Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to report parliamentary committee draft

RemovedIn order to increase mobile citizens’ participation in EU elections, as many voting means as possible should be made available to them in order to increase voter turnout for the EU elections in line with the aim and internal logic of the text.

RemovedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – point a: (a) the person who, on the reference date is a Union citizen within the meaning of Article 20 (1) TFEU and regardless of their legal capacity;

RemovedNecessary for internal coherence and in accordance with the principle of non-discrimination. It is specifically linked to recital 29, which falls under the recast procedure and where it is stated that in European Parliament elections due regard should be had to the needs of citizens with a disability. It is inextricably linked, because it further defines how Member States should ensure there is due regard for the needs of citizens with a disability in European Parliament elections.

RemovedArticle 6 – paragraph 5: 5. Member States shall designate a helpdesk to receive and transmit the information necessary for the application of paragraph 3. They shall communicate to the Commission the name and contact details of the helpdesk and any updated information or changes concerning it. The Commission shall keep a list of helpdesks and make it available to the Member States.

RemovedNecessary for internal coherence. This is linked to article 15, where Member States have to designate a help desk for collecting and providing statistical data. As such, for the internal coherence the word help desk should be used consistently throughout the text.

RemovedArticle 8 – paragraph 2 a (new): 2 a. Automatic registration shall be available subject, on a case-by-case basis, to the agreement of the Union voter concerned.

RemovedNecessary for the internal coherence. The conditions governing registration and participation should be clarified in order to make sure that the treatment between national and non-national Union citizens is equal. Still, due to language and inhibitive administrative barriers existing between national and non-national Union citizens, one of the most effective ways to ensure equality is to provide for automatic registration for Union citizens, making participation as easy as possible.

RemovedArticle 9 – paragraph 1: 1. Member States shall take the necessary measures to enable a Union voter who has expressed the wish to be registered as a voter to be entered on the electoral roll no later than 14 weeks before polling day.

RemovedNecessary for the coherence between the different ongoing discussions on reforming the EU’s electoral system. Moreover, the specific timeframe of ‘sufficiently in advance’ is not clearly defined and leaves a lot of space to Member States to define it themselves, which can lead to people not being informed sufficiently in advance of the registration possibilities, especially considering possible language barriers. As foreseen in other legal texts refining the setup of our electoral rules, a common start to the European electoral campaign is needed, which can only be achieved if there is a common deadline for registration of voters and candidates. Additionally, this specific timeframe is needed for the article to be coherent with the logic of amendment in Art. 12. par. 1, where it is defined when the electoral polls should close.

RemovedArticle 9 – paragraph 3 – point a: (a) state in their declaration under paragraph 2 that they have not been deprived of the right to vote in their home Member State, if such requirement also applies to nationals of the Member State of residence;

RemovedNecessary for internal coherence and in accordance to the principle of non discrimination.

RemovedArticle 9 – paragraph 3 – point c a (new): (c a) if they so wish, indicate the languages in which they would like to receive the information referred to in Article 12(2);

RemovedNecessary for internal coherence, in accordance with Article 12.

RemovedArticle 9 – paragraph 4: 4. Union voters who have been entered on the electoral roll shall remain thereon, under the same conditions as voters who are nationals, until they request to be removed or until they are removed because they no longer satisfy the requirements for exercising the right to vote. Where provisions are in place to notify nationals of such a removal from the electoral roll, these provisions shall apply to Union voters in the same way. Notifications shall be provided in an official language of the Union understandable to the Union voters in question.

RemovedArticle 10 – paragraph 2 a (new): 2a. National authorities shall ensure that the democratic, proportionate and transparent standards which apply to national citizens when submitting a list of candidates also apply to mobile EU citizen candidates.

