Minority registration
The institution of registration was introduced by Act No. CXIV of 2005 on the election of minority self-government representatives and the amendment of certain laws concerning national and ethnic minorities. According to the provisions of the Act, only those persons can participate in the election of the minority self-government who are registered on the list of minority voters. The law does not recognize the possibility of multiple identities – not in the context of elections, anyway – as it stipulates that a person can only be included in one minority voter list, and that the right to representation (passive suffrage) can only be exercised in the case of one minority group (Article 31). The current rules regarding minority registration and voter lists are set out in Articles 53-54 of the Nationalities Act, as well as Articles 86-87 of Act No. XXXVI of 2013 on the election procedure. Registration as a minority voter is done at the request of the person concerned. The application must include the indication of the relevant minority; the voter’s declaration about his/her belonging to that minority; as well as the indication of whether the registration is requested also in relation to the election of members of the parliament. This choice entails that in the parliamentary elections a minority voter can only vote for the minority list, but not for the party-list candidates.