On the 9th Saeima elections procedure abroad [06 Sep 2006]

On 7 October 2006, the 9th Saeima (Latvian parliament) elections will be held. Latvia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in conjunction with the Central Election Commission has created 53 polling stations abroad. In 38 of the polling stations it will be possible to file applications for voting by post and also to vote in person, and 15 polling stations will be open on the election day itself from 7 am to 10 pm local time. 

Since there are several thousand guest workers from Latvia presently in Guernsey (UK), the Latvian Foreign Ministry is financing rental of premises for a polling station arranged on the island.

A valid Latvian citizen's passport is required for voting.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs draws the attention of Latvian citizens staying abroad that in the Latvian diplomatic and consular representations abroad, in which polling stations for voting by post will be arranged, applications for voting by post are accepted from 8 May to 15 September (inclusive) from voters who are staying abroad and wish to vote in the 9th Saeima elections by post.    

To apply for a postal vote, a citizen must file an application in the respective diplomatic of consular representation of the Republic of Latvia. In addition to the person's data, the application shall contain the address abroad to which the voter would like voting materials to be posted. Upon registering by post, a voter shall produce, to the representation's staff, a Latvian citizen's passport in which a stamp certifying participation in the elections will be put. In the absence of a Latvian citizen's passport, applications for voting by post cannot be filed.

If the voter cannot arrive in person at the respective representation by the specified deadline to apply for a postal vote, another person may deliver the voter's application and passport to a representative of the representation.

Information on the voting opportunities in foreign countries is available at Latvia's diplomatic and consular representations, and at the Consular Department of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, e-mail: mfa.cdep@mfa.gov.lv.

Additional information on the 9th Saeima (Latvian Parliament) elections is available on the Central Election Commission's website www.cvk.lv.

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