CELEX: 51989PC0524
Language: en
Date: 1989-10-17
Title: AMENDED PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL DIRECTIVE ON VOTING RIGHTS FOR COMMUNITY NATIONALS IN LOCAL ELECTIONS IN THEIR MEMBER STATE OF RESIDENCE

No C 290/4                               Official Journal of the European Communities                                  18. 11. 89
                                                                   II
                                                           (Preparatory Acts)
                                                     COMMISSION
               Amended proposal for a Council Directive on voting rights for Community nationals in local
                                          elections in their Member State of residence (')
                                                         COM(89) 524 final
               (Submitted by the Commission pursuant to Article 149.2 (d) of the EEC Treaty 23 October 1989)
                                                            (89/C 290/05)
               O OJ No C 246, 20. 9. 1988, p. 3.
                      ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                                      AMENDED PROPOSAL
                        COM(88) 371 final                                                                           ~
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,                               THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European                  Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Economic Community, and in particular Article 235                      Economic Community, and in particular Article 235
thereof,                                                               thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,                     Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Having regard       to   the  opinion      of   the   European         Having regard       to  the  opinion   of  the   European
Parliament,                                                            Parliament,
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and                       Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and
Social Committee,                                                      Social Committee,
                                                                       Whereas the right to vote in local elections has been
                                                                       repeatedly claimed by Community citizens residing in
                                                                       Community countries which are not their countries of
                                                                       origin, and whereas the European Parliament has dealt
                                                                       with this question and expressed its views on it on several
                                                                       occasions;
Whereas Article 3 (c) of the EEC Treaty stipulates that                Whereas Article 3 (c) of the EEC Treaty stipulates that
the activities of the Community include the abolition, as              the activities of the Community include the abolition, as
between Member States, of obstacles to freedom of                      between Member States, of obstacles to freedom of
movement for persons;                                                  movement for persons;
Whereas Article 8 (a) of the EEC Treaty requires the                   Whereas Article (8) (a) of the EEC Treaty requires the
Community to adopt measures with the aim of                            Community to adopt measures with the aim of
progressively establishing an area without internal                    progressively establishing an area without internal
frontiers in which the free movement of persons is                     frontiers in which the free movement of persons is
ensured in accordance with the provisions of the Treaty;               ensured in accordance with the provisions of the Treaty;
Whereas if the right to move freely is to be exercised, by             Whereas if the right to move freely is to be exercised, by
objective standards, in freedom and dignity, Community                 objective standards, in freedom and dignity, Community
nationals must be integrated into the life of the host                 nationals must be integrated into the life of the host
country;                                                               country;
 ---pagebreak---  18. 11. 89                              Official Journal of the European Communities                           No C 290/5
                      ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                                  AMENDED PROPOSAL
Whereas the right to vote and stand for election in local          Whereas the right to vote and stand for election in local
elections in the Member State of residence is a necessary          elections in the Member State of residence is a necessary
step towards achieving such integration, contributing to           step towards achieving such integration, contributing to
respect for democratic rights which Member States                  respect for democratic rights which Member States
pledged themselves to promote in the Single European               pledged themselves to promote in the Single European
Act;                                                               Act;
Whereas the need for action on recognition of the right            Whereas the need for action on recognition of the right
to vote in local elections in the Member State of                  to vote in local elections in the Member State of
residence has been reaffirmed on many occasions by the             residence has been reaffirmed on many occasions by the
highest Community bodies from the Paris Summit in                  highest Community bodies from the Paris Summit in
1974 to the report of the ad hoc Committee on a                     1974 to the report of the ad hoc Committee on a
People's Europe approved by the Milan European                     People's Europe approved by the Milan European
Council in June 1985;                                              Council in June 1985;
Whereas the right to vote in local elections is withdrawn          Whereas the right to vote in local elections is withdrawn
from citizens of certain Member States residing in                 from citizens of certain Member States residing in
another Member State; whereas exercise of the right to             another Member State; whereas exercise of the right to
vote in the municipality of residence should therefore be          vote in the municipality of residence should therefore be
one of the objectives of Community action; whereas, to             one of the objectives of Community action; whereas, to
this end, steps must be taken to ensure that free                  this end, steps must be taken to ensure that free
movement of persons is not achieved at the expense of a            movement of persons is not achieved at the expense of a
loss of political rights at local level;                           loss of political rights at local level;
Whereas the right to vote in local elections should be             Whereas the right to vote and stand for election in local
granted in the country of residence to nationals of the            elections should be granted in the country of residence
other Member States on request, provided that they can             to nationals of the other Member States on request,
demonstrate that they have been continuously resident in           provided that they can demonstrate that they have been
that Member State for at least the term of office of one           continuously resident in that Member State for at least
municipal council; whereas other requirements applicable           the term of office of one municipal council in the case of
to nationals should apply equally to nationals of the              the right to vote and two terms if they wish to stand for
other Member States;                                               election; whereas other requirements applicable to
                                                                   nationals should apply equally to nationals of the other
                                                                   Member States;
Whereas the right to stand for election should be
granted to nationals of the other Member States in the
municipality where they are voters provided that they
have been resident for at least the term of office of two
municipal     councils; whereas        other      requirements
applicable to nationals should apply equally to nationals
of the other Member States;
Whereas, however, provision should be made for the                 Whereas, however, provision should be made for the
exclusion of non-nationals from the exercise of functions          exclusion of non-nationals from the exercise of functions
such as Mayor or Deputy Mayor which involve duties                 such as Mayor or Deputy Mayor which involve duties
extending beyond the municipality, and from invol-                 extending beyond the municipality, and from invol-
vement in the election of a parliamentary assembly;                vement in the election of a parliamentary assembly;
Whereas account should be taken of the situation in                Whereas account should be taken of the situation in
Member States in which nationals of the other Member               Member States in which nationals of the other Member
States account for more than 20 % of the population;               States account for more than 20 % of the population;
Whereas, in such cases, Member States should be                    Whereas, in such cases, Member States should be
entitled to waive application of the Directive to the first        entitled to waive application of the Directive to the first
local elections to which it would otherwise apply;                 local elections to which it would otherwise apply;
whereas the Commission should draw up a report on this             whereas the Commission should draw up a report on this
problem and, where appropriate, propose further transi-            problem and, where appropriate, propose further transi-
tional measures for subsequent elections;                          tional measures for subsequent elections;
 ---pagebreak--- No C 290/6                             Official Journal of the European Communities                                 18. 11. 89
                      ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                                 AMENDED PROPOSAL
Whereas Member States should be free, for the first two          Whereas Member States should be free, for the first two
elections governed by the Directive, to limit the number         elections governed by the Directive, to limit the number
of seats held by non-nationals on a local council to             of seats held by non-nationals on a local council to
25%;                                                             25 % ;
Whereas the Commission should report to the Council              Whereas the Commission must report to the Council on
on implementation of this Directive three years after the        implementation of this Directive three years after the end
end of the transitional period;                                  of the transitional period;
Whereas the Treaty has not provided specific powers for          Whereas the Treaty has not provided specific powers for
this purpose,                                                    this purpose,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:                                      HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
                           TITLE I                                                           TITLE I
                     General provisions                                                 General provisions
                           Article 1                                                         Article 1
For the purposes of this Directive the term:                      For the purposes of this Directive the term:
1. 'Nationals of the Member States' shall mean persons            1. 'Nationals of the Member States' shall mean, persons
    who have the nationality of one of the Member States             who have the nationality of one of the Member States
    of the European Community who enjoy the civic                    of the European Community who enjoy the civic
    rights stemming from that nationality;                           rights stemming from that nationality;
2. 'Local elections' shall mean elections of bodies               2. 'Local elections' shall mean elections which are defined
    (municipal councils or Mayors) elected by direct                 as such by the Member States;
    universal suffrage and having, under national legis-
    lation, powers to manage and administer the first tier
    of political and administrative organization;
3. 'The right to vote' shall mean the right exercised by          3. 'The right to vote'shall mean the right to participate in
    voters when they participate in elections held by                an election within the meaning of paragraph 2;
    direct universal suffrage;
4. 'The right to stand for election' shall mean the right of      4. 'The right to stand for election' shall mean the right to
    an individual to stand as a candidate and be elected             stand as a candidate and be elected in an election
    by direct universal suffrage.                                    within the meaning of paragraph 2.
