The persons who turned 18, either they have a disability or not, have the right to vote. Only the persons declared incompetent by court cannot vote. The Central Election Commission, with its bodies of all the levels, together with the bodies of the local public administration, are responsible for ensuring the reasonable adaptation of polling places so as to enable the persons with disabilities and elderly people, including persons with reduced mobility, to have non-discriminatory access.
The bodies of the local public administration will provide the electoral bodies with precincts for ensuring the exercise of the electoral rights, which would be accessible to persons with locomotor disabilities, with proper lighting. The bodies of the local public administration are also responsible for the placing of ramps at polling places, while the Central Election Commission, within possibilities, will provide the persons with disabilities with special devices adjusted so as to increase their accessibility to independent voting, such as ballot envelopes, rulers, lamps or magnifying glasses.
If the voter cannot fill out the ballot himself, this can seek help from a reliable person, but this should not be from among members of the electoral office of the polling place, representatives of electoral contenders and persons authorized to monitor the electoral process. Also, the persons with disabilities can enter the polling place with particular devices that enable them to vote by themselves, such as magnifying glasses or other types of devices if the voters have visual impairments.
The persons who on the election day will be in hospitals, recreation centers and health resorts in another locality than their permanent place of residence can vote in the parliamentary elections for candidates from the national constituency and in the national consultative referendum by being put on additional lists. This can be done starting with two weeks before the election day and until 6pm of the day prior to the election day.
If the voter cannot come to the polling place for health or other well-founded reasons, the electoral office of the polling place assigns, at the written request of the voter, at least two members of the office to travel to the voter’s place with a mobile box and with the necessary supplies. Applications in this regard can be submitted in the period of two weeks before the election day and until 6pm of the day prior to the election day. The requests on the election day can be filed by 3pm if a medical certificate is also presented.
The media outlets are recommended to use special technical information means accessible to persons with disabilities, while the parties, sociopolitical organizations, electoral bureaus and independent candidates must make sure the messages and electoral platforms in election campaigns are presented in a way that is accessible to persons with disabilities.
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The IPN division “Elections in plain words” is designed to explain notions, terms and practices related to the parliamentary elections based on the mixed electoral system and the consultative referendum that will take place on February 24, 2019.
