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Information for Voters - Nationals of Other States on the Manner of Voting in the Election to Municipal Councils to be held on 20 and 21 October 2006

The election to Municipal Councils has been declared by the Czech President's Decision No. 369/2006 Coll. dated 21 July 2006.

The election to municipal councils shall be held in two days, namely on Friday, 20 October 2006, from 2 pm till 10 pm, and on Saturday, 21 October 2006, from 8 am till 2 pm.

Pursuant to Section 4 (1) of Act No. 491/2001 Coll., on Elections to Representative Bodies of Municipalities and on Amendments to Certain Other Laws as amended (hereinafter referred to as the „Municipal Councils Elections Act“), the right to vote shall have, beside the Czech nationals, also nationals of other States to whom such right has been granted through an international convention binding on the Czech Republic and promulgated in the Collection of International Treaties, provided they have attained the age of 18 on the second polling day at the latest (i.e. 21 October 2006) and, as at the polling day, are registered as permanent residents in the municipality.

Currently, this only relates to nationals of the EU Member States, because the Treaty of Czech Republic's Accession to the European Union (Communication No. 44/2004 Coll. of Int. Treaties) is the only international treaty meeting the prerequisites laid down by the Municipal Councils Elections Act. Nationals of the Member States of the European Union (Kingdom of Belgium, Kingdom of Denmark, Federal Republic of Germany, Hellenic Republic, Kingdom of Spain, French Republic, Ireland, Italian Republic, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Austrian Republic, Portuguese Republic, Republic of Finland, Kingdom of Sweden, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Republic of Estonia, Republic of Cyprus, Republic of Latvia, Republic of Lithuania, Republic of Hungary, Republic of Malta, Republic of Poland, Republic of Slovenia and Slovak Republic) who meet the conditions for being granted the right to vote need to apply for being included on the addendum to the permanent electoral roll.

Pursuant to Section 28 (1) of the Municipal Councils Elections Act, the addendum to the permanent electoral roll (hereinafter referred to as the „Addendum“) is kept by municipal offices, city offices, town halls (magistrats) in the territorially undivided statutory cities, city area offices or city district offices in the territorially divided statutory cities and city part offices in the City of Prague (hereinafter collectively referred to as the „Municipal Offices“) in respect of voters - nationals of other States who have permanent residence within their territory.

Voters - nationals of other States may lodge their applications for inclusion on the Addendum to the Municipal Offices at any time (including now) until the Addendum's closing day, which is two days in advance of the polling day at four o'clock pm, i.e. until 4 pm on 18 October 2006. Such application can be made in writing (in which case it has to be delivered to the Municipal Office before 4 pm on 18 October 2006) or in person. It shall be apparent from the application that the applicant is seeking to be included on the Addendum and the applicant shall indicate as a minimum his/her first name, surname, date of birth as well as their place of permanent stay (address) in order to facilitate identification.

If an application is made in person, the written form shall not be required because the competent official of the Municipal Office executing an official record will include the required data into it based on documents presented to him by the applicant and comprising such required data (e.g. a residence permit).

Any voter - national of another State who has not applied for inclusion on the Addendum shall not be allowed to vote in the election to municipal councils.

A voter may be removed from the Addendum if a voter so requests or has lost his/her right to vote.

Polling Station

The Mayor of each municipality shall notify voters of the time, date and place of the election in the municipality not later than fifteen days in advance of the polling day (5 October 2006) by means of a notice. Where more than one electoral district has been established on the territory of a municipality, the mayor shall specify the parts of the municipality that fall under each such electoral district and shall publish the notice in each of the parts. The notice shall indicate addresses of the polling stations.

The following information shall be posted at a visible place in each polling station: a ballot paper marked as „specimen“; candidates' notices of resignation or authorized representatives' notices of withdrawn candidates provided the notices have been delivered until 48 hours before the commencement of the election (Any votes cast in favour of such candidates shall be disregarded when the result of voting is being ascertained); information regarding any typos in the ballot, with the indication of the correct data. The polling station in each electoral district must be furnished with the Act No. 491/2001 Coll. on Elections to Representative Bodies of Municipalities and on Amendments to Certain Other Laws as amended to be presented upon request to any voter for inspection.

Voting

Proving of Identity and Nationality

Upon his entry into the polling station, every voter shall prove to the electoral district committee their identity and citizenship of the Czech Republic by presenting a valid ID card or a valid passport of the Czech Republic.

A voter who is a foreigner shall, upon entering the polling station, prove their identity and the citizenship of one of the States whose nationals are entitled to vote on the territory of the Czech Republic by presenting to the electoral district committee their residence permission certificate issued in accordance with Act No. 326/1999 Coll. on the Residence of Aliens in the Territory of the Czech Republic and on Amendments to Certain Laws as amended.

