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Lisa F. Young/Adobe Stock
29
mai
2024

Political participation of people with disabilities – new developments

Ahead of the EU elections, this report explores the political participation of people with disabilities. Although some Member States removed restrictions on the right to vote and to stand for elections, barriers still exist. This report is an update of new developments following FRA’s last report published in 2014. It sets out ways forward to ensure people with disabilities have equal opportunities, in line with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

This chapter explores opportunities for people with disabilities to participate politically. It uses data from selected human rights indicators on voter registration, alternative ways of voting, how people in long-term institutions vote, the duty to provide assistance during elections and how many people with disabilities are members of national or local parliaments.

A requirement to register to vote can hinder the political participation of people with disabilities if voting registration procedures are inaccessible. Burdens associated with inaccessible registration could also be seen as discrimination on the grounds of disability if a reasonable accommodation is not provided. The CRPD Committee classifies denial of reasonable accommodation as a form of discrimination (General comment No 6 (2018) on equality and non-discrimination, paragraphs 3, 17, 18 and 27).

Currently, 14 Member States have automatic registration of voters (Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia), compared with 15 in 2014. Austria, Croatia, Czechia, Finland, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Portugal, Romania and Sweden require voter registration for non-nationals. Ireland, Spain, Cyprus and Finland require registration for all voters. Since 2014, Spain has moved from automatic registration to requiring all voters to register to vote. Belgium, Greece, Italy and Malta now have automatic registration for all voters, whereas previously non-nationals had to register to vote. Czechia, Finland, Lithuania, Romania and Sweden now require registration of non-nationals, whereas before this was done automatically.

People with disabilities should be able to vote like anyone else who has the right to vote. Alternative ways of voting ease the difficulties that people with disabilities face in accessing polling stations, but still Member States have a duty to ensure that the voting process is accessible to everyone (UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, ‘Thematic study by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on participation in political and public life by persons with disabilities’ (2011), paragraph 74).

The CRPD Committee has expressed concern that in Italy people with disabilities cannot vote wherever they choose because legal restrictions are imposed on them (Concluding observations on the initial report of Italy (2016), paragraph 73). The committee was particularly critical of regulations in Malta and Portugal that require a medical document attesting that persons with disabilities have capacity to vote (Concluding observations on the initial report of Malta (2018), paragraph 41; Concluding observations on the initial report of Portugal (2016), paragraphs 55-56).

As in 2014, 13 Member States provide disability-specific alternative ways of voting to all voters. See data explorer.

Figure 12 – Numbers of Member States in 2014 and 2024 having alternative ways of voting available to people with disabilities

Alternative text: A comparative chart showing the numbers of Member States in 2014 and 2024 having alternative ways of voting available to people with disabilities. Alternative ways were available to all voters in 7 states in 2014 and in 13 states in 2024. Disability-specific alternative ways were available in 13 states both in 2014 and in 2024. No alternative ways or no information were available in 7 states in 2014 and in 1 state in 2024.

Source: FRA, 2024.

People with disabilities may vote by proxy or be accompanied by a support person in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Romania, Slovenia and Sweden. Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovenia and Spain allow postal voting. Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Romania, Slovenia and Sweden provide for mobile ballot boxes. Belgium, Hungary, Ireland, Malta, Poland, Portugal (not at the local level) and Spain provide polling cards in Braille. Electronic voting is possible in Estonia (Chancellor of Justice, reply to FRA’s questionnaire of 10 November 2023).

In Poland, new regulations enabled voters with disabilities to request to vote in a polling station adapted to their needs, within the municipality of their registered permanent residence or their actual permanent residence (Commissioner for Human Rights, reply to FRA’s questionnaire of 8 November 2023).

In Slovenia, a DPO complained to the Constitutional Court about the abolishment of voting machines. It claimed that the legislature had failed to ensure that people with disabilities could vote in a personal, independent and secret manner at polling stations. The court held that abolishing voting machines was consistent with the Constitution and did not interfere with the right of persons with disabilities to equal treatment when exercising their right to vote. The court considered that alternative ways of voting were available to persons with disabilities, such as voting at home, postal voting and adapted ballot papers (Decision No U-I-168/16, 22 October 2020).

During the last early parliamentary elections in Slovakia, half of the polling stations were not accessible to voters with reduced mobility. Election authorities used mobile ballot boxes to mitigate the lack of access. However, this practice was criticised as degrading and could compromise the secrecy of the vote (OSCE, ‘Slovak Republic – Early Parliamentary Elections, 30 September 2023 – ODIHR election assessment mission final report’, p. 21).


4.3. People living in long-term institutions

Only nine Member States (Austria, Bulgaria, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Spain) have specific legislation on how people living in long-term institutions can vote. In 2014, 18 Member States did. Croatia, Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Romania, Slovakia and Sweden regulate voting in long-term institutions in legislation on alternative forms of voting.

