COVID-19 Patients Won't Be Allowed to Vote 確診.居隔不能投票挨批違憲 李進勇:不得已

The nine-in-one elections are scheduled for Nov. 26. The Central Election Commission announced on Oct. 20 that people with COVID-19 infections and people undergoing home quarantine will not be allowed to enter polling stations to vote, citing disease prevention guidelines. The NPP pointed out the Central Entrance Examination Center organized separate entrances and exam rooms for students with COVID-19 infections or who were quarantining at home, so why can't the government do the same? It also said this may be unconstitutional. CEC Chairperson Lee Chin-yung had this response. 

Lee Chin-yung, Chairperson, Central Election Commission: “With regard to people with COVID-19 infections, this is because the Communicable Disease Control Act stipulates that they must be in isolation. Actually, with regard to this regulation, the Constitutional Court's Interpretation No. 690 indicated that it's not a violation of the principle of proportionality, and this is something that we have no choice but to do. We still need to carry it out based on our country's disease prevention regulations.”

Lee said eligible voters are required by law to personally present themselves at polling stations based on their household registration to vote. It will be difficult to make special arrangements for people with COVID-19 infections that are isolating at centralized facilities or at home. Establishing special polling stations will be a type of absentee voting and there are no mechanisms in place at present.

中選會主委李進勇表示：「確診者是因為傳染病防治法的規定，必須要接受隔離。這樣的規定在之前司法院大法官690號解釋，也認為並沒有違反比例原則，所以這是很不得已的事情，我們還是按照國家的防疫規定來執行。」

李進勇指出，依規定投票權人要本人親自到戶籍所在地投票，若確診者在集中防疫所隔離或在家隔離，要開設專責投開票所有困難，而專設投票所是不在籍投票方式，目前沒有相關機制。