Swedish Code of Statutes

Mail Voting in Certain Cases Act

2003:84

 

Enacted on 13 March 2003.

 

It is by decision of the Riksdag (the Swedish Parliament)

provided as follows.

 

Who is entitled to submit a mail vote

 

Section 1

 

Voters who are abroad or on board vessels plying international routes may in accordance with this Act submit mail votes in general elections or re-elections to the Riksdag, general elections to County Council and Municipal Assemblies and in extra elections to the Riksdag, elections to the European Parliament and referendums.

 

The provisions of the Elections Act (1997:157) shall apply to mail votes unless otherwise follows from this Act.

 

 

How to submit a mail vote

 

Section 2

 

A person who wishes to submit a mail vote shall

– himself or herself place a ballot paper in a vote envelope for each type of election or referendum,

– place the vote envelopes that have been prepared in an outer envelope for mail votes in the presence of two witnesses,

– seal the outer envelope,

– solemnly declare that the vote envelopes and outer envelope have been prepared in this manner and have been prepared abroad or on board a vessel plying an international route,

– write his or her name and civil registration number on the outer envelope for mail votes,

and

– certify that the vote envelopes have not been prepared any earlier than as provided in Section 6.

 

 

Section 3

 

When the outer envelope of a mail vote has been prepared in the manner provided in Section 2, the witnesses shall on the outer envelope

– certify in writing that the voter has himself or herself signed the declaration and that they are not aware of anything that would have the effect of the contents of the declaration being incorrect, and

– write their addresses.

 

Section 4

 

Witnesses shall be aged 18 or above. The voter’s spouse or children or spouse’s children shall not be witnesses. This applies also to cohabitees and children of cohabitees.

 

 

How mail votes are to be sent

 

Section 5

 

The voter shall when the outer envelope has been prepared in the manner provided in Sections 2 and 3

– place the outer envelope in a window envelope for mail votes,

– place either his or her voting card or pre-printed address card or, if the voter does not have access to either, an address card on which the voter has himself or herself written his or her civil registration number and name,

– seal this envelope,

– write his or her name and civil registration number on the window envelope, and

– send the window envelope by mail to the Central Election Authority.

 

 

When mail votes may be prepared

 

Section 6

 

Outer envelopes for mail votes from abroad or from vessels plying international routes shall not be prepared any earlier than 30 days prior to the voting days of general elections or re-elections to the Riksdag, general elections to County Council and Municipal Assemblies, extra elections to the Riksdag, elections to the European Parliament or referendums.

 

 

Section 7

 

The Central Election Authority must receive window envelopes for mail votes no later than the day after the voting day.

 

 

Section 8

 

The Central Election Authority shall as and when window envelopes are received from abroad or vessels plying international routes continuously record the number of window envelopes received by the Authority and thereafter send the envelopes to the Election Committee of the municipality where the voter is entered on the electoral roll.

 

 

How the election committee shall process window envelopes

 

Section 9

 

The Election Committee shall note in its minutes when a window envelope for mail votes arrives at the Committee from the Central Election Authority.

 

The Election Committee shall store the window envelopes safely and securely until the Election Committee’s meeting for preliminary counting of votes pursuant to Chapter 17 of the Elections Act.

(1997:157).

 

 

Section 10

 

The Election Committee shall examine the window envelopes and their contents at the Election Committee’s meeting for preliminary counting of votes pursuant to Chapter 17 of the Elections Act

(1997:157).

 

When the Election Committee has done what is provided in Chapter 17 Sections 3-7 of the Elections Act (1997:157), the Committee shall examine the window envelopes for mail votes. The Committee shall in that examination do the following.

1. Count the number of window envelopes and note this in the minutes.

2. Examine the window envelopes. The Election Committee shall in this examination verify that the window envelopes

– have not been opened after having been sealed,

– have been sent by mail from abroad or from vessels plying international routes, and

– have been received by the Central Election Authority no later than the day after the voting day.

3. Open the window envelopes that meet the requirements in 2, extract the outer envelopes and verify that the voters

– are entitled to vote in the municipality,

– have not voted at the polling station during the voting day,

– have not submitted any window envelope in accordance with Chapter 8 Section 3 Sub-section 3 of the Elections Act (1997:157),

and

– have not submitted more than one outer envelope for mail votes.

 

 

Section 11

 

If the requirements set out in Section 10 are satisfied, the Election Committee shall continue examining the outer envelopes and check that they are sealed.

 

If the outer envelope is sealed, the Election Committee shall in its continued examination verify that the voter

– has on the outer envelope solemnly declared that the voter has himself or herself prepared the vote envelope and placed it in the outer envelope in the presence of two witnesses and that the envelopes have been prepared abroad or on board a vessel plying an international route,

– has written his or her name and civil registration number on the envelope, and

– has certified that the vote envelope was not prepared any earlier than as provided in Section 6.

 

The Election Committee shall also verify that two witnesses have certified in writing on the outer envelope that

– the voter himself or herself has placed the vote envelope in the outer envelope and sealed it,

– the voter himself or herself has signed the declaration on the outer envelope,

– the outer envelope has been prepared abroad or on board a vessel plying an international route, and

– the outer envelope has not been prepared any earlier than as provided in Section 6.

 

 

Section 12

 

If the requirements in Section 11 are satisfied, the Election Committee shall open the outer envelope and check that

– it contains a vote envelope,

– the voter has only prepared one vote envelope for each type of election or referendum,

– there is no unauthorized mark on the vote envelope, and

– each vote envelope manifestly contains a ballot paper.

 

Section 13

 

The Election Committee shall in the examination pursuant to Sections 10–12

-  place the vote envelopes that satisfy the requirements in Sections 10–12 in the ballot box for the relevant constituency and election or referendum,

-  note on the electoral roll for the election or referendum to which the ballot paper relates that the voter has voted,

-  place the window envelopes that do not satisfy the requirements of Section 10 Sub-section 2 second item in a special cover,

-  replace outer envelopes or vote envelopes that do not satisfy the requirements of Section 10 Sub-section 2 third item and Sections 11 and 12 in their window envelopes after the vote envelopes have been replaced in their outer envelopes and place the window envelopes in a special cover,

-  note on every special cover the name of the constituency and the municipality and the number of window envelopes the cover contains, and

-  seal the special cover.

 

This Act shall come into force on 1 April 2003 and shall have effect until the end of 2003.