Elections to the European Parliament on 25 May 2014
Elections to the European Parliament (European elections) are held in the Member States of the European Union between 22 and 25 May. In the elections, 751 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) from 28 Member States are elected for the next five-year term.
The election day in Finland is Sunday, 25 May. Thirteen MEPs are elected from Finland.
Every Finnish citizen who has reached the age of 18 not later than on the election day, irrespective of his or her domicile, is entitled to vote. If a Finnish citizen has registered to vote in the European elections that are held in another EU Member State, he or she is not, however, entitled to vote in the European elections in Finland.
Citizens of other EU Member States who have reached the age of 18 not later than on the election day and who have a municipality of residence in Finland are also entitled to vote in Finland. In addition, European Union citizens who are employed by the EU or other international organisations and are resident in Finland may vote in Finland even if they do not have a municipality of residence here. This requires, however, that they have registered to vote in Finland.
Information on candidates and advance polling stations on the mobile site
The Population Register Centre sends a polling card (i.e. a notice of right to vote) to each eligible voter. The card contains information on the voter's polling station on the election day as well as a list of the advance polling stations in the voter's electoral district. A novelty is a QR code printed on the polling card. By scanning the code, the voter comes to the mobile site of the Ministry of Justice which contains information on the candidates and provides a possibility to search for the nearest advance polling station. In addition to mobile devices, the mobile site is accessible also via computers.
The elections website of the Ministry of Justice, www.vaalit.fi/en, also contains comprehensive information on the elections to the European Parliament in different languages.
Voters must present proof of their identity both when voting on the election day and when voting in advance. The identification must have a photo on it. It is not necessary to bring the polling card to the general advance polling station or the polling station on the election day. This may, however, be useful when voting at an institution or abroad.
Candidates in the European elections are the same in the entire country, so the voters may vote for any of the candidates. The master list of candidates and candidate numbers are confirmed on 24 April.
Advance voting and voting on election day
The advance voting period in the elections to the European Parliament begins in Finland on Wednesday, 14 May and ends on Tuesday, 20 May. Those entitled to vote may do so at any of the general advance polling stations in Finland or abroad.
Opening hours of the advance polling stations vary, but there is at least one advance polling station open every day during the advance voting period in almost all the municipalities. Advance voting is arranged abroad from 14 to 17 May, but the voting period is shorter than this at many of the advance polling stations abroad.
Persons whose ability to move is so restricted that they are unable to come to an advance polling station or a polling station on election day without undue hardship may vote in advance at their homes. Those who wish to vote in advance at their home must notify the central electoral committee in their municipality of their intention by 16.00 on 13 May.
The election day is Sunday, 25 May, and the polling stations are then open between 9 and 20. On the election day, voters may cast their votes only at the polling station specified in the polling card sent to them in advance.
Further information:
Arto Jääskeläinen, Director of Electoral Administration, tel. 02951 50128
Jussi Aaltonen, Ministerial Adviser, tel. 02951 50560