RemovedThere are currently 27 strongly differing registration requirements for a political party, candidates or associations of voters and for submitting a list of candidates for the national constituencies. These are often discriminatory and inhibit political innovation and competition. Aligning these is important to make European elections more democratic as candidates will have to go through more similar democratic scrutiny processes before becoming MEPs and writing laws for all Europeans. As this Directive also foresees rules for the right to stand in EU elections, it is important to align these rules for all Union citizens to make the EU elections more comparable and competitive

RemovedArticle 11 – paragraph 1: 1. The Member State of residence shall inform the persons concerned in good time and in clear and plain language in an official language of the Union understandable to them, of the decision taken concerning their automatic registration or their application for entry on the electoral roll or of the decision concerning the admissibility of their application to stand as a candidate.

RemovedNecessary for internal coherence. Linked to amendment 3, where automatic registration is mentioned.

RemovedArticle 11 – paragraph 4: 4. Member States shall inform the persons concerned of the decision referred to in paragraph 1 and of the legal remedies referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3 clearly and in a timely manner, in an official language of the Union understandable to them.

RemovedInformation on the EU elections for all Union citizens needs to be as accessible as possible. Mobile citizens have to have the right to request information that they understand to carry out the necessary registration steps, in case automatic registration is not chosen. Based on the aim and internal logic of the text to facilitate that a maximum participation by mobile EU citizens is ensured.

RemovedArticle 12 – paragraph 1: 1. Member States shall designate a national authority with responsibility for taking the necessary measures to ensure that non-national Union citizens are informed in a timely manner of the conditions and detailed rules for registration as a voter or candidate in elections to the European Parliament as soon as they register as residents of a Member State of which they are not nationals as well as periodically, ahead of European elections, in a timely manner, taking into account the deadlines established for the announcement of the candidates. The designated authority shall also provide a copy of the standardised templates for the formal declarations set out in Annexes I and II that non-national Union citizens are required to submit in order to register as voters and candidates.

RemovedInternal legislative coherence to ensure that campaigning can start at the same time across the Union.

RemovedArticle 12 – paragraph 2 – point d a (new): (da) the specific measures to facilitate the exercise of the right to vote by marginalised groups of voters, such as persons with disabilities.

RemovedThe rules provided for in this Directive shall be as inclusive as possible for all mobile citizens including marginalised or Union voters with disabilities.

RemovedArticle 12 – paragraph 2 a (new): 2a. Member States shall ensure that civil society organisations have a very important role to play in cooperating with, and assisting, the designated national authorities to raise public awareness concerning the information referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2, as well as in encouraging non-national Union citizens to actively seek such information as often as they need it.

RemovedPrevious experiences for the European elections (and also municipal elections) has shown that Civil Society organisations can play incredibly helpful role leading to a multiplication of spreading the information about mobile citizens’ rights in EU elections. This should be manifested in this text to promote the creation of CSOs to help the information provision on electoral rights of mobile EU citizens.

RemovedArticle 12 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1: The information referred to in the first subparagraph shall be provided in an official language of the Union understandable to the Union voter or candidate in question. / (deleted)

RemovedThe rules provided for in this Directive shall be as inclusive as possible for all mobile citizens including marginalised or Union voters with disabilities.

RemovedArticle 12 – paragraph 4: 4. Member States shall ensure that information on conditions and detailed rules for registration as a voter or candidate in elections to the European Parliament and information referred to in paragraph 2 is made accessible to marginalised groups, such as persons with disabilities and older persons by applying the accessibility requirements laid down in Annex I of Directive (EU) 2019/8821a and by using appropriate means, modes and formats of communication, such as Braille, large print, audio-based information, tactile stencils, easy to read information and sign language. / 1a Directive (EU) 2019/882 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 April 2019 on the accessibility requirements for products and services (OJ L 151, 7.6.2019, p. 70).

RemovedThe rules provided for in this Directive shall be as inclusive as possible for all mobile citizens including marginalised or Union voters with disabilities.

RemovedArticle 13 – paragraph 1: 1. Member States shall exchange the information required for the implementation of Article 4, sufficiently in advance of polling day. To that end, the Member State of residence shall begin supplying the home Member State, no later than 16 weeks before the first day of the electoral period referred to in Article 10(1) of the Act concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage the set of information provided in Annex III. The home Member State shall, in accordance with its national legislation, take appropriate measures to ensure that its nationals do not vote more than once or stand as candidates in more than one Member State.

