O voto da pessoa com deficiência ou mobilidade reduzida no estado do Tocantins: a atuação da Justiça Eleitoral visando assegurar o direito à acessibilidade no dia da eleição

Abstract

This technical report describes the actions taken by the Regional Electoral Court of Tocantins from 2016 to 2022 with the aim of enabling voters with disabilities or reduced mobility to exercise their right to vote autonomously. The Electoral Court is the body responsible for holding elections in Brazil, and is responsible for all planning and executing the procedures necessary to guarantee the right to vote. However, the free use of the physical structure of public and private properties to install polling stations proves to be a challenge for ensuring the right to accessibility on election day. Therefore, the objective of this research is to examine the procedures that are carried out to assess accessibility criteria at polling stations and adapt environments, and to indicate possible alternatives to improve this process so that it becomes more effective. This is an applied research, with a qualitative approach and a descriptive objective. The report will provide a comprehensive overview of the Electoral Court's procedure for inspecting and designating polling stations in Tocantins. The planning and management activities developed by TRE-TO and the actions carried out by the Electoral Offices will be described, the data on the evolution of voters and poll workers with disabilities in Tocantins will be analyzed, and approaches to mitigate the difficulties faced by the Electoral Court to promote accessibility at polling stations will be presented. The most relevant result of this work will be the presentation of a specific Action Plan model.