Regionais da Madeira

Portuguese citizens over the age of 18, living in the Autonomous Region of Madeira and registered in the respective electoral register and, as well citizens with Brazilian nationality, living in the Autonomous Region of Madeira, who have equal status of political rights, may vote.

Yes, as you were automatically registered at the age of 17, on a provisional basis, becoming an actual voter on the date you turn 18 years old, if you are registered in the Autonomous Region of Madeira.

It is mandatory to update the residence on the citizen's card, and the transfer of registration on the electoral roll is done automatically.

It should be noted that, as the operations of updating the voter register are suspended on the 60^th day before each election or referendum, only updates arising from Citizen Cards that have been issued and activated by March 28, 2024 will be considered. Transfers resulting from a change of address on the Citizen's Card, which is issued and activated after that date, are only carried out from the day following the date on which the election is held (the date on which the voter registration update is legally resumed), so that in this situation, in the present electoral act, voters can only vote in the parish of their previous residence.

You can always consult information about your registration on the electoral roll, or, in the fifteen days preceding the electoral act, obtain information about your polling station:

At the parish council of the area of residence.
At the town hall of the area of

residence.
Through the Internet (https://recenseamento.pt).
By SMS (write the following message: RE <space>civil ID number without check.
digits <space> date of birth YYYYMMDD
example: RE 1444880 19531007
and dial 3838), within 15 days before
the day of the election or referendum;
or

via the Voter Helpline: 808 206 206.

The right to vote is exercised at the locality where you are registered, which in this case corresponds to your earlier address. Only after the address on the Citizen's Card has been updated will your registration on the electoral register be automatically changed to the parish that corresponds to your new address.

You can consult information about your registration on the electoral roll at any time or, in the fifteen days preceding the electoral act, obtain information about your polling station:
At the Parish Council of your area of residence.
At the Town Hall in your area of residence.
Through the Internet (https://recenseamento.pt).
By SMS (write the following message: RE <space>civil ID no. without check. digits <space> date of birth YYYYMMDD example: RE 1444880 19531007 and dial 3838), within 15 days before the day of the election or referendum.
Through the Voter Helpline (Linha de Apoio ao Eleitor): 808206206.

The voter number has been removed. On polling day to exercise your right to vote, on presenting yourself before the polling station, simply state your name and hand the civil ID card to the presiding officer.

In the absence of a civil identification document, you may identify yourself by means of any other official document with a current photo, or by two voters who attest, under oath of honour, to your identity, or even by unanimous recognition of the members of the polling station.

You can obtain this information in the fifteen days prior to the election:

At the Parish Council.
At the Town Hall.
Through the Internet (http://recenseamento.pt);
By SMS (write the following message: RE <space>civil ID no. without check. digit <space>date of birth YYYYMMDD example: RE 1444880 19531007 and dial 3838), in the 15 days before the day of the election or referendum;
Through the Voter Helpline: 808 206 206.

47 deputies are elected.

Political parties and coalitions of political parties.

Portuguese citizens who are allowed to vote, with residence in the Autonomous Region of Madeira, and citizens of Brazilian nationality, as long as they have equal political rights, with habitual residence in the Autonomous Region of Madeira.

Portuguese citizens who are allowed to vote, with residence in the Autonomous Region of Madeira.

The list of the following people may not run for the Legislative Assembly of the Autonomous Region of Madeira:

The President of the Republic.
Representatives of the Republic in the Autonomous Regions;
Judges or public prosecutors in full service;
Serving judges;
Military personnel and members of the militarized forces belonging to the permanent staff, while on active service;
Career diplomats in active service;
Those exercising diplomatic functions at the date of submission of the candidacies;
Members of the National Electoral Commission;
Directors and heads of tax offices and ministers of any religion or cult with jurisdictional powers for the constituency in which they exercise their activity.

No, to be a candidate you must have your habitual residence in the Autonomous Region of Madeira.

Yes, citizens over 17 years of age who are provisionally registered on the electoral roll may be included on a list of candidates, provided that they have reached the age of 18 on election day.

