Digital Transformation Minister Stefan Andonovski stressed that it is of great importance to give the diaspora the opportunity to vote. According to him, these are people who bring more than one billion in remittances to Macedonia every year.
He said that over the next three years there is enough time, through advancing digitalization and institutional work, to test such possibilities so that this right can be made available to the diaspora.
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As Andonovski explained, the idea is to guarantee through amendments to the Electoral Code that by 2029, that is, within three years, the country will have a ready system in which voting via the internet will be allowed only for registered persons who hold Macedonian passports and live abroad.
Andonovski underlined that a digital identity system already exists, the “Uslugi.gov.mk” portal, where all citizens register with their personal data. He said verification is carried out through an identity card or passport, which means that citizens’ data is already known.
According to him, it is not a problem for this system to be further developed in cooperation with the State Election Commission, with the aim of creating the conditions for citizens to exercise their right to vote. He added that, if there is political will, this is fully achievable.
The minister also said that the diaspora is large, holds Macedonian passports and lives outside the country, so it is neither fair nor a full exercise of the constitutional right for these citizens to be forced to vote only in person.
He stressed that it is not reasonable for them to travel 5,000 or 10,000 kilometers to exercise their right to vote, even twice: once to register and a second time to vote.
So far, two EU countries have fully implemented this system, while four other EU countries have conducted tests and pilot projects of such solutions.
