Maltese people living in EU countries should be able to vote in the MEP elections in their country of residence, according to the Nationalist Party and Alternattiva Demokratika.
PN general secretary Chris Said noted that his party believed that Maltese people living abroad should not have to come to Malta if they wanted to vote for MEP candidates. They should be able to vote in their country of residence.
“The party would support any changes in legislation that are needed to allow this to happen,” he said, adding that he was aware that there was not enough time to do so in time for the upcoming May MEP elections.
As a Maltese and EU citizen, I believe we have the human right to partake in deciding what is best for our native country
AD chairman Arnold Cassola agreed: “The ideal thing for us is that, as with any normal democracy, they will be able to vote in their embassy.”
He went a step further, adding that AD disagreed with the fact that Maltese people were not allowed to vote unless they lived in Malta for six months in the 18 months preceding an election.
Labour party CEO Gino Cauchi said the party called on the government to consider all possibilities and the party would be willing to discuss these possibilities.
Electoral Commissioner Joseph Church said last week that, so far, there were no plans to change the system to allow Maltese people living in other EU countries to cast their vote in their country of residence.
All EU countries – except Malta, Ireland and Slovakia – have some form of system that allows citizens living overseas to vote while abroad. Bulgaria and Italy, for example, hold voting in embassies while Germany allows voting by post. France, the Netherlands and the UK also allow voting by proxy.
Estonia is the only country that has e-voting.
Tasha Azzopardi, who works in the UK, thinks it is about time that Maltese are given options that already exist in other countries.
“As a Maltese and EU citizen, I believe we have the human right to partake in deciding what is best for our native country and, as a result, I believe the Maltese government ought to consider making changes and offering citizens abroad the opportunity to vote,” she said.
Carly Aquilina, who lives in London, agreed: “It is unfortunate that the opinions of Maltese citizens living abroad cannot be fully represented during the MEP elections because they have fewer voting options in comparison to most other EU countries.”
A man who has been living in the UK for several years and who preferred not to be named wondered whether he still had a right to vote. “I am not sure I feel entitled to vote on this matter simply because I have been away from the country for so long,” he said, noting he could vote in the UK.
Sherene Ameen, who works in Cambridge, said she enjoyed coming to Malta to vote but would rather have an option.
“It is great that, thanks to cheap flights, I can travel to Malta to vote.
“However, in theory, it would be much more convenient to be able to vote abroad, especially in the case of those who cannot afford to go to Malta whether because of work or personal reasons,” she said.