                           TITLE II                                                          TITLE II
                      The right to vote                                    The right to vote and stand for election
                           Article 2                                                         Article 2
The Member States shall grant nationals of other                  The Member States shall grant nationals of other
 Member States, recognized as residing on their territory,        Member States, recognized as residing on their territory,
 the right to vote in local elections in the municipality in      the right to vote and stand for election in local elections
which they are resident subject to the conditions set out         in the municipality in which they are resident subject to
 in Articles 3 to 6 below.                                        the conditions set out in Articles 3 to 6 below.
 ---pagebreak--- 18. 11. 89                             Official Journal of the European Communities                                No C 290/7
                      ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                                  AMENDED PROPOSAL
                           Article 3                                                          Article 3
1.    Nationals of other Member States who intend to              1.     Nationals of other Member States who intend to
exercise the right to vote referred to in Article 2 above         exercise the right to vote referred to in Article 2 above
shall make application to the authorities responsible for         shall make application to the authorities responsible for
elections in the municipality of residence for entry on the       elections in the municipality of residence for entry on the
municipal electoral register.                                     municipal electoral register.
The authorities concerned shall inform nationals of other         The authorities concerned shall inform nationals of other
Member States of this right in the same way as nationals          Member States of this right in the same way as nationals
are informed of their right to vote.                              are informed of their right to vote.
2.    For this purpose, such nationals shall produce a            2.     For this purpose, such nationals shall produce a
document issued by a consulate of their Member State of           document issued by a consulate of their Member State of
origin certifying that:                                           origin certifying that:
 (i) they have not been deprived of their civic rights in          (i) they have not been deprived of their civic rights in
     their Member State of origin;                                      their Member State of origin;
(ii) they can no longer exercise the right to vote in local       (ii) they can no longer exercise the right to vote in local
     elections in their Member State of nationality, either             elections in their Member State of nationality, either
     by virtue of residence in another Member State or                  by virtue of residence in another Member State or
     because they have asked to be transferred from the                 because they have asked to be transferred from the
     electoral register of the municipality in which they               electoral register of the municipality in which they
     were previously registered, with a view to exercising              were previously registered, with a view to exercising
     the right to vote in their municipality of residence.              the right to vote in their municipality of residence.
                           Article 4                                                          Article 4
 1.    Any national of another Member State may apply              1.     Any national of another Member State may apply
for entry on the electoral register of his municipality of        for entry on the electoral register of his municipality of
residence following a period of continuous residence in           residence following a period of continuous residence in
the host Member State of not less than the term of office         the host Member State of not less than the term of office
of a municipal council.                                           of a municipal council in the case of the right to vote
                                                                  and two terms if he wishes to stand for election.
Proof of residence shall be provided by a document                 Proof of residence shall be provided by a document
certifying residence issued by the authorities of the host         certifying residence issued by the authorities of the host
 Member State. The period of residence shall run from              Member State. The period of residence shall run from
the date of application for this document.                         the date of application for this document.
                                                                   The duration of residence prior to entry into force of this
                                                                   Directive shall be taken into account when determining
                                                                   that period.
                                                                   Absence on holiday or for reasons of force majeure
                                                                   (sickness, maternity, study, military service, etc.) shall not
                                                                   be considered a break in residence.
 ---pagebreak--- No C 290/8                            Official Journal of the European Communities                              18. 11. 89
                     ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                               AMENDED PROPOSAL
2.    Application for entry on the electoral register can       2.    Application for entry on the electoral register can
be made only in the municipality in which the applicant         be made only in the municipality in which the applicant
is actually resident and shall be subject to the rules laid     is actually resident and shall be subject to the rules laid
down by national legislation, in particular as regards the      down by national legislation, in particular as regards the
minimum period of residence in the municipality and the         minimum period of residence in the municipality and the
deadlines for applying for entry on the electoral register.     deadlines for applying for entry on the electoral register.
                          Article 5                                                      Article 5
The provisions laid down by national legislation in the         The provisions laid down by national legislation in the
Member State of residence as regards the minimum                Member State of residence as regards the minimum
voting age and disqualification shall apply equally to          voting age, incapacity, ineligibility, incompatibility and
nationals of the other Member States.                           disqualification shall apply equally to nationals of the
                                                                other Member States.
                          Article 6                                                      Article 6
A national of another Member State entered on a                 A national of another Member State entered on a
municipal electoral register in his Member State of             municipal electoral register in his Member State of
residence shall be subject to the electoral requirements        residence shall be subject to the electoral requirements
applicable to nationals of that Member State, in                applicable to nationals of that Member State, in
particular as regards provisions which make voting              particular as regards provisions which make voting
compulsory.                                                     compulsory.
