The right to political participation of persons with mental health problems and persons with intellectual disabilities

This report provides the first results from a legal study carried out by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) in the context of its project on the 'Fundamental rights of persons with intellectual disabilities and persons with mental health problems'. Given that the right to political participation is one of the fundamental rights of EU citizens, the FRA decided to publish its findings in this area. The report sets out by recalling the international and European standards favouring the full participation of persons with intellectual disabilities and persons with mental health problems in the electoral process. The comparative law analysis then highlights the diverse approaches adopted in the EU Member States. In a majority of these, persons who have lost their legal capacity are automatically deprived of their right to political participation. The European Court of Human Rights, however, clearly stated that such an automatic deprivation contravenes the European Convention on Human Rights, to which all EU Member States are party. In other EU Member States, the practice is to organise an individualised assessment of the actual ability to vote of the individuals in question. Finally, a third group of EU Member States have moved towards full participation of persons with disabilities in the electoral process. The report provides some way forward to make sure that the standards in this area are applied in practice.