It remains a little-known fact about European citizenship: since 1992, EU nationals can participate in local and European elections in any EU country they reside in. 

But for those from outside the EU – so-called third-country nationals – the picture is far more complicated. Some European countries, such as Finland or Spain, grant voting rights after a few years of residence or under reciprocity agreements. In most places, however, political participation still remains tied to obtaining citizenship.

“This creates a sort of two-tier system, where EU citizens are much better integrated into the political processes of their host countries, while third-country nationals remain completely excluded”, said Başak Yavçan, head of research at the Migration Policy Group.

This Brussels-based think tank recently compared non-EU citizens’ voting rights across all 27 member states. Its main conclusion: the bloc is in fact pretty divided on the issue.

“If we look at EU countries as a whole, it’s about fifty-fifty”, Yavçan said. “So it actually isn’t a groundbreaking reform to allow third-country nationals to vote in local elections: in many countries, it’s already the case.”  

A huge controversy in France

Mid-February, such a proposal sparked a huge controversy in France, just a few weeks ahead of the country’s municipal elections.

Denouncing the distinction between different categories of foreigners as “unfair”, Green MPs introduced a bill to extend the right to vote in local elections to all residents, regardless of citizenship. But it never came to a vote, after hundreds of amendments were filed by the right and far right.

Countries like Ireland are a counter-example: There, all legal residents have been able to vote in local elections since 1963. 

The Irish model

“Democracy means power of the people, not citizens – and we’re people too”, said Teresa Buczkowska, CEO of the Immigrant Council of Ireland. She herself moved from Poland to Ireland some twenty years ago.

“Nearly one in five residents here has a migrant background”, she continued. “This is where we live, work, raise our children and pay taxes. So I think it's only fair that we have a say in who represents us and who makes decisions that directly affect us too.”

Multiple studies have found that non-citizens' political participation promotes their integration and leads to more diversity in representative bodies. It also fosters more positive attitudes toward immigration across society as a whole.

A record-low turnout

Still, few non-nationals actually participate in elections, even when they have the right to do so. In Dublin, for example, only 10% of non-EU citizens registered to vote ended up participating in the 2019 municipal elections, compared to about 40% of the general population. One of the key reasons for this low turn-out is lack of information.

“I found out I could vote almost by chance,” said William Yamedjeu Moukam, recalling a flyer he received by mail in 2009. Originally from Cameroon, he has lived in Ireland for nearly twenty years, and since acquired citizenship. “It makes you feel like you’re part of a community that accepts you. So yes, I was quite stunned, and really really happy.”

In Ireland, non-Europeans can not only vote, but also actively run for local office, such as city councils. An opportunity that Sadia Athar happily seized in 2024, as the first Pakistani candidate to ever stand in an election in Ireland.

Beyond local ballots

“I just really feel connected to Irish culture, society and people. It’s become my home, so I wanted to give back to the community”, Athar, who ran as an independent candidate in Longford county, explained. 

Out of 17 candidates, Athar came in eight, closely missing a seat on the 7-member council. She’s already planning to run again in 2029. Like William Moukam, she too now holds an Irish passport. 

Despite occasional disinformation campaigns and attacks, notably by the far-right, voting rights for third-country nationals have come to enjoy broad political consensus in the country, according to Teresa Buczkowska from the Immigrant Council of Ireland. 

The conversation is now even turning to a possible extension towards national votes, such as general or presidential elections.

“Just a hundred years ago, the mere idea of women voting seemed outrageous. Whilst today, it seems completely normal to us”, said Buczkowska. “So perhaps one day, the same will be true for foreign residents’ voting rights.”

Morgane Anneix