Order of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 26 March 2009 – Pignataro v Ufficio centrale circoscrizionale presso il Tribunale di Catania and Others

(Case C‑535/08)

Eligibility requirements for regional elections – Requirement of residence in the region concerned – Articles 17 EC and 18 EC – Fundamental rights – No link with Community law – Court clearly lacking jurisdiction

1.                     European Union citizenship – Treaty provisions – Substantive scope – Exclusion of purely internal situations (Arts 17 EC and 18 EC) (see paras 14-18, operative part 1)

2.                     Preliminary rulings – Jurisdiction of the Court – Limits – Question referred in the course of a dispute relating to the application of a national provision which is not within the scope of Community law – Excluded (Art. 234 EC) (see paras 22-24, operative part 2)

Re:

Reference for a preliminary ruling – Tribunale Amministrativo Regionale per la Sicilia – Interpretation of Article 6 EU, Article 3 of the First Additional Protocol and Article 2 of the Fourth Additional Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights and Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights – Interpretation of Articles 17 EC and 18 EC – Compatibility of regional legislation restricting the right of an Italian national to be nominated for election on the basis of a requirement of residence in the region.

Operative part:

1.

Articles 17 EC and 18 EC do not preclude national legislation which, in a situation such as that at issue in the main proceedings, includes among the requirements for eligibility for election to a regional assembly, the obligation to reside in the region concerned at the time when nominations are put forward.

2.

The Court of Justice of the European Communities clearly does not have jurisdiction to reply to the first question referred by the Tribunale amministrativo regionale per la Sicilia.