Information on how to exercise the voting 28A

HOW CAN WE VOTE CATALANS RESIDING ABROAD IN ELECTIONS TO THE CONGRESS OF DEPUTIES AND THE SENATE OF THE DAY 28 APRIL OF 2019.
GUIDE ON THE VOTING SYSTEM.

L‘Office of the Electoral Census has published the data of the Electoral Census of Absent Residents (CERA) which will be used in the elections to the Congress of Deputies and the Senate convened by the 28 d'April 2019. The right to vote shall be exercised in the following manner:

5 of March: Publication of the call for elections.

Of 11 to the 18 March: Consultation of the Electoral Census that will be exhibited at embassies and consulates.

Of 11 to the 18 March: Claims for inclusion / exclusion from the electoral census (CERA).

Of 11 to the 21 March: Resolution of claims for inclusion / exclusion from the electoral census (CERA).

He 22 March: Presentation of the resolution of claims at consulates (CERA).

Of 5 March 30 March: Deadline to request registration as temporary in the ERTA register.

Of 5 March 30 March: Prior request to vote by mail CERA and ERTA («Voted vote»).

Of 2 to the 8 d’abril (if there are no appeals against electoral lists): Submission of documentation for CERA and ERTA postal voting from the Provincial Delegations of the Electoral Census Office to voters who have only·bid.

Of 2 to the 16 d’abril (if there are contests from the electoral rolls): Sending the documentation for voting by mail CERA and ERTA from the Provincial Delegations of the Electoral Census Office to voters who have requested it.

Of 2 to the 23 d’abril: Deadline for sending the vote by mail to the consulate or embassy (electors CERA).

Of 8 to the 24 d’abril: Deadline for sending the vote by mail to the consulate or embassy (electors ERTA).

Of 24 to the 26 d’abril (both included): Deposit of the ballot box at consulates or embassies (electors CERA).

All Catalans living abroad who have Spanish nationality who are registered on the Electoral Roll of Absent Residents (CERA) o a l’ERTA (Spanish Residents Temporarily Absent) may exercise their right to vote in these elections continent regardless of where they live.

Before the election (electors CERA)

If you are a permanent resident in your host country, make sure you are registered in the CERA (Electoral Register of Absent Residents). You must get in touch with / the relevant Consulate or Embassy to have their confirmation. All Spanish residents, older than 18 years, registered in the Registro de Matricula Consular (RMC) as absent residents, automatically part of CERA.

Between 11 and 18 March, it is advisable to make sure at the consulate that you are registered with the CERA by consulting the electoral census lists, fig and proof that your data are correct. If there are data or incorrect, the corresponding modification request must be submitted (Claim Inclusion) between days 11 and 18 March. These claims are made directly to the consulate or embassy, with a form that will facilitate, and resolved within a maximum of 10 dies, the day 22 March at the latest.

The submission of the Inclusion Claim is particularly important for those who have registered with CERA after the census closing date., 1are the genes they 2019. In general, claims from those who have registered in January and February have a strong chance of being accepted.. In all cases you have to try.

If you are not registered at the consulate and you are a temporary resident

If you are a temporary resident of your host country and, accordingly, you have not registered with the Consular Registration Registry (RMC) as permanent residents you can, if you haven't already, register with the ERTA register (Spanish Residents Temporarily Absent). The request must be made in person at the consular offices or the consular sections of the embassies no later than the 25th (twenty-fifth) day after the call for the electoral process, that is to say of the 5 to the 30 March.

The application form can be found in consulates and consular sections of embassies and on the website of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation http://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consulados/HAMBURGO/es/Consulado/Documents/CGHHFor mularios / RMC + PERE-CERA / WEBModeloSolicitudInscripcionNOResidente.pdf

If you are already registered as a temporary resident in the ERTA registry for a long time, at least, one year the Consulate may require you to register as a permanent resident.

Consulates apply much more restrictive rules than in the past to accept ERTA registrations and, generally. Only people who have lived in the country for less than a year and can try a temporary stay (scholarship, Erasmus, stage, etc.) are registered without problems in the ERTA.

First request for Vote (‘Rogue vote’)

WE REMIND YOU THAT THE ELECTORAL PROCEDURE IN FORCE IS BASED ON THE SO-CALLED ‘VOTE REQUESTED’ THAT IS TO SAY THAT THE ELECTOR MUST APPLY FOR THE VOTING PAPERS IN ADVANCE TO THE CORRESPONDING PROVINCIAL DELEGATION OF THE ELECTORAL BOARD AND, ONLY IN THE SECOND INSTANCE, ONCE THE ELECTORAL DOCUMENTATION IS REJECTED, YOU CAN EXERCISE YOUR VOTE.

Voters registered with CERA who wish to exercise their right to vote must submit by post or fax, between 5 i the 30 March, the request for a vote addressed to the Provincial Delegation of the Electoral Census Office, filling in an official form that will be sent to the address listed in the CERA to all those registered in the census. This does not prevent you from being able to obtain this vote request form, which will be available from the day after the call for elections, at consular offices or electronically at embassies, consulates or ministerial websites.

