Two members of Folketinget (the Danish Parliament) are elected in the Faroe Islands.
The Faroe Islands is one single constituency.
Calling of general elections to the Folketing
Elections to the Folketing are called by royal public notice. This royal public notice may delegate to the High Commissioner to determine a different date for the election in the Faroe Islands than for the other areas of the Realm.
The High Commissioner will set the date for the election in the Faroe Islands immediately thereafter.
In the Faroe Islands two members of the Folketing are elected.
The Faroe Islands is one single constituency.
Voting rights and inclusion on the electoral register
Anyone who is a Danish citizen, aged 18 years or older, and has a permanent residence in the Realm is entitled to vote, unless the person concerned is under legal guardianship.
No one may exercise the right to vote without being registered on the electoral register.
Individuals who temporarily reside abroad may, under certain circumstances, be considered as having permanent residence in the Realm, and thereby be entitled to vote in parliamentary elections, please see below.
The following individuals, who are temporarily residing abroad, and their cohabiting spouse, are considered to have a permanent residence in the Realm:
1) Individuals posted to serve abroad as employees of a public authority, a private company, or a private association in the Realm
2) Individuals posted abroad as employees of an international organization, of which Denmark or the Faroe Islands is a member
3) Individuals posted abroad by a relief organisation in the Realm
4) Individuals who are abroad due to studies
5) Individuals who are abroad due to health reasons
6) Individuals abroad who, due to their ties to the Realm, can be considered fully equivalent to the individuals mentioned in no. 1–5 above.
Voters who have temporary residence abroad shall, by request, be included in the electoral register in the municipality where they had their most recent registered residence. The application for registration must be submitted to the municipal administration, which shall subsequently forward the request to the High Commissioner for a decision, along with certification confirming that the person concerned holds Danish citizenship, has reached 18 years of age, and is not under legal guardianship, along with information on when the person was last registered in the municipality’s population register, folkeregister. Decisions regarding inclusion in electoral register are valid for two years from the date of the decision.
Registration and approval of candidates
No person may be nominated for election without having personally submitted their candidacy. A person may stand either as a candidate for a party that obtained representation in the Løgting (the Faroese Parliament) at the most recently held parliamentary election and that remains represented there at the time the election is called, or as a candidate independent of the parties. The candidacy of any independent candidate requires the subscription of at least 150 and at most 200 voters of the Faroe Islands constituency.
Notification of candidacy shall be submitted to the chair of the electoral committee no later than 6 p.m. eleven days prior to election day.
No later than 6 p.m. eight days prior to election day, the parties shall inform the electoral committee which candidates the party is able to approve.
Immediately after the expiry of the deadline for the submission of candidacies, the electoral committee shall examine whether the candidacies submitted in due time are valid. The electoral committee shall publish the approved candidacies as soon as possible.
Voting on election day
Voting takes place in each polling district at the polling station in premises designated by the municipal council. Voting begins at 9 a.m. and continues until 8 p.m., and thereafter for as long as voters still present themselves to cast their votes.
The right to vote is exercised by personal attendance. Voting takes place in the polling booth, where only the voter may be present.
Advance voting for voters registered in the election register in a municipality in the Faroe Islands (Faroese voters)
Voters residing in the Faroe Islands who are prevented from attending the polling station on election day may vote by postal ballot at any population register office.
Seafarers and fishermen may also vote in advance by postal ballot with the chief of police (landfoged) or the district commissioner (sýslumaður), or an officer in charge of signing crews on and off (mønstringsbestyrer).
Voters who are admitted to the hospital, or other medical or care institutions, or are receiving medical treatment at home, may vote in advance at the hospital or the institution or the home. The vote must be handed to two advanced vote recipients, who are appointed by the polling supervisors.
Advance voting may take place from three weeks prior to election day; however, seafarers and fishermen may vote in advance in the last three months before election day.
The last day of advance voting is the penultimate weekday (including Saturday) before election day.
In order to be tallied, advance votes must be cast in sufficient time to ensure that they can reach the polling supervisors before voting begins at 9 a.m. on election day, which is of particular importance if the advance vote must be sent to another municipality.
Advance voting for voters registered on the election register in a municipality in Denmark or in Greenland (Danish and Greenlandic voters)
Danish and Greenlandic voters, who are staying in the Faroe Islands, may vote in advance at the Faroese population registers or at the offices of the chief of police (fútin), or the district commissioner (sýslumaður), the High Commissioner’s Office or the head of the Liaison Element in the Faroe Islands.
There are no rules governing any deadline for advance voting for Danish or Greenlandic voters in the Faroe Islands. Advance voting for both Danish and Greenlandic voters in the Faroe Islands must, however, in order to be tallied, be cast in sufficient time to ensure that they can reach the polling supervisors before voting begins at 9 a.m. on the election day in Denmark or Greenland.
Advance voting for Faroese voters temporarily in Denmark, Greenland, or third countries
Voters who are on the electoral register in a municipality in the Faroe Islands and who are temporarily in Denmark, Greenland, or abroad may vote in advance where they are staying. Voters who are temporarily in Denmark or Greenland may vote in advance at a population registry office or at one of the other locations designated for advance voting. Voters who are temporarily abroad may cast their vote in advance at the offices of a Danish diplomatic or consular representation.
Advance voting in Denmark, Greenland, and third countries may take place during the last 3 months before the election day.
Election results
Once voting has concluded and unissued ballots, etc., have been counted and packed, the polling supervisors and the appointed voters carry out a count of the votes cast. The number of votes cast for each party and for each candidate is counted.
Once the chair of the electoral office has received reports from all polling districts, the votes reported are summed up, and a preliminary tally of the election is carried out. The High Commissioner is immediately notified of the total number of votes cast for each party and each independent candidate, and the preliminary tally of the election.
No later than the day after the final count, the chair of the electoral office shall send a copy of the poll book to the High Commissioner, who immediately forwards a copy to the Danish Minister for the Interior and Health.
The Folketing approves the validity of the election of candidates.
Complaints regarding Folketing elections
Anyone may submit a complaint regarding parliamentary elections. Complaints are to be addressed to the High Commissioner and must be submitted within one week of the election. The High Commissioner will forward any complaints to the Danish Minister for the Interior and Health.
Act on Folketing Elections in the Faroe Islands
For all other particulars, please refer to the Implementing Order for the Act on Folketing Elections in the Faroe Islands (lovbekendtgørelse nr. 1432 af 1. december 2023 om folketingsvalg på Færøerne), which is available to download in Danish in PDF format below:
