Ombudsman clears election officials of wrongdoing in Jyväskylä and Hämeenlinna

The Ombudsman will not press charges against election officials regarding their actions during the 2023 parliamentary elections in Jyväskylä and Hämeenlinna. One incident involved the sealing of a ballot envelope, while the other concerned a voter’s name being crossed out on the electoral list. Complaints were filed requesting an investigation into the legality of the election officials’ procedures at an advance voting site in Jyväskylä and the actions of the electoral committee on the actual election day in Hämeenlinna. Ombudsman Petri Jääskeläinen ordered both complaints to be investigated further.

In Jyväskylä, the issue was that according to election law and directives from the Ministry of Justice, it is the responsibility of voters to seal their ballot envelopes during advance voting. However, in this case, an election official sealed the envelope on behalf of the voter. The Ombudsman initiated an investigation as this procedure is central to the role of election officials and is clearly regulated. Violating this could potentially lead to election fraud or the risk of revealing a voter’s anonymity if the envelope was left open.

In Hämeenlinna, a voter was denied the right to vote because their name had already been crossed out from the electoral list, although the voter claimed they had not yet exercised their voting rights. The Ombudsman deemed it necessary to investigate this allegedly incorrect procedure thoroughly. He noted that the first secretary of the central electoral committee, who trained the officials, acted contrary to election laws and guidelines. Although it was evident there was likely an erroneous crossing out of the name, the exact circumstances remained unclear, leading to no charges being filed. The chairperson of the electoral committee had also sought clarification from the central electoral committee, but clear legal guidance was not found.