Siljanovska-Davkova calls for easier voting for the diaspora, supports idea of a single electoral district

North Macedonia’s President, Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova, believes that citizens living abroad should be given opportunities to vote, stressing that the current provisions of the Electoral Code create inequality in the treatment of the diaspora.

According to her, the diaspora is in a discriminatory position, while the right to vote is clearly defined in the Constitution.

“When it comes to the diaspora, I am sometimes shocked by what I hear. Under our Constitution, the right to vote is actively and passively linked to citizenship. It is impossible to send them to polling stations; that is too much, we do not have any, and we only have them in consulates and embassies, which is impossible in some countries. So what is to be done then? Either postal voting or electronic voting and so on,” Siljanovska-Davkova stated.

Responding to criticism from the opposition, which assessed that the government’s proposal for first electronic voting and then voting by mail contains no safeguards and could create room for electoral manipulation, Siljanovska said that electronic registration had been carried out precisely by them.

She also addressed other issues that remain unresolved, including the model of a single electoral district and the issue of party financing during elections.

“As for the other remarks, a single electoral district is a good solution, while for the others concerning political advertisements and so on, consensus must also be reached; there are countries where there are no paid political advertisements,” Siljanovska-Davkova said./Telegrafi/