Munich Migration Council election: voter letters and key deadlines

Munich’s Kreisverwaltungsreferat (KVR), the city’s district administration office, has started sending election notices to around 420,000 residents who can vote in the Migrationsbeiratswahl, the election for the city’s Migration Advisory Council. According to the tz, which cites the Landeshauptstadt München (the City of Munich), anyone who is eligible but has not received a letter by Friday, 30 October, should contact the Wahlamt, the city’s election office, straight away.

What happened

The tz reports that the KVR has begun posting the Wahlbenachrichtigungen (official election notification letters). The letters go out in several batches, sorted by postcode, so neighbours in different parts of the city may receive theirs on different days.

Each letter tells the voter where their Wahlraum (polling station) is, whether the polling station is accessible, and how to vote by post, known in German as Briefwahl.

The tz also reports a change to the rules this year. Because the Bavarian Gemeinde- und Landkreiswahlordnung (the regulations for municipal and district elections in Bavaria) has been amended, postal voting documents may only be sent out three weeks before election day. Deutsche Post will start delivering them from Monday, 2 November.

What it means for you

Who can vote

According to the tz, you can vote in the Migrationsbeiratswahl if you meet all of the following conditions:

• You do not hold a German passport.
• You are at least 18 years old.
• On election day, you will have been registered in Munich with your Hauptwohnsitz (main place of residence) for at least six months, meaning since 22 May, or you otherwise usually live in Munich.
• You are not excluded from the right to vote.

German citizens can also vote if they meet the same conditions and either have held a German passport for no longer than twelve years or also hold another foreign nationality. They will not be added to the electoral roll automatically. They must apply to the Wahlamt to be added to the Wählerverzeichnis (electoral roll) by Friday, 6 November.

Key dates for postal voting

The tz advises anyone who wants to vote by post to decide soon after their notification letter arrives. The dates given in the report are:

• Friday, 30 October: if you are eligible and have not received a letter by now, contact the Wahlamt.
• Monday, 2 November: Deutsche Post starts delivering postal voting documents, and in-person collection opens.
• Friday, 6 November: deadline for eligible German citizens to apply to join the electoral roll.
• Monday, 16 November, 11 Uhr (11 am): online applications for postal voting close. From this day, the Wahlamt recommends collecting postal voting documents in person.
• Friday, 20 November, 12 Uhr (noon): last chance to collect documents in person.
• Sunday, 22 November, 18 Uhr (6 pm): your completed Wahlbrief (ballot envelope) must have reached the Wahlamt to be counted.

Postal vote applications can be made online. The notification letter explains how to apply by post instead.

Collecting and voting in person

From Monday, 2 November until Friday, 20 November at 12 Uhr (noon), eligible voters can collect their postal voting documents in person and vote on the spot. According to the tz, this is possible at the KVR at Ruppertstraße 19 and at the Bezirksinspektionen, the city’s local district offices. The city publishes a list of all collection points and their opening hours. The tz article does not list them, so check the city’s website before you go.

What to do now

• Watch your letterbox for the notification letter and keep it safe.
• Check the polling station and accessibility details it contains.
• If you want to vote by post, apply early. Documents will not arrive before 2 November, so allow enough time for them to come and for your ballot to get back.
• If you hold German citizenship and meet the conditions, send your application to the Wahlamt before 6 November.

What to watch next

The first deadline is 30 October, the date by which eligible residents should have their notification letter. Postal voting documents start arriving from 2 November. Because they can only be sent three weeks before the election this year, the time between receiving them and the return deadline is shorter than voters may be used to. The Wahlamt’s advice to collect documents in person from 16 November reflects that. For postal voters, the two dates that matter most are the online application cut-off at 11 Uhr (11 am) on 16 November and the return deadline of 18 Uhr (6 pm) on 22 November.

Source: tz