Questions and answers - Municipal elections

Official election campaign

When does the official election campaign start?

"In general", the media election campaign starts 4 weeks before the municipal elections.

Postal voting

Who can vote by post?

All voters registered on electoral lists are permitted to vote by post as part of municipal elections.

How to proceed to vote by post?

Electors who would like to vote by post must notify the municipal administration of their place of residence and request a polling card by way of electronic submission on MyGuichet.lu, with a letter or using a pre-printed form that can be obtained from the municipal administration.

What does the letter of request for the municipal administration need to include?

The request must include the surnames, names, date and place of birth, as well as the domicile of the voter, along with the address to which the polling card should be sent.

What are the deadlines to apply for postal voting for municipal elections?

If the polling card needs to be sent to an address based in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the request must be submitted online or be sent by post to the College of Aldermen ("collège des bourgmestre et échevins"), under penalty of lapse, at the earliest 12 weeks and at the latest 25 days prior to the election date.

If the polling card needs to be sent to an address abroad, the deadline for applying is 40 days at the latest prior to election day.

When do requesting parties receive the polling card after having sent a postal voting request for the municipal elections?

If the requesting party meets the conditions for voting, the College of Aldermen sends them the polling card

at the latest 15 days before election day if the polling card must be sent to an address in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg;
at the latest 30 days before election day if the polling card must be sent to an address abroad.

The polling card is sent via registered mail.

If the requesting party does not meet the conditions for postal voting, the College of Aldermen notifies its refusal

at the latest 20 days before election day if the polling card must be sent to an address in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg;
at the latest 35 days before election day if the polling card must be sent to an address abroad.

What does the polling card include?

The polling card includes the list of candidates and instructions for voters, a ballot envelope and a ballot that are duly stamped, as well as an envelope for the delivery of the ballot envelope stating "Elections – Vote par correspondance" (Elections - postal voting), the name of the recipient polling station as well as the order number, surname, names and address of the voter.

How should the ballot be filled out?

Voters must fill out the ballot in accordance with the instructions for voters .

How should the ballot be sent?

The ballot must be sent to the polling station as stated in the polling card. For postage, voters must put their folded ballot, with the stamp on the outside, in the ballot envelope. They must slide this envelope in the transmission envelope and send it as a regular letter.

Ballot envelopes must arrive at the polling station at the latest before 2 pm on election day.

Voting

How many municipal councillors need to be elected as part of municipal elections?

The number of municipal councillors depends on the municipality's number of inhabitants. This is always an odd number.

Municipal councils, including members of the College of Aldermen, are composed as follows:

of 7 members in municipalities with a population of up to 999 inhabitants;
of 9 members in municipalities of 1,000 to 2,999 inhabitants;
of 11 members in municipalities of 3,000 to 5,999 inhabitants;
of 13 members in municipalities of 6,000 to 9,999 inhabitants;
of 15 members in municipalities of 10,000 to 14,999 inhabitants;
of 17 members in municipalities of 15,000 to 19,999 inhabitants;
of 19 members in municipalities of 20,000 inhabitants or more; with the exception of the municipal council of the City of Luxembourg, which is composed of 27 members.

The number of municipal councils allocated to each municipality is determined by Grand Ducal regulation. Voters have as many votes as there are councillors to elect.

The number of municipal councillors allocated to municipalities resulting from a merger is set by the respective law on mergers.

What are the 2 different election modes?

Each municipality or part of a municipality with regard to certain municipalities resulting from a merger form an electoral constituency. All the voters of a municipality participate in the election of members of the municipal council.

In municipalities of the Grand Duchy with a population of under 3,000 inhabitants, elections take place according to the system of relative majority. Each voter has as many votes as there are councillors to elect. Voters vote by writing a cross (+ or x) in the box reserved for this purpose after the name of each candidate for whom they vote.

In municipalities with at least 3,000 inhabitants, elections take place according to the proportional voting system. Each voter has as many votes as there are councillors to elect. They may allocate two votes to each of the candidates, up to the total number of votes that they may cast. By filling out the white circle of the box at the top of the list, voters allocate one vote to each candidate on that list. Each box ticked (+ or x) after the name of a candidate counts as one vote for that candidate.

Must I vote?

Voting is mandatory for all registered voters. Voters may not be represented by proxy. No one can vote unless they are registered on the electoral lists by the 87th day prior to election day, subject to the registrations that occur following a claim or an appeal provided for by law. Citizens of Luxembourg are automatically registered on the electoral list of their municipality of residence as soon as they meet the legal conditions to vote. People living in a different municipality than the one where they are asked to vote at the time of the election and voters above 75 years of age have the right to be excluded.

As a Luxembourg national domiciled abroad, am I obliged to vote?

Luxembourg nationals must be domiciled in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg to vote in municipal elections.

What shall I do if I am unable to vote on election day?

Those who are unable to vote in the election must explain the reason for their absence to their local State Prosecutor, and provide the necessary supporting documents. Unjustified abstentions are punishable by a fine. In the event of repeat offences, the penalty is increased.

The following persons have the right to be excluded:

voters who, at the time of the election, live in a municipality other than the one in which they are supposed to vote;
voters who are over 75 years of age.

Is it possible to vote by proxy?

No, registered voters may not be replaced.