People with disabilities living in long-term institutions may have access to movable ballot boxes in Czechia (Zákon o volbách do Evropského parlamentu a o změně některých zákonů and Zákon o volbách do Parlamentu České republiky a o změně a doplnění některých dalších zákonů), Hungary (Hungarian Ombudsperson’s Office, letter of 16 November 2023), Romania (Lege nr. 208 din 20 iulie 2015 Article 87, and Lege nr. 115 din 19 mai 2015, Article 91) and Sweden (Vallag [2005:837], Chapter 7, Section 4). They may vote by post in Denmark (Folketingsvalgloven), Greece (Νόμος 5083/2024 (OG A 12/26.01.2024), Article 6, and information provided by the Greek national liaison officer), Luxembourg (Loi électorale du 18 février 2003, Articles 168, 262 and 328) and Slovenia (Zakon o volitvah v državni zbor). They may use electronic voting in Estonia (Riigikogu Election Act), or specific polling stations in Croatia (Zakon o izborima zastupnika iz Republike Hrvatske u Europski parlament). They may vote with the assistance of another person in the Netherlands (Kieswet, Article L2).

Figure 13 – Numbers of Member States in 2014 and 2024 having legislation regulating how people living in long-term institutions may vote

Alternative text: A comparative chart showing the numbers of Member States in 2014 and 2024 with legislation regulating how people living in long-term institutions may vote. Specific legislative provisions existed in 18 states in 2014 and in 9 states in 2024. Provisions existed as part of the legislation on alternative forms of voting in 6 states in 2014 and 12 states in 2024. No legislative provisions existed in 3 states in 2014 and in 6 states in 2024.

Source: FRA, 2024.

Whether polling stations are to be established in hospitals or special care institutions sometimes depends on the number of voters accommodated therein, for example in Bulgaria (Изборен кодекс, Article 9), Italy (Decreto del Presidente della Repubblica 30 marzo 1957, n. 361) and Poland (Kodeks wyborczy, Article 12(4)). In Finland, such institutions must be designated as special polling stations by a decision of the municipal board (vaalilaki, vallag).

Similar legislation also applies to mobile ballot boxes. For example, in Bulgaria, voting with a mobile ballot box is allowed if at least 10 citizens with disabilities have applied to exercise their voting rights in this way (Ombudsman, reply to FRA’s questionnaire of 20 November 2023; Изборен кодекс, Articles 37 and 90(1)).

Several cases examined by NHRIs or equality bodies concerned the exercise of the right to vote in residential care institutions. Examples come from Bulgaria (Ombudsman, reply to FRA’s questionnaire of 20 November 2023), Poland (Commissioner for Human Rights, Nieprawidłowości wyborcze w Domach Pomocy Społecznej. Rzecznik prosi PKW o stanowisko (2020); Czy niedowidzący wyborcy będą musieli czekać na specjalne nakładki na karty do głosowania także 26 maja? (2019)), Slovakia (Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, information provided to Franet upon request by email on 12 December 2023) and Slovenia (Ombudsman, reply to FRA’s questionnaire of 22 December 2023). The NHRIs in Belgium (Unia, reply to FRA’s questionnaire of 23 November 2023) and France (CNCDH, reply to FRA’s questionnaire of 10 November 2023) reported administrative difficulties for people living in long-term institution in obtaining information, registering and being fully supported in exercising their right to vote.

Promising practice – Equality body’s recommendation to social service providers

The Czech Public Defender of Rights issued a recommendation before the 2021 elections to the Chamber of Deputies on the exercise of the right to vote by people in residential social services. It guides social service providers and guardians through the electoral process step by step, starting with the pre-election period and ending with the actual exercise of the right to vote at the polling station or using a portable ballot box at a residential social services facility. After issuing the recommendation, the defender visited homes for people with disabilities after the elections, to investigate how they had been given the opportunity to participate in the elections and with what support.

A legal duty to assist in voting for all people with disabilities is enshrined in the national laws of 18 Member States: Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Poland, Romania, Slovenia and Sweden. In 2014, this was the case only in 13 Member States.

Bulgaria, Ireland, the Netherlands, Portugal and Slovenia provide for assistance only to people with physical or sensory disabilities. Cyprus and Spain require assistance only for people with a visual disability. No legal provision to that effect exists in Czechia, Malta or Slovakia. In Malta, voters who need assistance have no choice but to be supported by assistant electoral commissioners at the voting booth and cannot rely on trusted assistants (Commissioner for the Rights of Persons with Disability, reply to FRA’s questionnaire of 3 November 2023).

Figure 14 – Numbers of Member States in 2014 and 2024 providing for a legal duty to assist in voting people with disabilities

Alternative text: A comparative chart showing the numbers of Member States in 2014 and 2024 providing for a legal duty to assist in voting people with disabilities. The question asked was ‘Is there a legal duty to provide assistance in voting to persons with disabilities?’ The answer was ‘Yes, for all persons with disabilities’ in 13 states in 2014 and in 18 states in 2024. The answer was ‘Yes, for people with physical and sensory disabilities’ in 6 states in both 2014 and 2024. There was no information in 8 states in 2014 and in 3 states in 2024.