The candidacies are presented at the civil courts of the District Court of Funchal.

Candidacies must be submitted no later than 40 days before the election date.

The presentation of a candidacy consists in the delivery of:

List containing the names of the candidates and the representative and the following identification elements: age, filiation, profession, place of birth, residence, number of the Citizen Card/Identity Card, identification file and date of the Identity Card; and,
Declaration of candidacy (in case of coalition should indicate the party proposing each of the candidates) signed jointly or separately by the candidates, where they mention that they are not covered by any ineligibility, are not part of another candidacy list, accept the candidacy by the party or coalition proposing the list and agree with the proxy indicated in the list.

The documents required to instruct the application process are:

Certificate from the Constitutional Court, proving the registration of the political party and the respective date and also, in the case of coalitions of parties, certificate from the Constitutional Court, proving the legality and annotation of the coalition; and,
Certificate of enrollment in the electoral census (voter certificate) of candidates and representative.

47 effective candidates and 47 alternate candidates. The lists must contain the indication of effective candidates in an equal number to the mandates assigned to the single constituency, and alternate candidates in an equal number to the effective candidates .

The candidates themselves, the representatives of the list or any citizen representing the political party or coalition can apply.

Voter certificates are issued:

by the census commissions, which operate in the parish councils;
in the reserved area of the voter portal at https://www.portaldoeleitor.pt

Yes.

No, representatives are appointed by political parties and coalitions of competing parties, and therefore represent different interests, within the scope of the candidacy assessment process and throughout the entire electoral process.

Yes. The withdrawal can be made up to 48 hours before election day, by means of a declaration signed by the candidate, with the signature notarized before a notary and presented to the judge where the candidacy was presented.

Yes, however, it is recommended that polling stations are staffed by citizens who are not candidates, in order to avoid any embarrassment with voters or other polling staff during the course of voting and tabulation operations.

Yes, as a candidate, you are entitled to be exempted from exercising your respective functions, whether public or private, during the period of the election campaign, this time counting for all purposes, including the right to remuneration, as effective service time.

Yes, everyone has that right.

Yes, as there is no incompatibility.

Delegates of the lists on election day are responsible for monitoring and supervising the voting operations and tabulation of results.

The delegates of the lists enjoy the following rights:

Occupy the seats closest to the polling station, in order to be able to monitor all electoral operations;
Be heard and clarified about all questions that arise during the functioning of the table, in the voting phase or in the tabulation phase;
Consult at all times the copies of the electoral rolls used by the polling station;
Present, orally or in writing, complaints, protests or counter-protests within the scope of electoral operations;
Sign the minutes and initial, seal and seal all documents relating to voting and tabulation operations;
Obtain all the certificates related to the voting and tabulation operations that they require.

No. List delegates may not be registered in the electoral register in the parish corresponding to the polling station or section where they will exercise their functions.

Yes he/she can.

No, the effective delegate and the substitute cannot exercise functions simultaneously. In the absence of the effective delegate, his substitute shall exercise functions and vice versa.

No, list delegates cannot be assigned to replace an absent polling station member.

No. By virtue of the legally prescribed duty of neutrality, members of State bodies, Autonomous Regions and local authorities, as well as, in that capacity, the respective holders, cannot intervene directly or indirectly in an electoral campaign or perform any acts that favor or harm an election campaign, to the detriment or advantage of another or others, and must ensure equal treatment and impartiality in any intervention in electoral procedures.

Yes, list delegates are exempt from the duty to attend their job or service on election day and the following day, without prejudice to all their rights and benefits. For this purpose, you must present the respective credential and the certificate issued and signed by the Chairman of the respective table of the polling station.

Yes, the credential remains valid for the exercise of functions on the date of the repetition of the election.

Members of polling stations must be registered in the parish where they will exercise their functions and must know how to read and write Portuguese.

