Objective: To determine the impact of PD on the participation of persons with Parkinson disease in the recently concluded national elections in Lagos,Nigeria, and explore the patients’ perspectives of the PD features impacting on their ability to participate

Background: A common source of fulfillment for most adults living in a democracy is the ability to perform the basic civic duty of participating in elections by voting, a fundamental human right in democracies. Diseases that limit social functioning and mobility may hamper such participation, particularly where the process demands the physical presence of the participant

Method: We designed a brief telephone survey to explore the intention to vote in the elections conducted in February 2019 (expressed as prior registration to vote), actual participation in the voting process, and PD-related factors hampering or hindering participation (self-declared by the participants). Potential participants were randomly selected from the electronic database of the Movement Disorders Clinic at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Lagos Nigeria.

Results: 66 of 67 contacted PD patients accepted to participate,44 men (66.7%) and 22 women (33.3%),mean age of 65.0±10.3 years (significantly higher in women – 69.0 ±8.7 compared to men – 63.0±10.5; p=0.02). Median Hoehn and Yahr stage was 2.0. Voter registration rate was 77.3% (51/66), lower in women (15/22, 68.2%) than in men (36/44, 81.8%), p=0.21. Of those who did not register, PD was given as the reason in 11/15 (73.3%), and the PD features alluded to as the barrier was gait difficulty (45.5%), tremors (36.4%), difficulty standing, slowness (27.3% respectively), falls or fear of falls, stiffness, and small handwriting (18.2% each). Amongst registered voters, 27/51 (52.9%) did not eventually participate in voting. PD was the reason for not eventually voting in 8/27 (29.6%), and that was mainly due to difficulty walking (37.5%), slowness (37.5%), tremors (25%), and fatigue (12.5%). Of the 24 that eventually voted, difficulty related to PD was expressed in 11 (45.8%) comprised of tremors (72.7%), slowness (36.4%), gait difficulty (27.3%), and stiffness (9.1%).

Conclusion: Parkinson disease impairs the ability to exercise the civic responsibility of voting despite an intention to participate expressed by registering to vote.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/parkinson-disease-hampers-participation-in-the-civic-responsibility-of-voting-a-study-of-barriers-to-expression-of-a-fundamental-human-right/