NATIONAL ELECTORAL COUNCIL

Political participation of people with disabilities

2014

Roxana Silva Ch.National Electoral Council Member

ContentsDisabilities in numbers

Normative of political participation of people with disabilitiesEcuadorian ConstitutionConvention on the Rights of People with Disabilities Democracy CodeRegulation for political participation of people with disabilities

Assisted Vote Priority attention table Vote at Home (Spanish: Voto en Casa)

Representation of the optional vote in Ecuador

Disabilities in numbers

Number of people with disabilities in Ecuador who can vote:

279.624

Percentage of people with disabilities in Ecuador:12% of Ecuador’s population

Number of people with disabilities in Ecuador, according to the 2010 census:815.900

Normative for political participation of people with disabilities

1.- Ecuadorian Constitution:

Art. 48.- The State will adopt in favor of people with disabilities, measures that will ensure:

1. Social (political) inclusion, through governmental and private plans.

Art. 65.- The State will adopt affirmative actions in order to guarantee the participation of traditional excluded groups.

Art. 47.- The State will guarantee preventive policies (…), as well as equal opportunities. For people with disabilities, the following rights are recognized:

11. Access to mechanisms and alternative communication forms, such as Sign Language for deaf people, audio and braille system.

2.- Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities

Art. 29.- Party States will ensure that people with disabilities can participate fully and effectively in political and public life with equal conditions as others, (…) through:

i) Ensuring that procedures, facilities and electoral materials are appropriate, accessible and easy to be understood and used;

ii) They can present themselves as candidates for elections, making it easier to use new technologies and support technologies;

iii) Whenever it is necessary and on their demand, allow that a person they chose may assist them in the voting process;

3.- Democracy Code Art. 11.- The exercise of the voting right shall be in accordance to the following dispositions:

2. Voting will be optional for people with disabilities.

The National Electoral Commission will regulate and establish the needed conditions to ease the voting process of people with disabilities.

Art. 111.- The National Electoral Commission will provide suitable mechanisms in order to ease people with disabilities voting process, including them in the issued electoral normative. Art. 115.- The National Electoral Commission will regulate the voting methods for cases of people with disabilities, whose disability does not allow them to vote.

4.- Regulation for political participation of people with disabilities

Assisted Vote

Art. 2.- The National Electoral Commission will ensure that free decision and will of people with disabilities as constituents and to this end, whenever it is necessary and on their demand, allow that a person they chose may assist them in the voting process.

Priority attention table

Art. 3.- In each electoral precinct there will be at least one priority attention table for people with disabilities, pregnant women and senior citizens, located on the ground floor and properly identified, where the proper support will be provided for them to exercise their voting right.

In precincts with 10 to 30 polling stations 1 table with 2 members.

In precincts with 31 or more polling stations 2 tables with 2 members each one.

In precincts with less than 10 polling stations, these functions will be conducted at the information table.

Vote at Home (Spanish: Voto en Casa)

Art 7.- The National Electoral Commission, will implement a program that will enable the voting process of people with disabilities that cannot approach an electoral precinct, which consists in bringing the polling station to the people with disabilities homes.

Selection criteria for beneficiaries of the Vote at Home Project:

• People with more than 75% disability• People with hemiplegia or paraplegia • People older than 65 years old

Previous selection for

creating moving polling

stations.

The Project will be applied in 12 provinces. As well as

in Azuay and Santo Domingo, where we will apply the Electronic Vote

pilot project.

40 moving polling stations– more than 1000

people with disabilities

served.

Representation of the optional vote in Ecuador

Roxana Silva Ch.

Social Networks:

Facebook.com/RoxanaSilvaCh Twitter: @roxanasilvach

Web: www.roxanasilva.com

Cel: 593-9-9654 6745