Members of polling stations are appointed by agreement between the delegates from the candidacy lists present at a meeting held for this purpose or, in the absence of agreement, by drawing lots to be carried out at the municipal council by the Mayor.

The meeting for choosing polling station members takes place at the headquarters of the Parish Council until the 17th day prior to the date designated for the election (May 9). Delegates from the lists must be present at this meeting, which for this purpose must be previously called, with a precise indication of the date and time, by the respective President of the Parish Council.

No. The President of the Parish Council only calls the meeting, provides access to the Parish Council's facilities, provides logistical support and transmits the chosen names and/or the lack of agreement, if this occurs, to the Mayor. However, if the delegates present express an interest in the President presence, the President may attend the meeting.

In the absence of an agreement, the delegates of the lists indicate in writing, on the 16th or 15th day prior to the election, to the Mayor two citizens for each seat still to be filled, so that a choice can be made between them, in the within 24 hours, by lottery.

Yes, they can.

Any voter may complain against the choice of polling station members to the Mayor, within the two days following the posting of the public notice containing the names of the chosen polling station members, based on breach of the requirements established by law.

Yes, candidates may be polling station members, except when the duties of neutrality and impartiality are imposed on them, namely when they are holders of bodies of the State, the Autonomous Regions or local authorities, and it is their duty to refrain from performing any acts favoring or harming one candidacy to the detriment or advantage of another or others, and the duty to ensure equal treatment and impartiality in any intervention in electoral procedures.

No. Since they are holders of a local authority body, they cannot, in that capacity, intervene directly or indirectly in the electoral campaign or perform any acts that favor or harm one candidacy to the detriment or advantage of another or others, and must ensure equal treatment and impartiality in any intervention in electoral procedures. Furthermore, on election day, the President of the Parish Council has functions that, under the terms of the Law, are entrusted to him, and must be assisted by the other members of the executive.

You can register for the electoral agents’ pool, at your town hall or parish council or through the internet at https://www.portaldoeleitor.pt/.

It should be noted, however, that the recourse to the electoral agents pool is only triggered when the number of citizens selected in the general terms is insufficient, either at the designation stage or on the very day of the election, to replace absent polling members.

The performance of the functions of a polling station member, which constitute a fundamental civic duty, is mandatory, except for reasons of force majeure or just cause.

The grounds for impediment are as follows:

Age over 65 years;
Proven illness or physical impossibility, by the municipal health delegate;
Change of residence to the area of another municipality confirmed by the parish council of the new residence;
Absence abroad, duly proven; and,
Exercise of professional activity of an urgent nature, duly proven by a hierarchic superior.

In this situation, you must communicate to the Mayor, immediately and no later than three days before the election, justifying, reasonedly, the reason for this impossibility.

Yes, polling station members are exempt from the duty to attend their respective job or service on election day and the following day, without prejudice to all their rights and benefits.

Proof of the exercise of functions as a polling station member is provided to the employer, through the presentation of the appointment permit and a certificate issued and signed by the Chairman of the respective board.

Polling station members receive a tax-free bonus of 59.15€.

Yes, you can vote in advance if you are a higher education student registered in the Region and studying on the mainland or in the Autonomous Region of the Azores.

You must request the necessary documentation to vote by May 6, 2024, from the mayor of the municipality in whose area you are registered.

Along with the application you must send:

Certified copy of Citizen Card or Identity Card;
Supporting document issued by the educational establishment where you are enrolled or registered.

Until May 9, 2024, the mayor sends, by registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt, the documentation necessary to exercise the right to vote and returns the documents that accompanied the request.

On May 17, 2024, between 9:00 am and 7:00 pm, in possession of the documentation received, you must go to the town hall of the municipality where the educational establishment is located to exercise your right to vote.

Yes, you can vote early. For this purpose, you must contact the mayor of the municipality in which you are registered, between May 16th and 21st, expressing your willingness to exercise your right to vote in advance.

You must take:

Citizen Card, Identity Card or other identification document, such as Driving License or Passport;
Document proving the impediment issued by the hierarchical superior.

