Eligible

The general preconditions of eligibility are mostly identical with the preconditions for being entitled to vote in elections. In municipal elections the preconditions of eligibility and being entitled to vote differ in that eligibility requires permanent residence in the municipality, whereas to be entitled to vote it is sufficient that a person is domiciled in the municipality 51 days before the elections.

Eligible as candidates in municipal elections are persons
1) whose municipality of residence is the municipality in question
2) who are entitled to vote in municipal elections in some municipality, and
3) who are not under guardianship (legally incompetent).

A person is eligible to stand as a candidate in county elections if they
1) are domiciled in the wellbeing services county in question (their municipality of residence belongs to the wellbeing services county in question),
2) have the right to vote in the county elections in some wellbeing services county, and
3) are not without legal capacity.

A resident of a wellbeing services county is a person who has a municipality of residence in the wellbeing services county as intended in the Municipality of Residence Act (201/1994).

Provisions on the restrictions on candidate eligibility are laid down in section 77 of the Act on wellbeing services counties.

“Eligible for election to a county council are not:
1) central government officials who perform supervisory tasks directly concerning a wellbeing services county;
2) persons employed by a wellbeing services county who work in a senior position within an area of responsibility of the county executive or a board or in an unincorporated county enterprise, or in another comparable position of responsibility;
3) persons employed by a corporate entity or foundation under the control of a wellbeing services county who, in terms of their position, are comparable to persons employed by a wellbeing services county as referred to in paragraph 2;
4) persons employed by a joint county for wellbeing services, of which the wellbeing services county in question is a member, who, in terms of their position, are comparable to persons employed by a wellbeing services county as referred to in a paragraph 2.
5) however, persons in the employment relationships referred to above are eligible for election as county councillors, if this employment relationship ends before the county councillors’ term begins.”


All persons entitled to vote and not under guardianship can stand as candidates in parliamentary elections. A person holding military office cannot, however, be elected as a representative. In addition certain high officials may not serve as representatives unless they resign from office.

Eligible as candidates in European Parliamentary elections are
1) all Finnish citizens who are entitled to vote in elections and not legally incompetent
2) all citizens of a Member State of the EU who are entitled to vote and who have registered and been entered into the voting register in Finland, and who have not lost eligibility in elections in their home state.

Native-born Finnish citizens are eligible in Presidential elections.