Korina Theodorakaki is a journalist and wheelchair user who is an active member and elected official in numerous disability rights organisations in Greece. In this testimonial, she reflects on her deeply upsetting experiences with inaccessible polling stations, and the difficult and sometimes illegal practices that she has had to face in order to cast her vote.
Abstaining from the elections means that you leave your destiny and your life in the hands of others.
My name is Korina (which is a diminutive of the female name “Kornilia”) Theodorakaki, a Greek citizen by birth. I was born in 1962 on a small Greek island called Kythira, located near the south-eastern tip of the Peloponnese peninsula. I lived in Kythira until the age of 18, then, in 1980, Ι moved to Athens to pursue my studies in journalism.
For almost 20 years I worked both as a journalist for several newspapers, magazines, television, and radio, and as an advertising copywriter. When I was 43, I was involved (as a co-driver) in a terrible car accident, and since then, I am a wheelchair user. Despite the accident, I continued working as a journalist until 2018 as some media companies had premises accessible to persons with disabilities, and luckily for me, continued practicing journalism – my beloved job. In 2018, however, due to the impact of severe economic crisis and to media companies, which resulted in their closure, I had to retire. After my retirement, I have fully devoted and actively involved in the Greek disability movement.
Nowadays, I hold the position of the Vice-President of the Panhellenic Union of Paraplegic & Physically Disabled (PASIPKA). Also, I am the Secretary General of the National Federation of the Physically Handicapped (EOKA), in which PASIPKA is also a member-organisation. In addition, I am an elected member of the General Council of the National Confederation of Disabled People of Greece (NCDP), which is the umbrella organisation of the Greek disability movement.
The barriers I have faced in voting
As a wheelchair user, I have faced several problems in exercising my voting rights in all kinds of elections, e.g. local/regional, national, and European ones.
Although the polling station is located at a beautiful, historic, and old school building on the island of Kythira, it is not accessible to persons with disabilities, since you must climb five steps to enter the building. During my very first years as a wheelchair user, some of my friends used to lift me, along with the wheelchair, by their hands to enter and exit the building, an experience which made me feel terrible and dependent on others because I had to rely on three people to help me approach the polling station every time, which was not always easy. To me this treatment was deeply offensive and disrespectful.
For this reason, I asked from the representative of the judicial authority and the member of the electoral committee to deliver all the electoral material to me – that is, the stamped and initialed envelope along with the full set of ballot papers, outside the polling station, in the schoolyard. Also, this experience made me to have second thoughts on the secrecy of the vote and the fairness of the electoral process since a representative of the judicial authority had to get out of the polling station to assist me and cast my vote.
This ‘alternative’ solution, fortunately, is no longer legal due to the enactment of Law 5043/2023. From now on, the municipal authority responsible for the accommodation of the polling centers/stations should choose accessible buildings. If accessible buildings are not available, then the municipal authority must create an accessible place.
In the upcoming EU elections, I am about to exercise my right to vote by post. This would be beneficial to me as it would allow me to avoid the financial expenses and hardship involved in travelling to my hometown.
For this reason, I strongly believe that if the responsible authorities for the electoral process implement the provisions of the existing legal framework, then my voting experience will be improved. Once these measures are implemented, then I will be able to approach the polling booth and cast my vote without any barriers.
Improved voting experiences in my professional life
Based on what I have said so far, no, unfortunately, I cannot recall a stress-free voting experience since I became a person with disabilities. However, my experience concerning the disability movement elections is very positive. Whether it’s the elections for primary, secondary, or tertiary unions, accessibility is always considered since accessible places and parking spaces for persons with disabilities are always available.
Also, regarding my experience with the elections at my professional union, the Journalist’s Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (ESΗEA), I would rate it as partly positive. While the building with the offices of ESΗEA is accessible, there are neither available parking spaces for persons with disabilities nor private parking close to the building. Therefore, when I want to participate in the elections of ESΗEA, the only option I have is to park on the street, which is illegal and not always possible.
The importance of voting
To me, it is very important and necessary for everyone to participate in the upcoming EU elections because through this process we can choose those people who will represent us in the large European family, where decisive decisions are made for our lives as citizens of the European Union, and let alone, as citizens with disabilities.
As it is well known, each country’s national policies do not always meet the needs of their citizens. The EU, through its institutions, lay down legislative measures that the member states should adopt. Thus, the citizens’ active participation in the elections can increases their power, and from a minority group in their country, to become a majority group in the EU.
As we have seen at EU level, in the context of disability, the participation of the national representative organisations of persons with disabilities in the corresponding European and international bodies is crucial, since, through this way, their “voice” and their power become stronger and stronger.
To conclude, active participation in the elections of an institution such as the EU, while to some citizens may seem not very significant, however, it is since our daily life is determined, in the end, by the EU. Abstaining from the elections means that you leave your destiny and your life in the hands of others.