Głosowanie korespondencyjne w Austrii – analiza doświadczeń z lat 2008–2019

Abstract

The research objective is to review the regulatory arrangements for postal voting available in Austria and to analyse how this alternative voting method was used in the 2008–2019 federal elections. The article seeks to answer the following questions: 1) what percentage of Austrian voters chooses to vote outside polling stations in the federal election? and 2) since the postal voting was made more accessible to a larger group of voters in 2007, how has the turnout changed in Austria? The hypothesis assumes that a considerable portion of the Austrian electorate takes advantage of the chance to vote by post, despite the procedural limitations which curb the number of eligible voters. The analysis proves that casting a vote outside the polling station is becoming more and more popular, which warrants further liberalisation of the procedure by abolishing the requirement to provide a reason for choosing an alternative voting method.