Polling stations for Hellenes of Diaspora set up for next Greek elections round

The polling stations where Greeks residing outside the territory of Greece who is included in the special electoral rolls will vote for the June 25 parliamentary elections have been established – Diaspora voting, however, will take place on Saturday, June 24.

The number of polling stations established is three more than were set up for the May 21, 2023 elections, that is, 102, up from 99, since the number of those registered in the special electoral rolls abroad is now 25,610, 2,755 more than the  22,855 eligible in the previous round.

The polling stations were set up in the same countries and cities, although a polling station was created in Vancouver, Canada, while the one in Kaunas, Lithuania has been eliminated.

A polling station was also added in Brussels (four in total), London (nine), and Luxembourg (two).

On May 20, 18,203 of the total 22,855 registered voters finally went to the polling station (79.65% turnout).

It should be noted that the electoral procedure is different in the parliamentary elections of June 25 compared to that of May 21.

According to the Ministry of Interior:

* The parliamentary elections of 25 June 2023 will be held under the system of enhanced proportional representation, unlike those of 21 May, which were held under the system of simple proportional representation.

* The forthcoming elections will be held on the basis of a reserved combination (list) and not on the basis of a preference cross. Under this procedure, MPs are elected on the basis of the order of their ranking on the ballot paper in each constituency, which is determined by the respective party headquarters. Therefore, voters do NOT put a cross on party ballots. In addition, there will be no pens at the screens of the polling stations that will be created.

* The ballots used in the May 21, 2023 election will not remain valid. The parliamentary elections of 25 June 2023 will be held with new ballot papers, which will be printed according to the provisions of the law in force.

* Greeks abroad may vote in their place of residence if the application for registration in the special electoral rolls has been submitted to the relevant platform of the Ministry of Interior (https://apodimoi.gov.gr) by Wednesday 17 May 2023. It is clarified that the criteria as defined by the current law are applied for the approval of the application.

* Greeks abroad who voted from their place of residence in the elections of 21 May, and will be in Greece for the elections of 25 June, will be able to vote in their home country, provided they have submitted a request for suspension of registration in the special electoral rolls abroad until Friday 26 May 2023. Any application submitted after that date will not be taken into account for the upcoming election process. In any case, voters are advised to refer to the Ministry of Interior’s platform ‘Know where you vote’ to find out where to vote.

Read more at thenationalherald.com

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