IS DENYING LEGALLY INCOMPETENT (INCAPACITATED) PERSONS THE RIGHT TO VOTE COMPATIBLE WITH PRINCIPLES OF DEMOCRACY IN THE EUROPEAN UNION – AN ANALYSIS BASED ON THE EXAMPLE OF EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ELECTIONS
IS DENYING LEGALLY INCOMPETENT (INCAPACITATED) PERSONS THE RIGHT TO VOTE COMPATIBLE WITH PRINCIPLES OF DEMOCRACY IN THE EUROPEAN UNION – AN ANALYSIS BASED ON THE EXAMPLE OF EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ELECTIONS

Summary/Abstract: Epidemiological data concerning persons affected by dementia disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD), are alarming. The population affected by dementia disorders may increase by up to three times by the year 2050. Adverse demographic changes remain the underlying reason, the swift ageing of the majority of European societies (all health and economic consequences included) having given rise to the silver tsunami phrase coined in scientific literature. Legal solutions regarding the legal competence of individuals with mental disorders, dementia included, differ across individual European Union Member States, with the disparities arising due to varying legal traditions. While some countries still employ the institution of full or partial incapacitation, others have chosen to replace the latter with more flexible solutions. The right to vote is a fundamental right in democratic states. As it is, the 27 EU Member States pursue one or more of the following three electoral right-related solutions: (1) exclusion from participating in elections, (2) conditional participation in elections, (3) full voting rights. Since states applying the first solution comprise over two-thirds of the European Union’s population, several hundred thousand constituents are excluded from the voting process. Denying such large groups the right to vote in elections to the European Parliament may gravely impact election results. The issue of regulations regarding voting rights extended to persons without full legal competence has not been harmonised on the EU level. Electoral law regulations have been designated a Member States’ competence, with the proviso that states must respect general EU law principles, including the prohibition of discrimination.

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