Voter registration for Egyptians living abroad who will cast ballots for the upcoming presidential election began Monday, the Foreign Ministry announced.
Ministry spokesperson Amr Roshdy said the ministry, in coordination with the Presidential Elections Commission, overcame severe time constraints in opening registration.
Roshdy said the registration process will continue for 30 days until 4 April.
Voters can register electronically through the Presidential Elections Commission website at www.elections.eg. Egyptian citizens can also register at the nearest Egyptian embassy.
Roshdy said citizens with ID cards issued between 27 September 2011 to 8 March 2012 will not find their names in the voters’ database prior to 15 March 2012 because the Administrative Development Ministry is currently updating the database.
He added that Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr issued instructions to all Egyptian embassies and consulates abroad to extend working hours to 9 pm on Mondays and Wednesdays each week from 5 to 30 March 2012 and on all weekdays during the period from 31 March to 4 April to assist voters with the registration process.
Roshdy said ballot sorting will take place at the Egyptian embassies and consulates and that results will be sent individually to the operations unit at the foreign minister’s office, which will collect and count the votes and then provide the Presidential Elections Commission with the results.
Facilitations have been made for voters abroad, and expat voters who previously registered for the People’s Assembly and Shura Council elections will not need to register again unless they will be voting in Egypt, according to the commission.
Voters can also change their address abroad and vote from another country by changing their registration information on the commission’s website.
The Supreme Council of Armed Forces has yet to announce the exact dates that Egyptians inside the country will be heading to the polls, although it has said elections will be held in month of June.
