Panachage

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Panachage is the name given to a procedure provided for in several open list variants of the party-list proportional representation system which gives voters more than one vote for the same ballot and allows them to distribute their votes between individual candidates from different party lists. It is used in elections at all levels in Liechtenstein, Luxembourg and Switzerland, in parliamentary elections in Ecuador, El Salvador and Honduras, as well as in local elections in a majority of German states and in French communes under 1,000 inhabitants.

Belgium

Until a 1899 reform in favour of open list electoral system and the parliamentary elections in 1900, panachage was possible for provincial and parliamentary elections in Belgium, candidates were placed on a list in alphabetical order.^[1] Municipal elections were still held under the panachage system until the 5 July 1976 Law. This change was adopted before the first elections (October 1976) following the 1976 communes merger which reduced the number of Belgian communes from 2,359 to 596. Law proposals were introduced in 1995 and 1999 by senators from the Volksunie to reinstitute it, but they were never put to votes.^[2][3]

Ecuador

In the Ecuadorian parliamentary elections, voters have as many votes as there are seats to be distributed, and they may use them to support candidates over the party lines, but also to give several votes to a single candidate.^[4]

El Salvador

El Salvador adopted an open list proportional system for the 2012 legislative elections, and introduced panachage for the 2015 elections: "For the first time, voters will be able to select individual candidates from any party rather than being forced to vote for a single party with an established list of candidates. Voters can still opt to simply choose a party.".^[5][6][7]

France

For French municipal elections in communes under 1,000 inhabitants (26,879 communes representing 73.5% of all communes) since 2014, under 3,500 before, voters may cast one or several ballot paper(s) with candidates names, either a list or an individual candidate, cross the name(s) of some candidate(s) and add any other, the total of selected candidates may not exceed the number of available seats.^[8] Since the reform of 17 May 2013, a nomination filed with the prefecture or sub-prefecture is required, and voters may no longer add any name of non-candidates on the ballot paper.^[9]

Germany

Out of sixteen federal states, two (Bremen and Hamburg) adopted electoral systems including panachage (Panaschieren) for state and municipal elections, and eleven others only for municipal elections, the three exceptions being Berlin, North Rhine-Westphalia and Saarland. Except in Schleswig-Holstein, in the states allowing panachage the voter may also give more than one vote for one or several candidate(s) (Kumulieren).^{[10] [11]}

Honduras

Panachage within an open list proportional system was adopted since 2005 for legislative elections in Honduras.^[12]

Italy

The Italian concept of voto disgiunto is not equivalent to the panachage concept as understood in other countries. It means the possibility at regional and municipal (in communes over 15,000 inhabitants), but not provincial, elections to vote for a list or a specific candidate on it (whose name has to be written on the ballot paper by the voter) and for a candidate to the presidency or the mayorship that may be on another list.

Liechtenstein

For legislative elections in Liechtenstein there are two constituencies, Oberland and Unterland, the first has 15 seats, the second 10. The voter must use only one ballot paper from one party, and has the right to vote for as many candidates as there are seats to be filled, which means either all the candidates on the party list or some of them and other, handwritten under "deleted" candidates. Using highlighters, writing comments on the ballot paper or put more than one ballot paper in the ballot envelope voids the vote.^[13]

Luxemburg

For all proportional elections,^[14] the voter in Luxemburg has got as many votes as there are seats to be filled, and can vote either for candidates on the same list or for candidates on different lists.^[15]

Switzerland

In Switzerland, voters may as well panachate, "cumulate" and delete (Streichen or Reihen in German, latoisage in French) the names of some candidates, a system also used in Austria until the 1970s.^[16]

References