A/HRC/43/41/Add.3 interpreting assignments are paid for by the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Organization and provided either by employees of the organization or by freelance interpreters. 8 However, Norwegian Sign Language is not yet formally recognized as an official language. The Special Rapporteur is concerned that the provision of sign language interpretation, relay services and captioning by the Labour and Welfare Organization remains limited. For instance, she was informed of the case of a candidate with disabilities who was running for re-election but who was not able to take an adequate part in election campaigns and attend political gatherings owing to the failure of the organization to provide sign language interpreters, and was not re-elected by a handful of votes. The Special Rapporteur recalls the responsibility of the Government to abide by its obligations stemming from articles 21 (b) and 24 (b) of the Convention, including by facilitating the use of the sign language of choice of deaf persons in official interactions and promoting the linguistic identity of the deaf community. 34. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the widespread use of alternative and augmentative technology for persons with disabilities in schools, but received little information about the development of plain language or easy-to-read materials for persons with intellectual disabilities. D. Participation of persons with disabilities 1. Right to vote and to be elected 35. According to the Election Act, every Norwegian citizen who has attained the age of 18 by the end of the year in which the election is held has the right to vote. However, article 50 of the Constitution provides an exception whereby “rules may be laid down by law concerning the right to vote of persons otherwise entitled to vote who on Election Day are manifestly suffering from a seriously weakened mental state or a reduced level of consciousness”. The Election Act further stipulates that municipalities are responsible for the conduct of both local and parliamentary elections, which includes the duty to ensure that all registered voters can take part in the elections. In the event that voters with disabilities are unable to get to the polling station, they may request permission to vote at home or in an institution. Anyone who cannot mark their ballot personally may request assistance from polling officers to cast their vote. Furthermore, voters with severe psychosocial or physical disabilities can appoint an additional assistant among the persons present at the polling station. 36. The Special Rapporteur was informed that during the municipal elections of September 2019, some polling stations and electoral campaigns were not accessible to the diversity of persons with disabilities. For instance, Braille ballot papers were not available everywhere to enable blind persons to vote independently. Some persons with disabilities were obliged to request support for voting from polling officers and expressed concern about not being allowed into the election booth with a person of their choice. Similarly, some polling stations lacked signage, hearing loops and sign language interpreters to enable deaf and hard-of-hearing persons to have full access to information. The Government explained that a law commission had been established to review the Election Act and to address some of these shortcomings. 37. The Special Rapporteur welcomes the review of the Election Act as an opportunity to make the entire electoral process fully accessible and inclusive of persons with disabilities. As required by article 29 of the Convention, information about the electoral process and political campaigns should also be made accessible for all persons with disabilities, including in sign language, Braille and easy-read format. 38. Persons with disabilities are active members of political parties and regularly engage with Members of Parliament. While there are no rules preventing persons with disabilities from holding public functions, only a few of them do so. Special efforts should be made to 8 8 See the reply of Norway to the questionnaire of the Special Rapporteur on the rights of persons with disabilities on the provision of support to persons with disabilities, 25 October 2016, p. 2.