Yes, you can vote early. For this purpose, you must contact the mayor of the municipality in which you are registered, between May 16th and 21st, expressing your willingness to exercise your right to vote in advance.

You must take:

Citizen Card, Identity Card or other identification document, such as Driving License or Passport;

Document proving the impediment issued by the hierarchical superior.

Yes, you can vote early. For this purpose, you must contact the mayor of the municipality in which you are registered, between May 16th and 21st, expressing your willingness to exercise your right to vote in advance.

You must take:

Citizen Card, Identity Card or other identification document, such as Driving License or Passport;
Document proving the impediment issued by the hierarchical superior or by the employer.

Yes, you can vote in advance as long as the selection to which you belong is organized by a sports federation with sporting public utility status. For this purpose, you must go to the mayor of the municipality in whose area it is registered, between May 16th and 21st, expressing your willingness to exercise your right to vote in advance.

You must take:

Citizen Card, Identity Card or other identification document, such as Driving License or Passport;
Document that sufficiently proves your impediment.

Yes, you can vote in advance. You must request the necessary documentation to vote by the 20th day before the election (May 6) to the mayor of the municipality in whose area you are registered.

Along with the application you must send:

Certified copy of Citizen Card or Identity Card;
Document proving the impediment invoked passed by the attending physician and confirmed by the direction of the hospital establishment.

Up to the 17th day prior to the election (May 9th), the mayor sends, by registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt, the documentation necessary to exercise the right to vote and returns the documents that accompanied the request.

Between the 13th and 20th day prior to the election (between May 13th and 16th) , you must wait for the mayor, or his representative, to appear at the hospital to exercise your right to vote.

Yes, you can vote early. Up to the 20th day prior to the election (May 6th), you must apply to the mayor of the municipality in whose area you are registered for the necessary documentation to vote.

Along with the application you must send:

Certified copy of Citizen Card or Identity Card;
Document proving the impediment invoked issued by the director of the prison.

Up to the 17th day prior to the election (May 9th), the mayor sends, by registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt, the documentation necessary to exercise the right to vote and returns the documents that accompanied the request.

Between the 13th and 10th day prior to the election (between May 13th and 16th), you must wait for the mayor, or his representative, to appear at the prison to exercise your right to vote.

No. This reason (holidays) is not included in the Electoral Law as a justifying reason for exercising the right to vote in advance.

Yes, you can vote early if you are:

Military, militarized and civil agent integrated in peacekeeping operations, technical-military cooperation or equivalent;
Doctor, nurse or citizen involved in humanitarian missions, recognized as such by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
Researcher or scholarship holder at university or similar institutions, recognized as such by the competent ministry;
College student, under exchange programs;
Spouse or equivalent, relative or affine who lives with a voter who is in one of the situations mentioned above.

Between the 12th and 10th day prior to the election (between May 14th and 16th), you can exercise your right to vote at diplomatic and consular representations or at external delegations of Portuguese ministries and public institutions previously defined by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

You must bring:

Citizen Card, Identity Card or other identification document, such as Driving License or Passport;
Document proving the impediment invoked.

The voter, before the polling station, must indicate his name, identifying himself with the Citizen Card or Identity Card, or failing that, a document containing an updated photograph and which is usually used for identification.

You can vote by being identified by two voters who attest your identity under oath or, still, by unanimous recognition of the polling station members.

You can obtain this information, in the fifteen days prior to the election:

at the Parish Council;
at City Hall;
through the Internet (http://recenseamento.pt);
by SMS (write the following message: RE <space> civil identification number without check. digit <space> date of birth YYYYMMDD example: RE 1444880 19531007 and dial 3838).

Voting takes place without interruption from 8:00 am to 7:00 pm. After the voting closing time (7:00 pm) has passed, only voters who are inside the polling station or section can vote.

Yes. The issue of the voter card was discontinued in October 2008 and the voter number eliminated in August 2018. Thus, in order to vote, you only need to identify yourself with your Citizen Card or Identity Card or, failing that, a document containing up-to-date photograph that is commonly used for identification.

