrutineering colleges, election qualification tribunals, regional electoral courts and electoral boards.
Finally, the appointment must indicate a series of very specific data for the power to be considered valid; These are: the full name, the national document number of the person designated as representative, the name of the party or candidate whom he or she must represent, and the information of the polling station, the premises, the board, the electoral office, the court or the college with which it is accredited. It is worth mentioning that it is not possible to omit any of the mentioned data.