It is necessary that every voter bring all the required documents with them. Voters who fail to prove their identity and citizenship of the Czech Republic or as appropriate the citizenship of a State whose nationals are entitled to vote on the territory of the Czech Republic shall not be allowed to vote.

After making a note in the extracts from the permanent electoral roll, the electoral district committee shall give the voter an empty official envelope to which a relevant stamp impression is affixed.

Ballot Papers

The ballot papers for elections to municipal councils may be printed double-sided.

The municipality name and the number of the municipal council members to be elected shall be indicated in each ballot's heading. Candidates of each electoral party shall be listed on a common ballot in the order determined by the electoral party, in separate framed columns arranged side by side. Where there are too many electoral parties, the columns may continue in the next row. An electoral party can be a political party, a political movement, a coalition thereof, or an association of political parties or political movements and independent candidates, an individual person standing as an independent candidate or an association of independent candidates. The candidates' membership in political parties or political movements shall be indicated in abbreviations on the ballots. The abbreviations with the respective full names will be provided on the reverse side of an informational leaflet to be distributed to voters with the ballots.

An impression of a stamp of the Municipal Office functioning as the registering office for the municipality shall be affixed to the ballots below the text.

Mayors of the municipalities shall distribute the ballots to the voters three days before the polling day at the latest (17 October 2006). When in the polling station, voters may ask the electoral district committee to provide them with new ballots instead of ballots that are lost or damaged.

Marking of the Ballots

After receiving the official envelope and the ballot (where applicable), the voter shall enter the polling booth to mark the ballots. A voter who did not enter the polling booth shall not be allowed to cast his/her vote.

When in the polling booth, a voter can mark the ballot in one of the following ways:

1. Mark a single electoral party by placing a cross in the box located in the column heading next to the name of that electoral party, thus giving a vote to candidates of that electoral party in the order in which they are ranked on the ballot up to the number of the municipal council members to be elected in that municipality.
   Marking more than one electoral party when using this method makes the vote invalid.
2. Mark individual candidates to whom the voter is giving his/her vote and who can be from different electoral parties by placing a cross in boxes located next to the candidates' names, however not exceeding the number of candidates equalling the number of the municipal council members to be elected in the municipality. The number of municipal council members to be elected is shown in the heading of the ballot paper.
   Exceeding the defined number of candidates when using this method makes the vote invalid.
3. Combine the two ways described above, i.e. mark one electoral party plus, using the columns of the other electoral parties, mark the candidates to whom the voter is giving his/her vote by placing a cross in the boxes next to their names. In that case, votes shall be given to the marked candidates. As regards the marked electoral party, votes shall be given to as of its many candidates (in the rank in which they appear on the ballot) as equals the remaining vacancies in the municipal council to be elected. An example: eleven members are to be elected to a municipal council. An electoral party having eleven candidates is marked on the ballot along with five names of candidates in columns of various other electoral parties. As a result, the marked electoral party will receive six votes for the candidates ranked in the top six positions.

Marking more than one electoral party or exceeding the defined number of candidates when using this method makes the vote invalid.

Having finished the ballot marking, the voter shall insert the ballot into the official envelope.

If a voter marks no electoral party and no candidate on the ballot or fails to insert the ballot into the official envelope or tears the ballot or inserts more than one ballot into the official envelope for the same municipal council, their vote will be invalid.

Manner of Voting

After leaving the polling booth, the voter shall cast his/her vote by throwing the official envelope to the ballot box before the electoral district committee.

Every voter votes in person, voting by proxy shall not be permissible. A voter who is unable to mark the ballot by himself due to physical disability or who cannot read or write, may be accompanied in the polling booth by another voter (but not a member of the electoral district committee) who may mark the ballot instead of him and place it into the official envelope or even throw the official envelope to the ballot box.

Using the Portable Ballot Box

Based on serious reasons, namely his/her health condition, a voter may ask Municipal Office or, during the days of election, the electoral district committee, for permission to vote out of the polling station. Such vote may take place solely within the territorial jurisdiction of the permanent electoral district for which the electoral district committee has been set up. In such case, the electoral district committee shall delegate to such voter two of its members with the portable ballot box, an official envelope and the ballot papers.

Voters registered in the special electoral rolls kept by diplomatic or consular authorities of the Czech Republic (hereinafter referred to as the „Diplomatic Authorities“) may not vote in the elections to municipal councils because they have been removed from the permanent electoral rolls kept by Municipal Offices due to their being registered in the special electoral rolls kept by Diplomatic Authorities. A voter who wants to be moved back on the permanent electoral roll kept by the Municipal Office needs to ask the relevant Diplomatic Authority to strike him/her out of the special electoral roll. Such voter shall present to the Municipal Office or, during the days of election, to the electoral district committee, a confirmation proving their removal from the special electoral roll.

JUDr. Petra Gronwaldtová Wagnerová, v.r.
zástupkyně ředitele odboru všeobecné správy