You can download it here, in Catalan, in Spanish and Aranese.

Voters must submit the ballot application and include it, together with the voting application form, a photocopy of your passport or ID, issued by Spanish authorities or the certification of nationality or registration in the Consular Registration Register, issued by the Spanish Consulate in the country of residence.

As an alternative to fax and regular mail, you can also use the ‘ruego de voto por internet’ system, first, the fastest and most efficient. If you want to apply for your vote this way, you have two options:

- Online with electronic certificate. Accessing the procedure "Solicitud voto CERA" to the management https://sede.ine.gob.es/Solicitud_voto_CERA by means of a recognized electronic certificate associated with your National Identity Document (DAYS).

- By internet with the telematic processing key (CTT) which you will receive by post at the address of registration. Accessing the procedure "Solicitud voto CERA" to the management https://sede.ine.gob.es/ss/Satellite?c=SETramite_C&cid=1259951537025&p=1254734719739 &pagename=SedeElectronica%2FSELayout&lang=es_ES with the CTT, you will need to follow the instructions and attach a file with ONE of these documents: DAYS, passport, certificate of Spanish nationality or consular registration certificate.

Receipt of electoral documentation

Once the Provincial Delegation of the Electoral Census Office has received the request for a vote, will proceed to send the following documentation to the address specified by the voter:

– Ballot papers

– Voting envelope

– Two identical certificates of being registered in the Electoral Census of Absent Residents and an envelope in which the direction of the competent Electoral Board must appear.

– An envelope with the address of the Consular Office or Consular Section of the Diplomatic Mission where the voter is registered.

These documents will be sent to the applicant by certified mail until 8 d’abril, if there are no challenges to the proclamation of any candidacy, or until the 16 d’abril, if the proclamation of any candidacy had been challenged.

The status of the processing of vote-by-mail requests can be consulted online at the 'Electronic Office of the National Statistics Institute':

https://sede.ine.gob.es/ce-votoxcorreo/pages/presentacion/frmPresentacion.jsf

In these elections to the Congress of Deputies and the Senate there are three ways to be able to exercise the vote:

– Vote by mail addressed to embassies and consulates (electors CERA)

Voters registered with CERA who choose to exercise their right to vote by mail, they must be included in the envelope addressed to the Consular Office in which they are registered, the ballot envelope with the ballot and the certificate of registration in the CERA, photocopy of passport or DNI issued by the Spanish authorities or, if not, certificate of nationality or certification of registration in the Consular Registration Register issued by the Consulate of Spain in the country of residence and send it all in the envelope addressed to the Consular Office or Consular Section of the Diplomatic Mission to which the 'voter is attached, by certified mail no later than 23 d’abril.

Those who want to vote at the ballot box, they must personally present the envelopes and documents mentioned in the previous point, Consular Offices or Sections to which there corresponds to registration or sites they are assigned to this electoral process, between 24 i the 26 d’abril.

IMPORTANT: It is not possible for voters registered in CERA's mailing of voting at the Provincial Electoral Board

the possibility, prevailing prior to elections 2012, to send the envelopes and documents directly to the corresponding Provincial Delegations of the Electoral Commission has been suppressed.

– Vote by mail addressed to the polling station of origin (electors ERTA)

If you are a voter Erta, once the documentation has been received at your home, you must vote by mail (you cannot vote at the ballot box), sending the envelope with the ballot paper and the certificate of registration in the ERTA, photocopy of passport or DNI issued by the Spanish authorities or, if not, certificate of nationality or certificate of registration in the Consular Registration Register issued by the Consulate of Spain in the country of residence and send it all in the envelope addressed to the polling station of your constituency in Catalonia, by certified mail, up 24 d’abril (included).

CERA voters temporarily in Spain

If any CERA voter is temporarily in Spain during this electoral process, you can apply (as well as residents in Spain) voting by mail from the date of the call until the day 18 d’abril (included), without this implying termination in the CERA. To this end, you will have to complete an application available at any Post Office of Spain and address it to the Provincial Delegation of the Electoral Census Office of your province of registration. Voters must sign the application and check that the Post Office official puts the corresponding date and stamp. Once the electoral documentation has been received at the address in Spain indicated in the application, the voter will send their vote by certified mail, no later than the day 24 d’abril. These voters will not be able to vote in person at the polling station.

Voters living abroad who have not registered with either CERA or ERTA

If you are not registered with CERA or ERTA and do not want to do so, then count, for all intents and purposes, as a citizen registered in Catalonia. You will be able to exercise your right to vote in person (traveling to Catalonia on election day) or exercising the Advance Vote by mail of the 5 March 18 d’abril, by going to any post office in the Spanish State in order to obtain the vote request form that you must deliver to the same office. Once the application has been submitted, the postal services notify the submission to the Electoral Census Office in such a way that the applicant loses the right to vote in person on election day.

Information mail where you can consult all the questions: fiec@fiecweb.cat