1. Act naturally and respectfully.
Persons with disabilities are autonomous and independent and should be treated as such.
It should not be assumed that a person needs help, simply because he/she has a disability. If the environment is accessible, persons with disabilities can usually manage without any difficulty.
In all cases, be guided by common sense and the principle of equality and non-discrimination.
2. Ask before you help.
Ask if your assistance is necessary only if the voter with a disability appears to need it. And if the person accepts it, ask him/her how you can help specifically.
Address the person with a disability directly, not the person accompanying him/her (e.g. a trusted person, sign language interpreter, etc.), as appropriate.
3. Use common sense.
For example, start from the idea that a person in a wheelchair is a seated person and, when faced with a seated person, it is usual to bend down to be at his/her height or sit on a chair opposite.
If there is a specific incident raised by a person with a disability and you don’t know what to do, contact the person in charge of the administration of the polling place or the Area Electoral Board.
If a queue forms at voting time, it is advisable for persons with disabilities to be given preference in casting their votes.
Guide dogs and dogs providing assistance for people with disabilities shall always be admitted and not separated from the person in need, disturbed or distracted.
4. Be cautious about any physical contact.
Some people with disabilities rely on their arms to keep their balance. Taking them by the arm, even if your intention is to help, may cause them to lose their balance or frighten them because they aren’t expecting such contact.
Avoid touching wheelchairs or, as appropriate, walking sticks; persons with disabilities regard these items as part of their personal space.
5. Access to the polling place and the path to the polling station: accompaniment and information.
At the request of voters with disabilities, and only when they so request, at the entrance to the polling station, the representative of the Administration or the security forces may accompany them on the route to the corresponding desk, without pushing or touching the wheelchair, as appropriate, unless the person so requests.
If the person is visually-impaired, you can offer to hold onto his/her arm. In this case, adapt your pace to that of the visually-impaired person, taking into account the characteristics of the environment you are moving in so that he/she can walk comfortably.
In order to respond to potential requests for information and provide guidance for persons with disabilities on access to the polling place station and how to move around to get to the polling station, the advice specified in the following section should be taken into account.
6. Guidelines to facilitate communication: communicating clearly.
In relation to the deaf or hearing-impaired, it is advisable to speak from the front and not to move your head; avoid speaking to them when your back is turned or when you are bending down or writing; don’t shout and vocalise normally, in other words, speak to them with the normal pace of any conversation without having objects in your mouth or obstructing a clear view of your face; if necessary, use writing, natural gestures or call their attention with a light touch on the arm; the place should be well lit and the deaf or hearing-impaired person should not be facing the sun, as backlighting makes it difficult to see the face.
Don’t communicate with single words, as it can be misleading. Deaf people need the full content of a sentence to understand the context.
When interacting with a visually-impaired person, avoid using generic indications such as “here”, “there”, “this” and so on. In these cases, it is preferable to use more indicative expressions, such as “to your left” and “behind you”. If you want to provide information on an object, you can guide the visually-impaired person’s hand to the object that you are giving information about and tell them what it is.
If you are talking to a visually-impaired person, let them know if you are going to be absent, otherwise they may continue to address you thinking that you are still with them. Similarly, if you return, it is advisable to let them know.
Check that the person with a disability has understood what you are trying to convey to them.