EU CITIZENS could play a key role in the forthcoming municipal elections, after the Interior Ministry announced the number of registered voters has more than tripled since 2006.
Interior minister electoral department boss Demetris Demetriou said: “The participation of foreigners since 2006 has more than trebled. The final number on the electoral list will be finalised at the end of the month and it is expected to reach 12,000”
Most of these registrations are British or Greek nationals, and mostly concentrated the majority in the Paphos area, where locals have rallied expats to have a say in the running of their municipality.
In several areas the number of expats is now sufficient to secure several representatives on municipal councils.
For example; in Tala 351 out of 976 registrations are non-Cypriot EU citizens, in Peyia the number is 422 out of 2,055, in Kili 96 out of 445 , and in Kalepia 58 out of 290. A similar trend has occurred in the Limassol area; where 171 out of 952 registered voters are from other EU countries.
The number of expat voters could be much higher, however. After an outcry among locals whose applications were being stalled by the authorities’ slow turnaround for yellow slips, an interior ministry official said: “The Electoral Services are pleased that they may have another 6,000 non-Cypriot EU voters registered for the next local election… however, the real issue is why the number is so low, considering that it could be 60,000, not 6,000?”
The closing date for registrations was October 2.
According to the Chief Electoral Office, the cost of this year’s elections would be around €5.5 million.
Nominations for municipal elections begin on November 17, while community electoral nominations begin on November 21. Elections will include an electronic listing of results in parallel with the standard method, following the successful piloting of a similar system in Tseri’s mini referendum in July.
Non EU residents will have to wait it out this year, however, after parliament recently quashed a bill that would have allowed the vote for long-term residents and immigrants from third countries who have been here for more than five years.
The government drafted the bill after non-EU nationals filed a complaint with the Ombudswoman back in 2006, and following a plenary discussion, the Greens proposed an amendment, giving voting rights at least to long-term residents, given objections by several MPs to immigrants getting the vote.
After this was rejected, DISY, DIKO and EDEK deputies then quashed the original bill, drawing allegations of xenophobia from Greens MP George Perdikis.
Parliament did, however, pass a legislative proposal – also tabled by the Greens – enabling EU citizens who have resided in Cyprus for six months to run for membership of school committees. The law will cover the upcoming December municipal elections, which go hand in hand with the election of school committees.
