Among the people from Faenza today and tomorrow called to vote for the European elections, there will also be Romano Morelli, whose health conditions have required the electoral office to activate a special procedure, however foreseen in these exceptional cases: he will vote at his domicile with the assisted voting formula.
His is an example of civic duty that overcomes difficulties and provides a demonstration of how much the acquired right wants to be exercised, as long as one has the strength and possibility.
«I want to respect his wishes – states his wife Maria Rosa Venturi -: my husband is 87 years old and suffers, among other things, from ALS and bilateral dystrophic sclerosis, he is immobile but conscious even though he only communicates with his eyes. He expressed his desire to vote and I took action to satisfy his request.”
The procedure is not very simple, but if you take action, as Mrs. Venturi did, you can get to the bottom of it.
«It is not enough to produce certificates and documents certifying the illness – he says – but a visit by a doctor from the ASL, Hygiene service, who we have received at home in recent days to ascertain the state of hospitalization, is necessary. Romano needs everything, he can’t even hold a pencil to vote, so it will be an assisted vote. The secretary of the polling station in Via Tolosano will come to our house with a scrutineer and I will carry out his functions following his instructions.”
The practice of home voting, in this case assisted, is possible thanks to Law 7 May 2009, n. 46, which replaced Law 27 January 2006, n. 22, which establish the right to vote at their home of voters suffering from very serious infirmities: non-transportable people, for whom leaving the home is impossible, even with the help of the services provided for by article 29 of the Law of 5 February 1992, n. 104; voters suffering from serious infirmities who find themselves in conditions of continuous and vital dependence on electro-medical equipment such as to prevent them from leaving their home.
The certifications to be produced are issued free of charge by the Local Health Authority and must not be older than 45 days from the election date.
For untransportable items, the certification must report a prognosis of no less than 60 days. Then, by the 15th day before the vote, the voting request must be submitted to the mayor, including the documentation, a declaration certifying the voter’s will, a copy of the electoral card, the identity document and the certificate from the doctor designated by the Local Health Authority. to carry out the home visit. Once the procedure has been completed, the vote can be cast at one’s home following the prescribed formalities and during the opening hours of the polling stations.