RemovedNecessary for internal coherence. This is inextricably linked to the earlier deadlines with regards to the electoral rolls in amendments on recital 20 and Art. 9, par. 1, as there needs to be time between the home Member State being informed and the closing of the electoral rolls. As such, information sharing needs to occur before the deadline of the closing of the electoral rolls.

RemovedArticle 14 – paragraph 1: Member States shall allow postal voting and shall consider the introduction of complementary enhancing tools such as advance physical voting, proxy voting, and electronic and online voting, in elections to the European Parliament. Member States shall ensure the availability of those voting methods to Union voters under the same conditions as the ones applicable to their own nationals.

RemovedArticle 15 – paragraph 1: Member States shall designate a helpdesk with responsibility for collecting and providing relevant statistical data based on common indicators to the public and the Commission, on the participation of Union citizens who are not nationals in elections to the European Parliament.

RemovedArticle 16 – paragraph 1: deleted / (deleted) / (deleted) / (deleted) / (deleted)

RemovedAs per Amendments 18 and 19, these changes are required in order to comply with the principle of non-discrimination and ensure the democratic rights of EU citizens who have exercised their right to live, work or study in a Member State of which they are not nationals. The exemption rules foreseen in the Directive need to be adapted. Every Union citizens no matter where they live should have the right to vote even if there are many not-national EU citizens living in that Member State.

RemovedArticle 16 – paragraph 2: deleted

RemovedAs per Amendments 18 and 19, these changes are required in order to comply with the principle of non-discrimination and ensure the democratic rights of EU citizens who have exercised their right to live, work or study in a Member State of which they are not nationals. The exemption rules foreseen in the Directive need to be adapted. Every Union citizens no matter where they live should have the right to vote even if there are many not-national EU citizens living in that Member State.

RemovedArticle 16 – paragraph 3: deleted / (deleted)

RemovedAs per Amendments 18 and 19, these changes are required in order to comply with the principle of non-discrimination and ensure the democratic rights of EU citizens who have exercised their right to live, work or study in a Member State of which they are not nationals. The exemption rules foreseen in the Directive need to be adapted. Every Union citizens no matter where they live should have the right to vote even if there are many not-national EU citizens living in that Member State.

RemovedArticle 16 a (new): Article 16 a / The exercise of the right of mobile citizens to vote and stand as candidates shall apply to all electoral lists and constituencies established by the Act concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage, including in the event of the establishment of a Union-wide constituency, in order to ensure that the principle of non-discrimination is upheld.

RemovedNecessary to ensure coherence and to ensure that the principle of non-discrimination is upheld.

RemovedArticle 17 – paragraph 1: 1. Within six months after each election to the European Parliament Member States shall send information to the Commission on the application of this Directive in their territory. In addition to general observations, the report shall contain statistical data on the participation in elections to the European Parliament of Union voters and Union citizens entitled to stand as candidates and a summary of the measures taken to support it, based on common indicators.

RemovedNecessary to ensure coherence in the text.

RemovedArticle 18 – paragraph 1: Within two years after each election to the European Parliament, the Commission shall assess its application and produce an evaluation report on the progress towards achievement of the objectives contained herein. The evaluation shall also include a review on the functioning of Article 13. The evaluation shall be accompanied, if appropriate, by a legislative proposal to amend this Directive.

RemovedNecessary to ensure legislative coherence and to make sure that after each election an evaluation of the functioning of this Directive is carried out.

RemovedAnnex I – paragraph 4 a (new): Indicate language preferences in which you want to receive information related to the elections.

RemovedAnnex II – paragraph 4: I have not been deprived of the right to stand as a candidate in my home Member State1a. / 1a Only if also required of nationals of the Member State of residence

RemovedNecessary to ensure coherence in the text.