Electoral systems are very diverse, not only in basic characteristics, but also in approaches to understanding the essence of voting as a right or obligation of voters. Currently, the legislation of more than 20 countries of the world stipulates the requirement of mandatory voting. Not all States are consistent in implementing this rule, the costs of exacting a penalty often exceed its size. Nevertheless, a number of countries, such as Australia, Brazil, Singapore, etc., continue to follow the principle of mandatory voting. The COVID-19 pandemic has made large-scale adjustments to the electoral process around the world, significantly affecting the democratic standards of elections and showing the vulnerability of electoral procedures in a global situation of uncertainty. In this regard, the question of how much the risks of the public health system associated with the spread of the coronavirus pandemic affected the willingness of countries to maintain or abandon the mandatory voting and sanctions for refusing to participate in elections, if they were actively applied earlier, is of research interest. It turned out that the COVID-19 pandemic did not cause the cancellation of mandatory voting. Anti-epidemic protection measures were designed to reduce the risks of the spread of the disease, serving as a sufficient basis for maintaining all the principles of voting, including its compulsoriness.
