Of the approximately 170,000 Greeks who live permanently in the United Kingdom, they finally managed to register 4,876 people on the special electoral rolls. This is the majority of Greeks abroad, not only in percentage but also in absolute number, who declared that they want to vote in their place of residence.

The vast majority of them are people up to 45 years old. Many of them settled in Britain in the last decade, while many voted for the first time in their lives.

As pointed out by the Greek ambassador in London Mr. Ioannis Tsaoussis“voting was conducted smoothly and without any problems at all in all 12 polling stations set up in the United Kingdom.”

Voters started arriving early in the morning. In London, the process went extremely smoothly, with embassy staff on hand from the first moment until late at night, helping and giving instructions to those who exercised their right to vote. In the afternoon, as usually happens, more people started to arrive, resulting in queues and small delays. People, however, seemed to be enjoying the opportunity to vote abroad for the first time. Almost everyone said they were excited by the voting process. Nevertheless, some pointed to the difficulty they faced in registering on the electoral rolls. However, as several voters pointed out, “a very good start has been made and it is almost certain that in the next elections, there will be much more voters”. Already, according to information, almost 10,000 additional people have been registered in the electoral rolls abroad, who will have the right to vote in the next election.

The participation was also impressive, which is estimated at 80%, although the exact number is expected to be officially announced today by the Ministry of the Interior. The sunny day in the British capital also contributed to this. That is why not a few voters arrived at the polling stations with their families, while some even brought their pets with them.

As in the rest of the electoral divisions abroad, State ballots were used and therefore the voters did not put a preference cross next to the names of the candidates.

As soon as the polls closed, the electoral commissions counted the files without opening them. The electoral bags with the ballots will arrive today by air in Athens and, with a police escort, will end up at the Athens Court of Appeal. The counting of votes will take place there when the polls close throughout the Greek territory.

After last-minute changes, registrants in the UK’s 12 constituencies are as follows: London 3,858, Birmingham 295, Edinburgh 293, Leeds 276 and Glasgow 154.