                         TITLE III
               The right to stand for election
                          Article 7
The Member States shall grant nationals of other
Member States the right to stand and be elected in local
elections in the municipality on whose electoral register
they appear, subject to the conditions set out in Articles
8 to 10 below.
                          Article 8
 1.    A national of one Member State may stand as a
candidate in local elections in the municipality of
residence in another Member State following a period of
continuous residence in that Member State of not less
than two terms of office of a municipal council.
 2.    The provisions of the second paragraph of Article
 4 (1) shall also apply.
 ---pagebreak--- 18. 11. 89                             Official Journal of the European Communities                            No C 290/9
                       ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                               AMENDED PROPOSAL
                            Article 9
The provisions laid down by national legislation in the
Member State of residence as regards
  (i) minimum age,
 (ii) incompatibility, and
(iii) disqualification
for the purposes of local elections shall apply equally to
nationals of other Member States.
                           Article 10                                                       Article 7
1.     The Member States may exclude nationals of other           1.    The Member States may restrict to their own
Member States from holding an office such as Mayor,               nationals the offices of Mayor, Deputy Mayor or any
Deputy Mayor or any equivalent position.                          equivalent position.
2.     If members of a municipal council are by virtue of         2.     If members of a municipal council are by virtue of
such membership electors of a parliamentary assembly,             such membership electors of a parliamentary assembly,
the Member States may provide that nationals of other             the Member States may provide that nationals of other
Member States who are members of the municipal                    Member States who are members of the municipal
council may not take part in the election. They shall be          council may not take part in the election. They shall be
replaced in accordance with national rules governing the          replaced in accordance with national rules governing the
appointment of additional electors.                               appointment of additional electors.
If the members of a municipal council appoint the                 If the members of a municipal council appoint the
electors of a parliamentary assembly from among their             electors of a parliamentary assembly from among their
number, the Member States may provide that nationals              number, the Member States may provide that nationals
of other Member States who are members of the                     of other Member States who are members of the
municipal council may not take part in the election.              municipal council may not take part in the election.
                           TITLE IV                                                         TITLE III
                    Transitional provisions                                          Transitional provisions
                           Article 11                                                       Article 8
 1.    If the proportion of nationals of the other Member          1    If the proportion of nationals of the other Member
States resident in a Member State exceeds 20 % of the             States resident in a Member State exceeds 20 % of the
total population, that Member State shall be entitled to          total population, that Member State shall be entitled to
waive application of the Directive to the first general           waive application of the Directive to the first general
local elections to which it would otherwise apply under           local elections to which it would otherwise apply under
Article 14.                                                       Article 11
2.     After these elections, the Commission shall report         2.     After these elections, the Commission shall report
to the Council and, where appropriate, propose whatever           to the Council and, where appropriate, propose whatever
measures might be needed for gradual application of the           measures might be needed for gradual application of the
Directive.                                                        Directive.
                           Article 12                                                        Article 9
 Member States may stipulate that, in the first two                Member States may stipulate that, in the first two
general local elections to which the provisions of this           general local elections to which the provisions of this
 Directive apply, nationals of other Member States                 Directive apply, nationals of other Member States
 elected as municipal councillors may not occupy more              elected as municipal councillors may not occupy more
than one quarter of the seats on a municipal council.              than one quarter of the seats on a municipal council.
 ---pagebreak---  No C 290/10                            Official Journal of the European Communities                            18. 11. 89
                     ORIGINAL PROPOSAL                                                 AMENDED PROPOSAL
                           TITLE V                                                          TITLE IV
                       Final provisions                                                  Final provisions
                          Article 13                                                        Article 10
Three years after the end of the transitional period              Three years after the end of the transitional period
referred to in Articles 11 and 12, the Commission shall           referred to in Articles 8 and 9, the Commission shall
report to Parliament and the Council on implementation            report to Parliament and the Council on implementation
of this Directive.                                                of this Directive.
                          Article 14                                                        Article 11
The Member States shall adopt the measures required to            The Member States shall adopt the measures required to
transpose this Directive into national law within three           transpose this Directive into national law within three
years of notification.                                            years of notification.
They shall notify the Commission of these provisions.             They shall notify the Commission of these provisions.
                          Article 15                                                        Article 12
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.                 This Directive is addressed to the Member States.