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Does a person in prison have the right to vote?
Verified 27 June 2022 - Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister), Ministry of Justice
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Convicted inmate
A prisoner who has not been definitively sentenced to a civil rights ban may vote:
- Either by correspondence
- Either by proxy
- Or by going to the polling station
But in order to vote, he must be registered to vote.
An inmate may apply to be registered to vote, or to change his registration (for example, to change polling places).
You can register throughout the year.
But to vote in a particular election, you must meet a deadline.
The registration rules differ according to the form of the vote:
Voting by mail
Which voters list to register on?
In order to vote by mail, the inmate must apply to be registered on the electoral roll of the commune in which the prison is located. The inmate must provide the following 2 documents:
- Attestation on the honor, which must include his name and forenames, his date and place of birth, his link with the commune, his signature, the stamp of the prison
- Proof of identity and nationality. If the inmate does not have proof, the prison director may exceptionally provide a document attesting to the inmate's identity.
How to vote?
Voting by mail takes place in the prison, before the date of the election or referendum (at the latest the Saturday before).
Before the vote, the prison director shall hand over to the detainee concerned the following documents:
- Election leaflets (no later than the Wednesday before the election or referendum)
- Identification envelope
- Election Envelope
On the day of the vote in the prison, the director verifies the identity of the inmate who voted.
The inmate elector puts his or her ballot into the electoral envelope. It must take place in a place out of sight.
Then, the inmate elector puts in the identification envelope
- the electoral envelope
- and proof of identity and nationality (copy of an identity document or certificate issued by the prison director).
He seals his identification envelope and indicates his first and last names, place of detention and nut number.
FYI
once the identification envelope has been sealed, the voter can no longer reconsider his vote.
The inmate who elects then delivers his identification envelope to the prison director and signs the list of voters.
Information on electoral rights
The prison director must inform the inmate who has the right to vote, or who will be of voting age on the day of the vote, of the forms of the vote (by correspondence, by proxy, at the polling station).
They must also inform them of how to register to vote.
They must do so within 15 days of the inmate's incarceration.
FYI
the director must provide him with the necessary means to register and to gather the required supporting documents.
Proxy voting
How do I vote by proxy?
The inmate may vote by proxy:
- when he did not ask for permission to leave for one day to vote at the polling station
- or where permission has been denied.
To do so, it must to appoint a voter (registered in the same commune) who will go to the polling station to vote for him the day of the election or referendum.
The inmate must apply to the prison registry
- the issue of an extract from the register of the nut justifying his inability to go to a polling station
- and the passage of a police officer to certify the power of attorney.
How do I register to vote?
As a prisoner, it is possible to apply to be registered on the electoral list of one of the following municipalities:
- Municipality of the home
- Municipality of his last residence of at least 6 months
- Municipality of birth
- Municipality in which one of its members was born, is registered or has been registered on the electoral list ascendants
- Municipality on the electoral list of which her spouse or partner is registered Civil partnerships: titleContent or common-law partner
- Municipality on the electoral list of which one of its members is registered or has been registered parents up to the 4th degree
To do so, the inmate must provide one of the following documents:
- Proof of domicile or residence
- Attestation on the honor of the detainee. It must contain his name and forenames, his date and place of birth, his link with the commune, his signature, the stamp of the prison.
The inmate must also provide a proof of identity and nationality. If the inmate does not have proof, the prison director may exceptionally provide a document attesting to the inmate's identity.
Information on electoral rights
The prison director must inform the inmate who has the right to vote, or who will be of voting age on the day of the vote, of the forms of the vote (by correspondence, by proxy, at the polling station).
They must also inform them of how to register to vote.
They must do so within 15 days of the inmate's incarceration.
FYI
the director must provide him with the necessary means to register and to gather the required supporting documents.
Voting at the polling station
How do I get to the polling station?
To vote at the polling station, the inmate must ask the sentencing judge for permission to leave for one day to vote.
FYI
such permission shall be denied to a person sentenced to more than five years' imprisonment, until he has completed half of the sentence.
How do I register to vote?
As a prisoner, it is possible to apply to be registered on the electoral list of one of the following municipalities:
- Municipality of the home
- Municipality of his last residence of at least 6 months
- Municipality of birth
- Municipality in which one of its members was born, is registered or has been registered on the electoral list ascendants
- Municipality on the electoral list of which her spouse or partner is registered Civil partnerships: titleContent or common-law partner
- Municipality on the electoral list of which one of its members is registered or has been registered parents up to the 4th degree
To do so, the inmate must provide one of the following 2 documents:
- Proof of domicile or residence
- Attestation on the honor of the detainee. It must contain his name and forenames, his date and place of birth, his link with the commune, his signature, the stamp of the prison.
The inmate must also provide a proof of identity and nationality. If the inmate does not have proof, the prison director may exceptionally provide a document attesting to the inmate's identity.
Information on electoral rights
The prison director must inform the inmate who has the right to vote, or who will be of voting age on the day of the vote, of the forms of the vote (by correspondence, by proxy, at the polling station).
They must also inform them of how to register to vote.
They must do so within 15 days of the inmate's incarceration.
FYI
the director must provide him with the necessary means to register and to gather the required supporting documents.
