Postal voting plan opens door for Greek Australians to elect MPs in Greece
Source: NEOS KOSMOS
Greece’s Ministry of the Interior is proposing to introduce postal voting exclusively for Greeks living abroad and to create a new three-seat Overseas Electorate, with a corresponding reduction in the number of state listed MPs, in order to substantially facilitate the participation of the thousands of voters who live and work outside Greece in the next national elections.
The issue of postal voting and the ability of Greeks of the diaspora to vote in European elections dominated last year’s Annual Ball of the Greek Community of Melbourne’s, held to mark the anniversary at the Panarcadian Association Hall. From the podium at the event, the Minister for the Interior, Theodoros Livanios, called on members of the Greek community to register on the electoral rolls and vote in the European elections by post.
“Your vote is your power,” he said.
The same message was reiterated during the recent visit to Australia by the Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs responsible for the Greek diaspora, Ioannis Loverdos.
According to information published by the newspaper Proto Thema, Livanios is expected to bring a comprehensive amendment to parliament in the first half of 2026, revising the framework governing the participation of voters registered on overseas electoral rolls in national elections. The proposal would abolish polling stations abroad and allow participation exclusively from home via postal voting, exactly as applied in the 2024 European elections.
Postal voting and three MPs for the diaspora in the Interior Ministry bill
Interior Minister Theodoros Livanios is expected, within the first half of 2026, to bring to parliament a comprehensive amendment to the framework governing the participation of voters registered overseas in national elections, including the abolition of overseas polling centres.
Twelve State List MPs
An additional critical change to be put forward by the Interior Minister is the creation of a separate Overseas Electorate, from which three MPs will be elected. At the same time, the number of electable seats on the State List ballot will return to 12, from 15 in the last elections. Political parties will compile Overseas Electorate ballots with up to five candidates.
Overseas voters will be able to select one candidate. A final decision on this point has not yet been taken, as the ministry leadership is still considering a closed-list system. What is certain, however, is that overseas votes will be incorporated into and help shape the overall election result. Experienced election analysts estimate that if this framework is ultimately passed and implemented, seat allocation will go to the three leading parties.
According to the Constitution, approval of the provision introducing postal voting exclusively for Greeks abroad requires a majority of at least 200 MPs, otherwise it will be rejected. It is noted that the initial government initiative in 2019, which for the first time allowed overseas voters to participate from their place of permanent residence, received near cross-party support, securing 288 votes.
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