Deadline Approaches for Postal Votes in Upcoming European Elections

With the European Parliament elections just two weeks away, Greek officials are urging voters who wish to cast their ballots by mail to act quickly.

Failure to comply with the new vote-in procedures require voters to cast their ballot in person on election day. Voting in Greece is mandatory. Officials in Athens

said that as of May 24, the majority of the electoral documents had been successfully delivered to nearly 96 percent of the 202,516 registered postal voters across Greece and in over 120 countries worldwide.

This marks a significant milestone in the country’s electoral process, showcasing the government’s commitment to facilitating voter participation. The process is a litmus test for allowing postal voting in national elections. Challenges, however, remain. More than 60,000 voters have yet to receive their sealed ballots, according to official data.

The deadline for the ballots to reach the final destination is set for 17:00 Greek time on the eve of the elections, June 8. Voters residing abroad must send their ballots by May 28, while those in Greece have until June 4.

Ballots that fail to arrive on time at the collection site will be returned unopened to the sender. These voters, along with those who do not send their ballots at all, will have the opportunity to vote in person at their registered polling station after 11:00 am on election day.

Officials said that 41 registered voters in countries where courier services could not deliver electoral materials, including Ukraine, North Korea, Cuba, Russia, Belarus, and certain U.S. territories, will be allowed to vote at local consular offices.

Security measures, meantime, are in place to ensure the integrity of the postal voting process. The Peristeri Exhibition Center, where the ballots are stored, is under constant police surveillance and closed-circuit television monitoring. On election day, a special committee will process the postal votes, counting them on election night.

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