Electoral rights of mobile Union citizens in European Parliament elections
TA-9-2023-0037 · P9_TA(2023)0037 · PE704.775
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Parliament's amended version of the proposed Council directive on electoral rights for mobile EU citizens in European Parliament elections. It approves the Commission proposal with amendments, aiming to clarify and strengthen rules on voting and standing as candidates for non-national Union citizens.¶¶¶ The amended text requires member states to provide clear information, allow immediate registration as voters, ensure equal treatment with nationals, and prevent multiple voting through data exchange. It also removes derogations for member states with high non-national populations.¶¶¶
Key points
- Approves the Commission proposal as amended, and calls on the Commission to alter its proposal accordingly.¶¶
- Affirms that the right to vote and stand as a candidate is a corollary of EU citizenship and should be exercised under the same conditions as nationals, including for persons with disabilities.¶¶¶
- Requires member states to inform non-national Union citizens about their electoral rights upon registration as residents and periodically ahead of elections, in clear and accessible language.¶¶¶
- Allows non-national Union citizens to choose to vote in their residence or home member state, and requires measures to prevent multiple voting.¶¶
- Requires immediate registration as voters for non-national Union citizens upon their registration as residents, subject to their consent, and sets a deadline of no later than 14 weeks before polling day for registration.¶¶¶
- Requires member states to exchange information to prevent multiple voting and standing as candidates, with a common set of data and designated contact points.¶¶¶
- Requires member states to designate authorities to provide information and to make it available in an official language of the Union understandable to the voter or candidate.¶¶¶
- Encourages national political parties not to make membership conditional on nationality, and requires equal treatment for non-national candidates in list submission.¶¶
- Requires member states to consider introducing complementary voting tools such as postal, proxy, and online voting, and to ensure their availability to Union voters under the same conditions as nationals.¶
- Requires member states to collect and report data on the application of the directive based on common indicators, and the Commission to evaluate it within 18 months after each European election.¶¶¶
- Deletes derogations that allowed member states with over 20% non-national residents to impose residence requirements for voting or candidacy.¶¶¶
Who is affected
- Non-national Union citizens residing in a member state of which they are not nationals: gain clearer rights to vote and stand as candidates, with immediate registration options and better information.¶¶¶
- Member states: must implement new information duties, registration procedures, and data exchange mechanisms, and may no longer apply certain derogations.¶¶¶
- National political parties: encouraged not to require nationality for membership, affecting their candidate selection.¶
- Persons with disabilities and older citizens: entitled to accessible information and voting arrangements.¶¶¶
Figures and deadlines
- 14 weeks before polling day: deadline for voter registration.¶
- 16 weeks before the first day of the electoral period: start of information exchange between member states.¶
- 18 months after each European election: Commission evaluation report.¶
- 20% of total electorate: threshold for derogations, which are deleted.¶¶¶
Legal basis: Article 22(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union¶