There is great interest among Greek voters, both at home and abroad, in participating in the European elections via postal voteas shown by the number of registrations from the very first days of operation of the electronic platform.

In practice epistoliki.ypes.gov.gr, which was activated last Monday, citizens who are registered in the electoral rolls and who wish to exercise their right to vote from their homes are registered.

For Greeks abroad, postal voting is the only way to vote in the upcoming European elections.

The electronic platform is accessible through gov.gr and the websites of the ministries of interior and foreign affairs. The registration deadline ends 40 days before the European elections, i.e. on 29 April 2024.

11,300 applications in the first week on the platform

Already with the “good morning” the high interest in the new voting method was evident. In the first two days, the registrations were more than 8,000, while until yesterday morning, the sixth day of registration, the number of applications reached 11,300.

Applications were submitted by Hellas and from 76 other countries, mainly of The European Union. It is surprising that among the Greeks in the diaspora who expressed their desire to vote for the new European Parliament, there are also residents from countries outside Europe with a weak Greek presence, specifically from Kenyathe Kazakhstaneven from Papua New Guinea.

Although the interest in the European elections is not as intense as in the national elections, the number of Greeks abroad who wish to participate in the electoral process of June 9th it is expected to be much larger than in the national elections of May and June 2023, as there were legal restrictions then, and the polling station may be hundreds or even thousands of km away from their place of residence.

It is recalled that in last year’s parliamentary elections, almost 23,000 expatriates were registered in the special electoral lists, while approximately 18,000 went to the polls in May and 15,600 in June.

How to register and the process

  • Voters within Greece enter the platform exclusively through taxisnet using their personal passwords. For Greeks who live abroad and do not have taxisnet codes, there is the possibility to complete their certification with the combined use of Greek data passport and the Greek police identity, (as long as both are valid) or the passport and the census number. The registration process is easy, while a user manual with informative instructions is posted for the convenience of voters.

Alternatively, voters within Greece can register in the special electoral lists for postal voting through Citizen Service Centers, while voters outside Greece can contact the relevant Greek Consular Authorities (Consulates General, Consulates, Embassies Consular Offices).

  • When completing the application, the voter must provide a valid personal ID email adressas well as its number cell phone of the phone, which will need to be authenticated using a One-Time Code (OTP) in order to be able to submit the application.
  • The voter should also fill in the address his residence and the address to which he wants the election materials to be sent, if this is different from his residence address. If for any reason the voter wishes to modify any of the contact or address information then he can start a new information change request, correct whatever information he wishes and submit it.
  • Any questions can be answered in the fields “more information” or “report a problem” on the platform, by calling +30 210 626 6222 24 hours a day or by contacting a local KEP and for those residing abroad with the relevant Greek Consular Authority.
  • THE Mission of the election folder will be done by the Ministry of the Interior in May after the announcement of the combinations by the Supreme Court. They must be received either by the voter or by a third party who is expressly authorized to receive them, with a genuine signature via gov.gr or by a public authority.
  • The voter is informed by e-mail about the sending of the file and with an e-link to follow its progress (tracking).
  • The file will include the postal vote return file, the ballot which will be uniform with all parties, the voting file which will be anonymous, an instruction form, the list of candidates and an application – responsible declaration which must be completed.

epistoliki

N. Kerameos: “Beginning of a historical reform”

The Minister of the Interior, Niki Kerameos, said in this regard to the Athenian-Macedonian News Agency: “The activation of the postal vote platform marks the beginning of a historic reform. Postal voting facilitates and modernizes the way of exercising the right to vote. It enables Greek citizens abroad to vote from their place of residence, without having to move, without spending time and money. At the same time, it also facilitates the Greeks living within the territory and especially our elderly fellow citizens, seasonal workers and workers on Sunday holidays, people with disabilities, students and students in the middle of examination period. The postal vote opens the channel for the voice of all Greeks to be heard, wherever they are, throughout the world. All together, we have the opportunity to co-shape the present and the future of our country.”