French lawmaker who uses a wheelchair wins a change in voting rules that discriminated against him

PARIS (AP) — French lawmakers decided unanimously Wednesday to eliminate so-called “sitting and standing” balloting — one of the four methods they use to vote in the National Assembly — agreeing that it discriminated against a parliamentarian who uses a wheelchair because it required him to stand.

The lawmaker, Sébastien Peytavie, argued that his exclusion as a wheelchair user from stand-up votes in parliament’s lower house is part of a bigger picture of France continuing to lag in its obligations to ensure equal rights for people with disabilities. Speaking from his wheelchair to fellow lawmakers, Peytavie said that eliminating the voting method would “show that everyone, regardless of their situation, has the right to a seat in this Assembly.”

“This text is admittedly symbolic but it's a reminder that it is the failure to adapt the environment that creates a disability, not a person's physical situation,” he said.

He noted that the 18th-century parliament building itself, while “beautiful,” also isn't fully accessible to people with disabilities — a state of affairs that's true of the Paris Metro and many other public and private services and venues across France.

“The rules that govern our institution were created — like this Assembly — by and for people without disabilities,” Peytavie said.

By 183 votes for and none against, lawmakers unanimously backed his proposed rule-change that clears the way for the National Assembly president, Yaël Braun-Pivet, to eliminate stand-up votes. Although the voting method is infrequently used, Peytavie said it excludes lawmakers who can’t stand up.

“This situation isn’t theoretical. I wasn’t able to take part in several votes even though I was present in the chamber,” he said.

Other voting methods used by French lawmakers, depending on the circumstances, are a show of hands, with an electronic voting box or with paper ballots dropped into an urn. Peytavie said shows of hands or electronic votes would be used instead of stand-up votes after the change takes effect.

Peytavie also reminded colleagues that he'd also been unable to vote twice in July last year when lawmakers were called one-by-one to walk up stairs to the Assembly podium to cast paper ballots in an urn. At the time, Peytavie posted on social media that because parliamentary workers were refusing to bring the urn to him, he'd had to block the stairs until they gave way.

“Is it that hard?” he posted back then on X.