ND promises voting powers for diaspora Greeks 

Greece’s main opposition party New Democracy (ND)  is pushing for voting rights for the Greek diaspora which is estimated at around 11 million.

New Democracy leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday resubmitted to Parliament his proposal to allow Greeks living abroad the right to cast their vote from where they live, rather than returning to Greece.

Mitsotakis had submitted his original proposal 18 months ago but for unknown reasons it was never discussed.

“Today, more than even before, it is imperative that we give this right not just to expatriates that have left the country decades earlier but to the young people that left the country in their hundreds of thousands during the years of crisis,” he noted.

The issue is a contentious one given that in the crucial referendum about leaving or not the European Union some 500,000 expat Greeks who had left during the 2007-8 financial crisis were unable to vote due to legislation that prohibits Greeks to cast their vote from overseas.