No. The vote is exercised in person and no form of representation or delegation is admitted.

Accompanied voting is allowed when a voter, affected by illness or notorious physical disability, is unable to exercise the right to vote alone, fact which the presiding officer verifies. In this case, the voter votes accompanied by another voter chosen by him, who guarantees the fidelity of expression of his vote and who is obliged to absolute secrecy.

If the presiding officer has doubts about the need for the voter to exercise his right to vote accompanied, he may demand that he be presented with a certificate proving the impossibility of carrying out the voting acts, issued by the municipal health delegate or his legal substitute and authenticated with the seal of the respective service. For this purpose, health centers are open on election day, between 8 am and 7 pm.

The voter enters the polling chamber located in the polling station/section and there, alone, marks with a cross the square corresponding to his voting option. Then folds the ballot paper into four, with the printed part facing inwards.

You must ask the Chairman of the table for another, returning the first one. The President affixes the “unusable” note to the returned form, initials it and keeps it separately.

Inside the polling station and outside it, up to a distance of 500 meters, no one can reveal which list they are going to vote for or have voted for.

No, the ballot box cannot, under any circumstances, leave the polling station or section. In extreme situations, when it proves to be absolutely necessary, the presiding officer may allow, after listening to the delegates of the lists present, the voter to sign the ballot paper outside the polling chamber, in a place (inside the polling section) where it is strictly voting secrecy preserved.

Voting can be interrupted in the following situations:

When the minimum number (3) of board members are not present;
When the chairman of the board or his substitute is not present;
When there is any turmoil or when there is any disturbance that prevents the normal functioning of the voting;

The interruption of electoral operations for more than three hours determines the closure of voting.

Yes, any voter registered at the polling station/section (desk) or any of the delegates on the candidates lists can make a written complaint to the polling station.

The polling station cannot refuse to receive the complaints, having to initial them and attach them to the minutes.

No. The downloads in the electoral rolls must be done with a ballpoint pen, in order to make any alteration impossible.

In addition to voters who exercise their right to vote there, candidates, agents and delegates from the lists may be present at the polling station/section, without, however, disturbing operations.

No, electoral propaganda is prohibited inside polling stations/sections and outside them, up to a distance of 500 meters. Advertising also means the display of symbols, initials, signs, badges or stickers from any lists.

Yes, polling company agents, duly accredited by the National Election Commission, can question voters in the vicinity of polling stations/sections after they have exercised their right to vote. That is, it is admitted that the interviewers can be close to the polling places, but they are forbidden to be inside the rooms where the voting operations take place.

No. The dissemination of polling results from the end of the electoral campaign until the closing of polls throughout the national territory is prohibited.

In general terms, no, however the following aspects should be considered:

It is forbidden to advertise, directly or indirectly, by any means on the eve and on the day of the election;
It is forbidden to disturb the regular operation of polling stations or sections;
Hunting is prohibited on Election Day.

For events that involve the mass displacement of voters outside the areas of the respective parishes, the date of elections or referendums should be avoided.

he holding of these events is not prohibited at all, and for this purpose it is absolutely necessary that they do not disturb or jeopardize the exercise of voters' right to vote and the normal functioning of electoral operations, and they must take place in a location sufficiently distant from the polling stations/sections.

Yes, hunting is prohibited under the terms of n. º 4 of the article 89 of the Decree-Law n. º 201/2005, of the 24th November.

Tabulation consists of determining the results of the election. In this election, the tabulation has two phases: the partial tabulation, carried out after the closing of the voting in the polling station/section, and the general tabulation, carried out in the general tabulation assembly, which starts its work at 9:00 a.m. of the 2nd day after the election, in the building designated for the purpose by the Representative of the Republic.

