When and where to vote?

Election days September 10^th (14.00 - 20.00) and September 11^th (10.00 - 20.00)

Opening hours at the polling stations 2023 are:

• Sunday September 10^th 14.00 – 20.00
• Monday September 11^th 10.00 – 20.00

Who can vote?

Who has the right to vote at the municipal and county elections of 2023?

Norwegian citizens:

• Turned or is turning eighteen (18) by the end of 2023 (born in 2005 and earlier)

Nordic citizens (Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland):

• Registered resident by the 30^th of June 2023

Other foreign citizens:

• registered resident in Norway the last three years before election day

Employees in the diplomatic or consular service, as well as their families have the right to vote regardless of their fulfillment of the residency requirements.

Source: Valgloven

Voting rights in Ullensaker municipality

To have the right to vote in Ullensaker, your registered address with the Norwegian Tax Administration must be within the municipality by the 30^th of June 2023. If you recently moved and notified the Tax Administration after the 30th of June, your vote will be counted in your former municipality (and county, if applicable). Your registered address on the 30th of June determines where you will be entered in the census, which provides an overview of who has the right to vote in a municipality.

Moving - The Norwegian Tax Administration (skatteetaten.no)

Are you in the census (manntallet)?

The census is a list of all citizens who have the right to vote in Norwegian elections. The census is updated with information from the population register (Folkeregisteret). Therefore, most people are automatically entered into the census. Some people have to apply for entry into the census, for more information see below.

Per the Electoral Act §2-7, those who feel that they themselves, or someone else, is wrongfully excluded from the census in a municipality can file for rectification of the error with the electoral board. The demand must be in writing, with reasoning, sent to Valg@ullensaker.kommune.no

If you have any doubts regarding your entry into the census, you can check this yourself with the municipality administration. The census for the municipal and county elections of 2023 will be publicized at the reception of Ullensaker municipality 15^th of July 2023.

How do you vote?

How to vote at the polling stations

Remember to bring a valid ID! (passport, national ID, driver´s licence or a debit card with picture)

1. Select the ballot of the party you wish to vote for: One for municipal and one for county elections (if you want to vote in both)

2.  (OPTIONAL) If you want to give one or more candidates a personal vote, you can put a tick in the box next to the candidates name on the ballot. You can give out as many of these as you want to. You can also write the names of candidates from other parties/groups in a separate box on the ballot. There is a limit to how many of these names you can put down, which is specified on the ballot. 

3. Fold the ballot with the name of the party facing inwards, and the field where the stamp goes facing outwards. This ensures that nobody can see which party or group you will be voting for. Do not use an envelope or another type of cover around the ballot.

4. Approach an election official and get a stamp on your ballot(s). This is important, as your vote may be rejected without the stamp. 

5. Put your ballot into the box and exit the polling station. By completing this step, you have exercised your vote to right and participated in local democracy. 

Should you have any questions regarding this process, there are elections officials present at all times during opening hours. Do not hesitate to ask them any questions you might have. The election officials are forbidden from being listed on the ballots, so they will always act as a neutral party in the election.

What happens after you have cast your vote?

After the polling stations have closed (Monday September 11th, 20:00), the counting of votes will begin. After all the ballots have been counted and verified, the electoral committee will determine how many representatives each party or group will be allocated in the municipal or county council. After that, the electoral committee will count personal votes to determine which of the candidates are elected.

This process can take some time, but regular updates are given in media and news outlets. A common tradition is to follow a news broadcast where the results and predictions are given live for municipalities and counties across the country. In Norwegian, we call this a "Valgvake", roughly translated as an "Election watch". These are usually provided by NRK, TV2, major news outlets, as well as local media (MittJessheim, Eidsvoll Ullensaker Blad, or Jessheimpuls in our area). 

Who can you vote for?

Parties and candidates

Godkjente listeforslag for alle partier som stiller til valg i kommunestyrevalget 2023

Approved lists for all parties running in the municipal elections in Ullensaker 2023.

