Government says automatic census ensures better participation of emigrants in elections



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The parliament today approved the automatic census of residents abroad and the possibility of choosing to vote in person or by correspondence at the elections to the Assembly of the Republic, as well as the free correspondence.

representatives of emigration, which is an absolutely exceptional condition to ensure better electoral participation of our resident communities abroad, "commented Augusto Santos Silva, on the sidelines of the XII Conference of Chiefs. State and Government of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

With this measure, out of the 280,000 registered voters currently, the number of voters should be increased to one million and 375,000, according to the "mapping" of Portuguese citizens residing abroad carried out by the Secretariat of the State of the Portuguese Communities, Directorate General of Consular Affairs and Portuguese Communities, Embassies, Consular Services and Directorate General of Internal Administration.

In addition, "this process is accompanied by a multiplication of polling stations",

According to the official, the law also provides for "the multiplication of polling stations for votes in the face of in countries where there are obviously postal deficiencies, and therefore the postal vote, which is the vote of the Assembly of the Republic, is more difficult. "

Santos Silva felt that "the fact that there is an automatic census is already a positive condition" to encourage emigrants to vote

Measures, based on government bills, PSD law, PS and BE have been approved in a final overall vote only with the abstention of CDS-PP, after months of work in the specialty, in a working group to operate ju

The establishment of the automatic census of residents at 39 the foreigner is accompanied by the possibility that citizens could refuse to appear on the register in order to respect the constitutional principle of volunteering

With this measure, According to the "maps" of Portuguese citizens residing abroad, carried out by the Portuguese State Department of the Portuguese Communities, the Directorate General of Consular Affairs and Portuguese Communities, the embassies, the 280,000 registered should reach 1 million and 375 thousand,

The deputies also approved a transitional provision guaranteeing that current citizens who do not belong to the country are not allowed to vote. have no citizen card – the census base – remain registered.

they can always choose between the postal vote, defined by principle, or in person in the consular premises, expresses this preference for the citizen, according to the final text approved today in a final overall vote, which was the result of the PSD Bill

The Free Vote Incorporation

The final approved text also provides for the vote on mobility and voting in Braille, as well as a recommendation to the government to conduct a pilot project of electronic voting

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