After the ballot boxes are closed, the results are tabulated in the polling station/section itself, carrying out the following operations:

Counting unused and unusable ballot papers;
Counting of voters through downloads made in the notebooks;
Opening the ballot box and counting the votes entered, which after being counted must be introduced again in the ballot box. If the number of voters counted by the discharges is not equal to the number of votes entered in the ballot box, the latter will be the number that prevails;
Publication of a public notice indicating the number of ballot papers in the ballot box, which, after being read aloud by the president, will be posted on the main door of the polling station;
Subsequently, one of the scrutineers unfolds the ballot papers, one by one, and announces aloud which list has been voted for, while the other registers on a white sheet of paper, or on the download sheets, if possible on a clearly visible board, the votes attributed to each list, the blank votes and null votes.
Counting of votes in the lists, blanks and nulls;
Publication of a public notice to be posted on the main door of the building of the polling station or section, in which the number of votes on each list, the number of blank votes and null votes is broken down.

A null vote is considered:

The one with a cross in more than one square;
Anyone who is marked on a list that has given up;
One that contains any cut, drawing, erasure or on which any word has been written;
Early voting when the ballot paper does not arrive in the legally foreseen conditions, that is, received in an envelope that is not properly closed.

Ballot papers that contain a cross that is not very well drawn or that goes outside the square, but that unequivocally indicates the voter's will, must not be considered null.

A blank vote is considered to be a ballot paper that does not contain any type of mark.

No. Blank votes and null votes are not considered validly cast votes, and therefore have no influence on the calculation of the number of votes obtained by each candidacy, nor on their conversion into mandates.

Yes. The secretary of the board draws up the minutes of the voting and partial tabulation operations, which must include:

The civil identification numbers and the names of the members of the board and the delegates of the lists;
The polling opening and closing time, as well as the location of the polling station or section;
Deliberations issued by the presiding board during voting and tabulation operations;
The total number of registered voters and voters;
The civil identification number of voters who voted in advance;
The number of votes obtained by each list, the number of blank votes and the number of null votes;
The number of ballot papers on which there has been a complaint or protest;
Counting discrepancies, if any, with a precise indication of the differences noted;
Any other occurrences that the board deems pertinent to mention.
The number of complaints, protests and counter-protests attached to the minutes

These minutes are intended, after being signed by the polling station members and the delegates of the candidacy lists present, to be sent to the General Tabulation Assembly.

The General Tabulation Assembly has the following composition:

The judge of the 1st Civil Court of the

District of Funchal, who presides, with a casting vote;

Two jurists chosen by the president;
Two Mathematics teachers who teach in the Autonomous Region, designated by the Representative of the Republic in the Autonomous

Region of Madeira;

Nine presidents of polling stations or sections appointed by the of the Republic in the Autonomous Region of Madeira;

A head of judicial secretariat of the seat of the judicial district, chosen by thepresident, who serves as secretary,without vote.

The General Tabulation Assembly must be constituted by the day before the day of the election, by announcement, being published and affixed to the door of the building designated for the purpose, containing the names of the citizens who compose it.

The general tabulation operations begin at 9:00 am on the 2nd day after the election, at the place designated for the purpose by the Representative of the Republic in the Autonomous Region of Madeira.

The general tabulation must be completed by the 10th day after the election, with the results proclaimed by the president and then published by means of a public notice posted on the door of the building where the respective assembly was held.

Previously, the general tabulation station decides on the ballot papers in relation to which there has been a complaint or protest, correcting, if necessary, the tabulation of the respective polling station.

It also verifies the ballot papers considered null, reconsiders them according to a uniform criterion, and corrects, if necessary, the tabulation in each of the polling stations.

Then the general tabulation assembly begins the work consisting of the following:

Verification of the total number of registered voters and voters in the constituency;
Verification of the total number of votes obtained by each list, the number of blank votes and the number of null votes;
Distribution of deputies' mandates by the different lists;
Determining the candidates elected by each list.

Legislative Assembly of Madeira 2024

VOTING RIGHT

NOMINATIONS

DELEGATES OF APPLICATION LISTS

POLLING STATION MEMBERS

EARLY VOTE

VOTING

TABULATION

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