election-watch.eu

On 26 May 2026, the Council of the European Union adopted a revised Directive aimed at strengthening the electoral rights of EU citizens residing in another Member State in municipal elections.

The reform updates and modernises the existing 1994 legislation governing the right of mobile EU citizens to vote and stand as candidates in local elections. It forms part of the broader European Democracy Package and complements the recently adopted reform concerning European Parliament elections.

The new rules aim to facilitate democratic participation for the estimated 13.5 million EU citizens living in another Member State and address persistent barriers that have contributed to low electoral participation among mobile EU citizens across the EU. The Election- Watch.EU EAM 2024 calculated a total of 13.7 million mobile EU citizens, some 11 million considered to be of voting age.

Key improvements introduced by the new Directive

The revised legislation includes several important safeguards and practical improvements, notably:

• proactive provision of information to mobile EU citizens regarding their electoral rights and registration procedures;
• availability of information in widely understood EU languages;
• simplified and more accessible voter registration procedures;
• safeguards against automatic deregistration from electoral rolls in the Member State of origin when registering abroad;
• clearer and more consistent administrative procedures across Member States.

The reform responds to longstanding concerns identified by CSOs, election observers, and EU institutions regarding limited awareness, burdensome procedures, and inconsistent implementation of electoral rights for mobile EU citizens.

Election-Watch.EU has repeatedly highlighted these challenges in the framework of its EU- wide Election Assessment Missions 2019 and 2024 and electoral reform advocacy work. The organisation also welcomed the recent reform of the sister Directive governing participation rights in European Parliament elections eleven months ago and applicable to the upcoming 2029 European Parliament elections.

mobile EU citizens