EC Extends Postal Voting Registration for Expats

The Election Commission (EC) has extended the registration period for postal voting via the “Postal Vote BD” app for the upcoming 13th parliamentary elections. EC Secretary Akhtar Ahmed announced on Monday, 1 December, that expatriate Bangladeshis can now register until 25 December.

For domestic voters, three categories of individuals will have a 15-day window to register for postal voting. Regarding out-of-country voting, Akhtar Ahmed said, “The registration period for expatriates has been extended from 18 December to midnight on 25 December.”

As of Monday evening, 123,501 expatriates had registered, including over 101,000 men and more than 16,000 women. The United States led with over 18,000 registrants, followed by Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Singapore, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Italy.

The EC plans to announce the election schedule for the parliamentary and public votes in the first half of February.

The “Postal Vote BD” app was launched on 18 November, enabling continuous registration by expatriates worldwide. Initially, registration was set to close at 11:59 pm on 18 December.

Domestic postal voting—In-Country Postal Voting (ICPV)—is available for government officials/employees, election personnel, and voters in legal custody, who can also register and cast their ballots via postal vote.

DBTech/BDP/ECU/OR