Parties clash over emigrant postal voting bill

The government and main opposition SYRIZA have clashed in parliament over a bill that would introduce postal voting for Greeks living abroad in both European and national elections.

Interior Minister Niki Kerameus introduced an amendment to the postal voting bill in parliament on Monday that proposed extending the postal voting to Greeks living abroad in both European and national elections.

The amendment requires the support of at least 200 of parliament’s 300 MPs.

Sokratis Famellos, who heads SYRIZA’s parliamentary group, said the bill was unconstitutional in many aspects, could not be properly implemented, was anachronistic and did not allow for Greek emigrants to stand for election.

He called on the government to support his party’s policy, which would allow emigrants to represent emigrants in parliament, as is the case in Italy. 

Kerameus questioned how a party like SYRIZA which is led by Stefanos Kasselakis, an expatriate, could oppose the bill. 

PASOK said it could only support the bill if the amendment extending the postal vote to overseas voters was withdrawn and if the postal vote was only made available to voters in Greece who faced obstacles in voting.