questions and answers
Instead of at the ballot box, voters can also put their cross at home. The necessary documents can be requested until mid-September. You can find out how to do this and what else you need to know here.
In the 2017 federal election, the proportion of postal voters was just under 29 percent. Because of the corona pandemic, even more people could vote by post this time. In practice it works like this:
Who can vote by postal vote?
Basically all eligible voters, “without any particular reason,” explains the Federal Returning Officer. In 2013, the Federal Constitutional Court confirmed this general approval of postal voting as constitutional: The authorization of postal voting serves the goal of achieving the widest possible voter turnout and thus taking into account the principle of the generality of the election.
How do I get the documents?
Definitely not by applying for it to the Federal Returning Officer – it is highlighted in color on his website. You can obtain the documents from the municipal authority of your main residence. A form for applying for the ballot, which is required, is enclosed with the voting notification. This should reach the electorate by the beginning of September. However, you don’t have to wait for it. Rather, the Federal Returning Officer advises to apply for a ballot “as early as possible”. This can usually also be done online. Basically, the Friday (6 p.m.) before the election date is the deadline for this.
What do you have to consider when filling out?
Ballot slip, ballot paper, ballot envelope in blue, ballot envelope in red plus information sheet – all of this arrives in the mailbox. The information sheet explains how postal voting works: tick the first and second votes personally and unobserved on the voting slip. Wrinkles. Put it in the blue envelope and seal it. Date the affirmation on an oath instead of on the ballot paper and – very importantly – sign it. Put the blue envelope plus voting slip in the red envelope, seal it and throw it in the mailbox with no postage. Or you can bring it to the place indicated on the envelope.
Can you be sure that the voice will also arrive?
Yes. The red color of the envelopes makes them noticeable and easy to recognize. It was agreed with Deutsche Post that even election letters that were thrown in the mailbox the day before the election would be delivered on election Sunday, according to the Federal Returning Officer. If it didn’t work in time to throw it in, you can hand in the red envelope on election day at the place indicated on this – or have it handed in.
Are more absentee ballots than ballot box votes invalid?
No. In the last general election, 0.9 percent of the first votes cast by letter were invalid – compared to 1.4 percent of those cast on election day. Of the second votes, it was only 0.5 percent (letter) compared to 1.2 (urn).
How many people actually vote by postal vote?
Since 1957, the proportion of postal voters has risen from just under 5 to almost 29 percent in the last federal election. This time it could be more because of the corona pandemic.
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