The National Election Office (NVI) announced on Thursday evening that it has completed the preliminary tally of party list ballots cast via postal voting. This phase marks a critical step in determining the distribution of seats for the national list.
Breakdown of Postal Vote Returns
Out of 494,244 registered voters eligible for postal voting, a total of 356,332 voting packages were returned to the authorities.
The majority of these ballots, 296,167, were submitted at diplomatic missions. Another 51,337 were sent directly to the NVI, while 8,828 were cast at individual parliamentary constituency centers.
Validity Challenges and Verification Process
The NVI reported that 335,342 party list postal votes were found to be valid. However, nearly 19,000 identification declarations were deemed invalid.
Invalidations occurred most frequently when personal data provided by the voter did not match the information recorded in the election IT system, or when required identification numbers were missing entirely.
To handle the volume, the NVI used an IT application to scan the ballots for a preliminary count. Following this digital phase, the votes will be counted manually to ensure accuracy.
Path to Final Results
The NVI will now formalize the final results of the postal voting in an official protocol. This document will serve as a foundational component for the National Election Committee’s (NVB) final decision.
The NVB will combine the NVI’s protocol with the territorial results established by the territorial election committees. Based on these combined records, the official result for the national list could be decided by May 4 at the latest.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many postal vote packages were returned in total?
A total of 356,332 voting packages were returned from the 494,244 registered voters.
Why were nearly 19,000 identification declarations considered invalid?
The most common reasons included personal data that differed from the election IT system, missing personal details (such as name, birth place, or date of birth), or missing document numbers from IDs, passports, driver’s licenses, or naturalization papers.
When will the official results for the national list be decided?
The National Election Committee (NVB) is expected to decide on the official results by May 4 at the latest.
Do you believe the use of IT scanning followed by manual counting is the most effective way to ensure election integrity?
