Candidate eligibility
A person is eligible to stand as a candidate in municipal elections if
- the person's municipality of residence is the municipality in question,
- the person has the right to vote in the municipal elections in a municipality, and
- the person is not without legal capacity.
Provisions on the restrictions on candidate eligibility are laid down in section 72 of the Municipalities Act. Under the Act, the following persons are not eligible for election to a municipal council:
- central government officials who perform supervisory tasks directly concerning municipal administration;
- persons employed by the municipality who are in a position of leadership within an area of responsibility of the municipal executive or a municipal committee, or in another comparable position of responsibility;
- persons employed by a corporate entity or foundation under the control of the municipality who, in terms of their position, are comparable to persons employed by the municipality as referred to in paragraph 2;
- in the case of municipal councils of member municipalities of a joint municipal authority, persons employed by the joint municipal authority who, in terms of their position, are comparable to persons employed by the municipality as referred to in paragraph 2.
However, a person in an employment relationship referred to above is eligible for election as a municipal councillor if the employment relationship ends before the municipal councillors’ term begins.
Read more about candidate eligibility in municipal elections: Circular of the Association of Finnish Cities and Municipalities of 23 September 2024: Eligibility for election to a municipal council. Circular on the eligibility for election to a municipal council
Determination of candidate eligibility
As a rule, the municipality in which a person is eligible to stand as a candidate is determined on the same date as the person's voting municipality, in other words in accordance with the information contained in the Population Information System on the 51st day before election day. However, if the person’s municipality of residence changes after that date, the person is eligible to stand as a candidate in the new municipality of residence.
Here is an example: On 21 February 2025, a candidate's municipality of residence is municipality A. However, the candidate moves to municipality B the following week. A candidate application concerning the person is submitted to the central municipal election board of municipality B on 4 March. The central municipal election board confirms the nomination of candidates on 13 March. This means that the person has the right to vote in municipality A, but they stand as a candidate in municipality B.
The legislation contains no explicit provisions concerning the date on which a person’s candidate eligibility is determined, but in practice the question of a candidate's municipality of residence must be clear by the 32nd day before election day, when the central municipal election boards deal with any supplements to candidate applications delivered to the board and make decisions on them. Decisions relating to a candidate’s municipality of residence are made on the basis of the information contained in the Population Information System.
Nomination of candidates
In municipal elections, candidates may be nominated by
- political parties entered in the party register and
- constituency associations established by eligible voters.
Each political party has the right to nominate a number of candidates equalling the number of municipal councillors to be elected in the municipality multiplied by one and a half. For example, if the number of municipal councillors to be elected in the municipality is 27, a political party may nominate at most 40 candidates. Political parties may form electoral alliances. However, the maximum number of candidates that an electoral alliance has the right to nominate is the same as the maximum number of candidates that a single party can nominate.
The candidates of a political party are nominated by a party association operating in the municipality in question that the central organisation of the political party has designated to the task and reported to the central municipal election board.
A constituency association for the nomination of one candidate may be established by a minimum of ten persons who are entitled to vote in the municipality in question. In a municipality with at most 1,500 residents at the end of November preceding the election year, a constituency association may be established by a minimum of three eligible voters. In a municipality with 1,501–2,000 residents, a constituency association may be established by a minimum of five eligible voters. Constituency associations may form joint lists with a maximum number of candidates equalling the number of municipal councillors to be elected in the municipality multiplied by one and a half.
Submission of candidate applications
Political parties and constituency associations must submit their list of candidates (candidate application) to the central municipal election board by 16.00 on the 40th day before election day at the latest. The same deadline applies to submitting notifications of electoral alliances and joint lists to the central municipal election board. On the 48th day before election day at the latest, each central municipal election board holds a meeting where it draws up a public notice indicating to whom, on which dates and times, and where candidate applications and notifications will be received.
When making their candidate applications, political parties and constituency associations may use the forms drawn up in accordance with the model confirmed by the Ministry of Justice. The candidate nomination forms are available in PDF format in Finnish and Swedish.
Compilation of a master list of candidates
The central municipal election board scrutinises the lists of candidates, especially to establish whether the candidates are eligible, and confirms the nomination of candidates on the 31st day before election day. The central municipal election board compiles a master list of candidates in which the candidates of all parties, constituency associations and joint lists are listed in an order drawn by lot. The master list includes the candidate number (beginning with number 2), name, and title, profession or position of each candidate. The master list of candidates is displayed in the voting booths, for example.