A person who has been sentenced by the courts (a court) to the loss of his or her civil rights shall lose his or her right to vote during the period prescribed by the judgment.
The loss of civil rights begins when the conviction is final, that is to say when the remedies (appeal, cassation...) are exhausted, or when the time limits for appeal have expired.
Pre-trial detention
A prisoner who has not been definitively sentenced to a civil rights ban may vote by proxy or by mail.
But in order to vote, he must be registered to vote.
An inmate may apply to be registered to vote.
You can register throughout the year.
But to vote in a particular election, you must meet a deadline.
The registration rules differ according to the form of the vote:
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Proxy voting
How do I vote by proxy?
The inmate may vote by proxy:
- when he did not ask for permission to leave for one day to vote at the polling station
- or where permission has been denied.
To do so, it must to appoint a voter (registered in the same commune) who will go to the polling station to vote for him the day of the election or referendum.
The inmate must apply to the prison registry to ask:
- the issue of an extract from the register of the nut justifying his inability to go to a polling station
- and the passage of a police officer to certify the power of attorney.
How do I register to vote?
As a prisoner, it is possible to apply to be registered on the electoral list of one of the following municipalities:
- Municipality of the home
- Municipality of his last residence of at least 6 months
- Municipality of birth
- Municipality in which one of its members was born, is registered or has been registered on the electoral list ascendants
- Municipality on the electoral list of which her spouse or partner is registered Civil partnerships: titleContent or common-law partner
- Municipality on the electoral list of which one of its members is registered or has been registered parents up to the 4th degree
To do so, the inmate must provide one of the following documents:
- Proof of domicile or residence
- Attestation on the honor of the detainee. It must contain his name and forenames, his date and place of birth, his link with the commune, his signature, the stamp of the prison.
The inmate must also provide a proof of identity and nationality. If the inmate does not have proof, the prison director may exceptionally provide a document attesting to the inmate's identity.
Information on electoral rights
The prison director must inform the inmate who has the right to vote, or who will be of voting age on the day of the vote, of the forms of the vote (by correspondence, by proxy, at the polling station).
They must also inform them of how to register to vote.
They must do so within 15 days of the inmate's incarceration.
FYI
the director must provide him with the necessary means to register and to gather the required supporting documents.
Voting by mail
Which voters list to register on?
In order to vote by mail, the inmate must apply to be registered on the electoral roll of the commune in which the prison is located. The inmate must provide the following 2 documents:
- Attestation on the honor, which must include his name and forenames, his date and place of birth, his link with the commune, his signature, the stamp of the prison.
- Proof of identity and nationality. If the inmate does not have proof, the prison director may exceptionally provide a document attesting to the inmate's identity.
How to vote?
Voting by mail takes place in the prison, before the date of the election or referendum (at the latest the Saturday before).
Before the vote, the prison director shall hand over to the detainee concerned the following documents:
- Election leaflets (no later than the Wednesday before the election or referendum)
- Identification envelope
- Election Envelope
On the day of the vote in the prison, the director verifies the identity of the inmate who voted.
The inmate elector puts his or her ballot into the electoral envelope. It must take place in a place out of sight.
Then, the inmate elector puts in the identification envelope
- the electoral envelope
- and proof of identity and nationality (copy of an identity document or certificate issued by the prison director).
He seals his identification envelope and indicates his first and last names, place of detention and nut number.
FYI
once the identification envelope has been sealed, the voter can no longer reconsider his vote.
The inmate who elects then delivers his identification envelope to the prison director and signs the list of voters.
Information on electoral rights
The prison director must inform the inmate who has the right to vote, or who will be of voting age on the day of the vote, of the forms of the vote (by correspondence, by proxy, at the polling station).
They must also inform them of how to register to vote.
They must do so within 15 days of the inmate's incarceration.
FYI
the director must provide him with the necessary means to register and to gather the required supporting documents.
- Electoral Code: Articles L1 to L6Electoral capacity
- Electoral Code: Articles L9 to L15-1Municipality of attachment: Article 12-1
- Electoral Code: Articles L16 to L29Transmission request for entry: Article L18-1
- Electoral Code: Articles R81 to R85Voting by mail
- Circular INTA2031723J of 4/02/2021 on the establishment of a centralizing polling station and the postal voting of inmatesVoting by mail
- Code of Criminal Procedure: Articles R57-7-95 to R57-7-97Missions of the prison director
- Penitentiary code: articles D424-22 to D424-30Exit permits: Article D143-3
- Code of Criminal Procedure: articles D147Escorted temporary absence
- Instruction INTA1830120J of 21 November 2018 on the keeping of the electoral lists and supplementary electoral lists (PDF - 2.0 MB)Registration on the electoral lists
- Addendum to instruction INTA1830120J of 21 November 2018 on the keeping of supplementary lists of electorsCertificate of identity and certificate on the attachment honor
- Decree No. 2021-1501 of 18 November 2021 on the registration and voting by mail of persons detained in Wallis and Futuna Islands, French Polynesia and New Caledonia
FAQ
- Proxy votingService-Public.fr
- Inmate's guide arriving (PDF - 3.4 MB)Ministry of Justice