A/HRC/19/36 federal levels, although some restrictions continue to exist at the provincial level. 8 In the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Electoral Administration Act 2006 abolished the common law rule that a person with mental health conditions lacks legal capacity to vote.9 40. Some countries are currently reviewing their legislation on legal capacity in order to ensure its consistency with the provision of article 29. In the Czech Republic, for example, the reform of the guardianship system is currently under way and will be introduced in the new Civil Code. The Government of Mexico also intends to review its legislation and practice on the deprivation of legal capacity so as to ensure that persons with disabilities fully enjoy their human rights, including political rights, on an equal basis with others. 41. A limited number of countries continue to maintain in their legislation provisions that exclude other categories of persons with disabilities from the exercise of the right to vote. However, responses to the questionnaire show that these exceptions are progressively being lifted as a result of the ratification of the Convention. In Argentina, for example, Law No. 26.571 of December 2009 has abrogated the provision of the National Electoral Code that excluded illiterate deaf persons from the exercise of the right to vote. B. Right to stand for elections and to effectively hold office 42. As is the case for the right to vote, in many countries the right to be a candidate in elections continues to be linked to the legal capacity of the individual. Consequently, persons under full or partial legal guardianship lose both the right to vote and the right to be elected. Such exceptions are usually based on decisions taken by a court of law declaring that the person is unable, in view of his or her mental conditions, to understand the nature and significance of his or her action. In some cases, a person under guardianship cannot be a candidate in elections, even if he or she may exercise the right to vote. In France, for example, persons under guardianship or curatorship retain, in principle, the full enjoyment of the right to vote, but cannot exercise any elective function (art. L200 of the Electoral Code). 43. These limitations reflect an outdated and discriminatory approach to persons with disabilities and their role in society which is inconsistent with the obligations arising from the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Unlike article 25 of the Covenant, article 29 does not mention any permissible ground for excluding or restricting the exercise, on an equal basis with others, of the right of persons with disabilities to stand as candidates in political elections. Therefore, any such restriction would constitute a violation of articles 2, 12 and 29 of the Convention. 44. The replies to the questionnaire show that only in a limited number of countries can persons with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities participate as candidates in elections on an equal basis with others. In the United Kingdom, for example, there are no restrictions on the right of persons with disabilities to be elected. 10 8 9 10 10 In Quebec, for example, persons under curatorship cannot vote or run for office in provincial, municipal and school elections. Persons with mental health conditions are eligible to vote, including those in psychiatric hospitals, unless they have been detained under certain sections of the Mental Health Act 1983 and are therefore unable to understand the voting procedure or are convicted criminal offenders. In February 2011, the Government announced its intention to repeal Section 141 of the Mental Health Act 1983 which set the process by which Members of Parliament were required to vacate their seats if they had a mental health condition and were authorized to be detained under mental health legislation