Denmark reports 478 mail-in ballots uncounted in European Parliament elections

At least 478 mail-in ballots were not counted in the recent European Parliament elections, despite being submitted on time. This information comes from an internal disclosure by the Ministry of the Interior and Health, based on data from electoral districts and half of Denmark’s 98 municipalities. Voters mailed their ballots before the deadline, but many were sent late from abroad, hospitals, and prisons, preventing them from arriving before polling stations opened on June 9. Consequently, these votes cannot be counted under current legislation.

Election researcher Kasper Møller Hansen from the University of Copenhagen expressed concern, stating, “It is somewhat of an affront… Voters acted in good faith, and whether it’s 50 or 500 ballots, I find it irrelevant.”

While the missing ballots will not affect the election outcome and the total loss is not alarming, Carina Saxlund Bischoff, a political scientist, agrees that the ballots should have been counted. “Mistakes happen sometimes,” she noted, emphasizing that although the integrity of the voting process is generally upheld, such errors can lead to distrust among voters.

Most of the uncounted ballots likely originated from Danish embassies and consulates abroad, where there is no set deadline for submission. Furthermore, many were issued from Danish hospitals and prisons. Municipalities are required to track lost ballots, yet they are not mandated to report specifics regarding them.

Despite the low number of lost ballots compared to previous elections, Hansen illustrated that the loss impacts voter confidence. “It is vital that people feel their votes are counted,” he stated. The Ministry of the Interior plans to evaluate the voting process, especially concerning mail-in ballots, to prevent similar issues in the future.