Elections to the Vienna City Council and to the District Councils 2020

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What you need to know

The elections to the Vienna City Council and district councils 2020 will be held on Sunday, 11 October 2020. The 100 members of the Vienna City Council and Vienna Provincial Parliament are elected in the City Council elections. Depending on a district’s total population, the district councils have between 40 and 60 members each. These are elected in the district council elections.

Who is entitled to vote in Vienna?

Austrian citizens, who had their primary residence in Vienna on the qualifying date (14 July 2020) and who have reached the age of 16 on or before Election Day, are entitled to vote in the elections to the Vienna City Council and district councils.

Who else is entitled to vote?

Non-Austrian EU citizens, who had their primary residence in Vienna on the qualifying date (14 July 2020) and who have reached the age of 16 on or before Election Day, are entitled to vote in the elections to the district councils. They are not entitled to vote in the elections to the Vienna City Council as the Vienna City Council is, at the same time, the Vienna Provincial Parliament. Only Austrian citizens are entitled to vote in the elections to the Vienna City Council and Provincial Parliament.

Where can I cast my vote?

The official election information (“Amtliche Wahlinformation”) is sent to every voter about two weeks before Election Day. It is a short letter specifying the exact address of your polling station and other important information for voters.

Please note: If you bring the official election information to the polling station on Election Day, it will be easier for the staff in the polling station to find your name and address in the electoral register and you will be able to cast your vote promptly.

What if I am on holiday?

If you are not sure whether you can come to your allocated polling station on Election Day, you can apply for a voting card (“Wahlkarte”). With this voting card you can cast your vote at any polling station in Vienna, which accepts voting cards, or from anywhere in Austria or abroad by postal vote.

If you are in hospital or in a nursing home

Patients of a hospital or nursing home, who cannot come to their allocated polling station in person because of illness or old age, can apply for a voting card. With the voting card they can cast their vote by postal vote or they can apply for a mobile election commission (“Wahlkommission”) to visit them on Election Day. The staff of the hospital or nursing home can assist patients in applying for voting cards.

If you are ill or bedridden

If you cannot come to your allocated polling station in person because of illness or old age, you can apply for a voting card at the competent local electoral office (“Wahlreferat”). With the voting card you can cast your vote by postal vote or you can apply for a mobile election commission (“Wahlkommission”) to visit you on Election Day.

Postal vote

If you cannot come to your allocated polling station on Election Day (because you are not in Vienna, for health reasons or because you are abroad), you can apply for a voting card and cast your vote by postal vote.

If you have a voting card, you can cast your vote at any time after receiving your voting card, but must do so before the last polling station in Vienna closes (11 October 2020, 5pm). The voting card must be returned in person, by post, or by messenger to the competent electoral commission. On Election Day you can also return your voting card to any of the polling stations in Vienna during their opening hours or, by 5pm, to the district electoral commission (“Bezirkswahlbehörde”).

If you apply for your voting card in person from mid-September 2020 at the local electoral office (“Wahlreferat”) of your competent Municipal District Office (“Magistratisches Bezirksamt”), you can cast your vote there promptly by postal vote, if you like. There are mobile ballot boxes with transparent protective screens where you can drop off your postal vote.

Information about voting cards

Voting cards will be issued from mid-September 2020 when the nominations and ballot papers are available as you will receive your voting card together with the ballot paper.

Voting card application for Austrian citizens (for the elections to the Vienna City Council and district councils)
Voting card application for non-Austrian EU citizens (for the elections to the district councils)
Voting card application including mobile election commission for ill or bedridden persons

You can submit your voting card application as of now until Wednesday, 7 October 2020 in writing (by email, fax or with an informal letter) or until Friday, 9 October 2020, 12 noon, in person at the local electoral office (“Wahlreferat”) of your competent Municipal District Office (“Magistratisches Bezirksamt”). Please note that you cannot apply by phone!

You need to give the following personal details to apply for a voting card:

Reason why you need a voting card
Surname
First name
Date of birth
Place of birth
Address of your primary residence
Official photo identification (i.e. a copy of your official photo identification or the number of your Austrian passport, personal identity card, or driving licence) or a valid electronic signature (mobile phone signature).

The voting card will be sent to your home address by post. If you want to receive the voting card at a different address, please provide an alternative postal address in your application.

Pursuant to legal regulations, voting cards are sent by registered mail (“Einschreiben”). The voting card can only be sent by unregistered mail if the application has been validated by valid electronic signature (mobile phone signature). In this case you can choose if you want to receive the voting card by registered or unregistered mail. If you choose to receive the voting card by unregistered mail, it will be sent to you at your own risk. Please note that we cannot issue duplicates of voting cards that were lost in the mail.

On election day

Polling stations are open from 7am to 5pm on Election Day, 11 October 2020.

Please remember to bring a valid photo identification (passport, personal identity card, driving licence, student identity card, etc.) when coming to the polling station on Election Day.

If you have applied for a voting card but decide to cast your vote in a polling station – even your allocated polling station – you need to bring the voting card to the polling station. Otherwise you will not be able to cast your vote at the polling station.

Please note that the official election information (“Amtliche Wahlinformation”) is not an identity document! However, if you bring the official election information to the polling station on Election Day, it will be easier for the staff in the polling station to find your name and address in the electoral register and you will be able to cast your vote promptly.

Please note that specific coronavirus protection measures will be in place at the polling station on Election Day! Details will be published in good time before Election Day.