Source: FRA, 2024.

Who can assist a voter with a disability, and how, differs across the EU. Voters with disabilities may be assisted by a person of their choice in Austria, Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Romania, Slovenia and Sweden. The assistant may also be an election official in Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Luxembourg and Sweden, but not in Romania (Lege nr. 33/2007 privind organizarea şi desfăşurarea alegerilor pentru Parlamentul European), Article 46(8); Lege nr. 115/2015 pentru alegerea autorităților administrației publice locale, pentru modificarea Legii administrației publice locale nr. 215/2001, precum și pentru modificarea și completarea Legii nr. 393/2004 privind Statutul aleșilor locali, Article 41(21)). Two Member States do not allow a free choice of assistants: in Greece, only a court representative can provide assistance (Ministry of the Interior, Πληροφορίες και οδηγίες για τη διενέργεια των γενικών βουλευτικών εκλογών της 25ης Ιουνίου 2023 εντός Επικράτειας); in Croatia, only the polling station staff can assist (information provided by Franet).

Assistance is subject to the permission of the election authorities in Belgium (Code électoral (1894), Article 143) and Malta (General Elections Act (1991), Chapter 354 of the Laws of Malta). In Denmark (Ministry of the Interior and Health, ‘Kan jeg få hjælp til at stemme?’; Folketingsvalgloven) and Slovenia (Constitutional Court, Decision No U-I-168/16, 22 October 2020), national rules on assistance are not limited to the polling station, and voters can also be assisted when voting by post (or from home in Slovenia).

In Belgium, different authorities organise different types of elections, so rules may slightly differ for each of them, the federal equality body notes. The multiplicity of rules has been criticised by organisations promoting the rights of people with  disabilities. They advocate harmonising these rules to ensure consistency and equal treatment during all types of elections (National High Council for Disabled People (Conseil Supérieur National des Personnes Handicapées), Note de position. Participation à la vie politique (élections) (2018), p. 4).

In Latvia, the law provides that the ballot paper or the list of participating voters must be marked by either a family member of the voter or another person whom the voter trusts, in the voter’s presence and according to his or her instructions. This system does not work well, as these assistants can easily abuse their position (Association of People with Disabilities and Their Friends Apeirons (Invalīdu un viņu draugu biedrība Apeirons), phone conversation with Franet, 15 December 2023).


4.5. Elected people with disabilities

During the reporting period, the CRPD Committee has deplored the low level of participation of persons with disabilities in political life in France (Concluding observations on the initial report of France (2021), paragraph 58), Luxembourg (Concluding observations on the initial report of Luxembourg (2017), paragraph 50), Malta (Concluding observations on the initial report of Malta (2018), paragraph 41), Spain (Concluding observations on the combined second and third periodic reports of Spain (2019), paragraph 54) and Sweden (Concluding observations on the initial report of Sweden (2014), paragraph 51). The committee especially noted the low level of participation of women with disabilities in political life and the lack of data identifying barriers to their participation in Germany (Concluding observations on the combined second and third periodic reports of Germany (2023), paragraph 65), Hungary (Concluding observations on the initial report of Hungary (2022), paragraph 56), Latvia (Concluding observations on the initial report of Latvia (2017), paragraph 10) and Slovenia (Concluding observations on the initial report of Slovenia (2018), paragraph 49).

There is a lack of comparable data across the Member States on the actual exercise of the right to vote and the right to be elected.

Official data on the number of members of the current national parliament (MPs) who self-identify as a person with disabilities are available in Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland and Spain. In 2014, data were available in Austria, Croatia, Greece, the Netherlands, Poland and Portugal. Sixteen Member States have no data, the same number as in 2014. The highest numbers of current self-identified MPs with disabilities were in Croatia (nine; Information Officer of the Croatian Parliament, email to Franet, 13 December 2023) and Bulgaria (four; National Assembly, Access to Public Information Decision No 49-31-37 following Franet request, 16 November 2023).

In France, people with disabilities do not receive any help to run a campaign, and no specific measures are in place for those who are elected to facilitate the exercise of their mandate, the NHRI reports. There is no requirement for the equipment provided to elected representatives to be in Braille (CNCDH, reply to FRA’s questionnaire of 10 November 2023). During the 2022 early general elections on 1 November 2022 in Denmark, no political party could indicate any candidates with disabilities on its candidate lists (OSCE, Denmark – Early general elections, 1 November 2022 – ODIHR election expert team final report, p. 10).

At the local level, no official data could be found, although in 2014 some official data existed in three Member States. Unofficial data, however, suggest that people with disabilities are members of municipal or regional governments in at least Latvia, Malta and Slovenia.

The European Parliament noted that women continue to be under-represented in politics and public life. Regarding women with disabilities’ participation in political life, no data could be found. The European Disability Forum stresses that ‘women with disabilities are a “minority” within the minority of women in elected office’.