Valgomat (political test)

A “Valgomat” is an informal test where the result shows which political party you share the most views with. Are you not sure who you are going to vote for? We here at the administration of Ullensaker municipality cannot tell you who to vote for, but we do encourage you to take part in the elections, so your voice is heard. A “Valgomat” can be a useful tool to find out what parties you agree with. We have provided a couple of these below, some have questions about Ullensaker while others keep a national. These tests are only available in Norwegian at the moment, but Google translate may provide a useful translation in your native language if you paste the link into that service.

NRK Valgomat (specific to Ullensaker)

TV 2 Valgomat

VG valgomat (Specific to Ullensaker)

Dagbladet Valgomat

Nettavisen Valgomat

NRK´s guide to local elections

NRK har laget en guide til valget  (Google translate may provide a useful translation in your native language)

 NRK has made a useful guide to the local election (In Norwegian)

Politically run organization

Ullensaker municipality is a politically run organization. This means that representatives who are elected by the people decide on the priorities of the municipality.

Therefore, the governing changes to varying degrees after each municipal election, based on the election results and how much support each party gets. There are municipal elections every four years, two years after the National Elections.

Chairmanship model

Ullensaker municipality is governed by the chairmanship model. 

The municipal council

The municipal council consists of forty-five (45) democratically elected representatives from different political parties.

What is the municipal council?

The municipal council is the highest-ranking institution in the municipality. Decisions are made on local issues like kindergartens, child protection services, planning and zoning issues, primary school, cultural initiatives, as well as renovation. The forty-five (45) democratically elected members of the municipal council bring up and vote on issues on those subject matters. When you cast your vote in the election, you vote for who is going to represent you and your interests in the municipal council.

Chairmanship group

The chairmanship group is the political organ that deals with day-to-day matters in the municipality. In this group there are eleven (11) members from the municipal council.

Mayor and Deputy Mayor

The mayor leads both the municipal council and the chairman group, and is often a leading candidate from the biggest party of the plurality coalition. If the mayor is absent or unable to fulfill his duties, the deputy mayor will take his place until the mayor returns to his duties. 

Administrative leadership

The municipal director is the highest ranking official in the administrative part of the municipality. The director is not politically chosen, and does not have a political affiliation. The administration consists of employees in many different positions, who fulfill the municipal responsibilities decided by the politicians. Whoever holds the director position is accountable for the entire municipal enterprise. Erling Kristiansen is the municipal director in Ullensaker.

The responsibilities of the municipal director include:

• Facilitate political control of the local community and the municipality’s activities.
• Managing and developing the administration, services, and welfare programs
• Managing and developing the organization

Organisasjonskart (organization map)

New this election

The 2023 election comes with some changes, following the dissolvement of Viken county into three new counties. This means that citizens of Ullensaker will now cast their vote in Akershus, as they did prior to the creation of Viken County. This change will come into effect January 1st, 2024, but the elections will still count towards the returning county of Akershus.

As in the municipal elections, you can also vote for the party and candidates you wish to be represented by. The representatives you can vote for in this election are from all over the county, not just Ullensaker. Some parties only run in the municipal elections, some only in the county election, and some run in both. You are not obligated to vote for the same party in both elections, you can vote for whoever you like in each of these elections. The County Election is at at the same time as the Municipal Elections, so you have to vote in both at the same time when you go to the polling stations, if you want to have your say in both elections. 

County council

The county council is the highest-ranking political entity in the County. The county deals with matters such as: Upper Secondary school, county roads, public transport, and cultural policy.

Approved lists of candidates in Akershus

Liste over hvem som stiller til valg i Akershus

Norwegian Directorate of Elections

For information from the Norwegian Directorate of Elections visit: www.valg.no  (available in English)

Results in previous elections

Results from previous elections can be found at www.valgresultater.no (available in English) and other statistics from SSB Kommunestyre- og fylkestingsvalg (ssb.no)

Information in other languages

Information in Norwegian

Election brochure - various languages