The Right to Vote in the Light of an Individual’s End of Life

Abstract

This paper has the following research thesis: An individual’s end of life has far-reaching legal effects, also in the sphere of the person’s subjective rights. The research problem consists in reflecting on the right to vote, understood as a human right, in the light of a set of legal norms that undergo changes quite frequently. The aim of this paper is to examine what concepts the legislator uses to describe the death of a person and what effects it brings in the sphere of substantive law? Does the current legal state require amendments? If so, what kind of changes? To determine this, I will examine two fundamental normative acts in the Polish system of sources of law: the Constitution and the Electoral Code. In the research conducted, I will apply the formal-dogmatic method. Apart from legal regulations, I will examine the opinions of legal scientists and some relevant judicial decisions. The Constitution does not link the consequences in the sphere of the electoral law to the end of individual’s life. Electoral Code uses the terms “death” and “died” directly providing for the end of life in special situations confirming the natural consequence of a given state of affairs and requiring various procedural steps. The author expresses the hope that his findings will become the basis for further profound research on the issues of electoral procedures related to the death of a person as: a voter, candidate or member of electoral bodies.