A vote that is feared?” “

In Europe the political participation of foreigners represents an important aspect of the policies of inclusion and is acquiring an ever-greater profile in the political and legal debate on immigration. The situation seems rather diversified for the time being. There do not exist specific legislative provisions at the EU level, but only a wide series of legally non-binding, though politically significant, measures in favour of the extension of the vote to long-resident foreigners. THE STRASBOURG CONVENTION. The Strasbourg Convention on the participation of foreigners in public life at the local level, promoted by the Council of Europe, came into force in 1997. It is aimed at guaranteeing to all foreigners, resident in the territory for a continuous period of at least five years, the active and passive right to vote at the local level. But only seven countries have signed up to the Convention (Denmark, Finland, Italy, Holland, Norway, Sweden, Czech Republic, United Kingdom and Cyprus, though the latter three have not ratified it). It remains in effect a rather weak measure, with little practical effect. Italy’s ratification was only partial, i.e. with specific exemption for Chapter C, containing article 6 that commits States “to grant the right to vote and eligibility to vote to every foreign resident….”. AT THE COMMUNITY LEVEL. At the EU level, besides, there do not exist specific legislative provisions on the extension of the vote to citizens of States that do not form part of the European Union. The norms on European citizenship, which prescribe that the citizens resident in a member state other than the one to which they belong can exercise the right to vote in local and European elections (art. 19 European Constitutional Treaty and articles 39 and 40 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union), refer exclusively to European citizens. Nonetheless, there is a sizeable group of provisions that, although they are not legally binding, do have some moral authority. Conspicuous among them, apart from various opinions of the Economic and Social Committee, are resolutions of the European Parliament and communications of the European Commission, all favourable to an extension of the vote to long-resident foreigners of third countries. The Commission tackles the question of immigrants’ political rights at the local level also in its First Annual Report on migration and integration of July 2004, underlying its priority in the process of the foreigner’s integration in the host country. In particular, the Report emphasises the progress made in this direction by some member states, such as Belgium and Luxembourg, both of which have recently adopted new legislation on the matter. But it is a priority not reaffirmed among the measures in favour of the integration of foreigners listed by the programme of The Hague 2005-2010 in the field of immigration, approved by the European Council in November 2004. Not even the Treaty that establishes a Constitution for Europe introduces any changes in this regard. Art. 267 in fact, though containing vague measures aimed at encouraging the integration of immigrants regularly resident on European territory, excludes “any harmonization of the legislative and regulatory provisions of member states” in this field. IN THE INDIVIDUAL COUNTRIES: 19 OUT OF 28. Within a globally weak pan-European context, in which the question of political participation, and more generally policies for the integration of foreign immigrants, remains a preserve of essentially national dominion, the European countries have nonetheless regulated, or are in the process of regulating, access to the right to vote at the national level. Of 28 European states, i.e. the 25 member states of the EU plus Norway, Iceland and Switzerland, no less than 19 make some provision for forms of participation of foreigners in political life at the local level. Of course, this fact does not take into account the evident diversities that exist between the legislations of the various countries: e.g. the number of years of residence necessary to be eligible to exercise the right to vote, the definition of the level at which electoral rights can effectively be exercised, differentiations between the active and passive right to vote and differentiations in terms of the nationality of immigrants, comprised in the legislation currently in force. IN SOME EUROPEAN COUNTRIES. Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, Holland, Portugal, UK, Czech Republic, Spain, Sweden and Norway already permit the vote to immigrants, albeit with different criteria. For example, some recognize all nationalities, while others only those of Europe or immigrants of long-standing presence. The minimum residence necessary for the vote also fluctuates from a minimum of two years to a maximum of ten.