What are the consequences of abstention from voting (financial penalties)?

Abstaining without justification is punishable by a penalty ranging from 100 to 250 euros. In the event of recurrence within five years of the sentence, the penalty ranges from 500 to 1,000 euros.

Who is excluded from the vote?

The following people may not be voters or stand as candidates:

people who have been convicted of criminal offences;
people who are deprived of the right to vote as a result of correctional sanctions;
adults under guardianship.

When is a ballot deemed null and void?

Any ballots other than those that are permitted by law are null and void; ballots that cast more votes than the number of councillors to elect; those whose form or size is altered, that contain a paper or an object, or those whose author may be identified by any sign or erasure unauthorised by law. Null and void ballots are not taken into account to set the number of votes.

Does electronic voting exist in Luxembourg?

No, electronic voting does not exist in Luxembourg.

Electoral lists

What requirements need to be met in order to vote in municipal elections?

To vote in municipal elections, voters must:

be at least 18 years of age on the day of elections;
enjoy civil rights and not have been stripped of the right to vote in either their country of residence or in their home country. The second condition cannot, however, be applied to non-Luxembourg citizens who have lost the right to vote in their country of origin due to residency abroad;
for Luxembourg nationals, be domiciled in the Grand Duchy;
for nationals of another EU Member State, be domiciled in the Grand Duchy and have resided there for at least five years, of which the last year of residence immediately prior to the request for registration on the electoral list must be uninterrupted;
for other foreign nationals, be domiciled in the Grand Duchy and have resided there for at least five years, of which the last year of residence immediately prior to the request for registration on the electoral list must be uninterrupted.

The following persons are excluded from the electorate and are not allowed to vote:

people who have been convicted of criminal offences;
people who, for lesser offences, have been stripped of the right to vote following a conviction;
adults under guardianship.

Under which name am I registered on electoral lists?

Married or widowed voters are registered under their surname and first names - maiden name for women - followed by, if they wish, the addition of spouse or widow, followed by the surname and first names of the spouse.

How to file a claim in the context of electoral lists?

Electoral lists are temporarily established by the College of Aldermen 87 days prior to polling day. The lists are submitted for public inspection, either to the secretariat of the municipality or to the place where meetings of the municipal council are held from the 86th to the 79th day prior to polling day. Any citizen may file a complaint with the College of Aldermen arising from the electoral lists up to the 79th day at the latest before polling day.

A notice invites citizens to produce, up to the 79th day at the latest before polling day, against a receipt, the titles of those who have the right to appear on the lists in force but are not registered on them. The notice also mentions that to be admissible before the Administrative Court, a complaint regarding the registration of a voter must first be submitted for consideration to the College of Aldermen along with all the supporting documents.

Do I need to de-register from the electoral lists of my municipality in the event of relocation?

No. In the case of a change of domicile, the transfer of the right to vote in the new municipality is mandatory. The mayor of the former municipality notifies the change of domicile to the new municipality. The mayor of the municipality where the elector establishes their new residence adds the elector to that municipality's electoral list. The mayor of the municipality where the elector had their former residence strikes the elector off that municipality's electoral roll.

Election day

Which polling station should I attend?

The Colleges of Aldermen send each voter a polling card stating the day, opening and closing times of the election, the premises where the election takes place and, in case there are several polling stations, the specific station where the voter is called to vote.

Voters who are domiciled in Luxembourg receive the polling card at least 15 days before election day. Voters domiciled abroad receive it 30 days before election day.

Moreover, polling cards are published in each voting locality.

What are the opening hours of the polling stations?

Electors can vote from 8 am to 2 pm.

Which ID card must be provided on election day?

On election day, voters must go to the polling station with their ID card, passport or residence permit. Producing the polling card is not required.

Is voting assistance permitted for electors with physical or visual impairment?

Voters determined to be visually impaired or disabled may be authorised by the chief polling officer to be accompanied by a guide or aide who may even help them to vote if they are unable to do so themselves. The following people may not be guides or aides for visually impaired or disabled voters: candidates running for elections, their parents or relatives up to the second degree included, holders of a national, European or municipal elective mandate, people who do not know how to read or write, as well as those who are excluded from the electorate according to the provisions of Article 6 of electoral law. The names of the voter and their guide or aide, as well as the kind of disability or impairment invoked must be recorded in the minutes.

Visually impaired voters are also allowed to cast their vote by using the tactile voting device provided by the body designated under a Grand Ducal regulation. Visually impaired voters who attend the polling station without any tactile voting device can use the device that is made available by the polling station, that they must return to the chief polling officer after casting their vote. A member of the polling station can accompany visually impaired voters in a cubicle to help them insert the ballot paper inside the tactile voting device.

Voting for non-Luxembourgish citizens

I am a non-Luxembourgish citizen and I have voted in the last municipal elections, am I obliged to register again?

If a foreign national is registered to vote, they will remain registered under the same conditions as Luxembourgish voters (should they move, they do not need to re-register), until they ask to be removed or until they are officially removed because they no longer meet the eligibility criteria.

As a foreign voter residing in the Grand Duchy, can I be removed from the electoral roll?

Voters who wish to be removed from the electoral register must make their request in writing to the College of Aldermen, attaching a photocopy of their identity document (identity card or passport).