Hybrid method needed for expatriate voting, says election commissioner

The Election Commission (EC) is assessing the feasibility of three alternative methods — postal ballots, online voting, and proxy voting — to ensure voting rights for expatriates.

Election Commissioner Brigadier General (Retd) Abul Fazal Md Sanaullah said this at a press conference on the expatriates’ voting process held at the media center of the capital’s EC building in Agargaon.

He said that the chief adviser had mentioned granting voting rights to expatriates in his first speech. “We looked at 178 countries and found that 115 of them have provisions for their expatriate citizens to vote. The most commonly followed method is voting at embassies, followed by postal ballots, and then online or proxy voting,” he added.

After the issue was raised with the commission, a workshop was held today with experts in elections, law, technology, and electoral management, where 10 teams presented their findings. Representatives from Dhaka University, BUET, MIST, the Ministry of Social Welfare, the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, and other relevant bodies were present.

The commissioner said, “We have examined the advantages and disadvantages of three methods. No matter which method we choose, expatriates will first have to register online. For Bangladesh, a single method won’t suffice — rather, a hybrid approach will be necessary. Each method has its strengths and weaknesses. Mock testing will be required for all of them. Most likely, all methods will need to be implemented on a limited scale initially as a pilot.”

The EC said, “Around 25 countries in the world use proxy voting. If we want to ensure the highest voter turnout, proxy voting is the only option. However, many have also pointed out the weaknesses of proxy voting. If we can incorporate all three methods, then we will adopt all three. Let’s first see what recommendations the advisory committee provides.”

In response to a question about whether expatriates would be allowed to vote in local elections, EC Abul Fazal Md Sanaullah said, “We will start with national elections first. Only then can we speak about including them in local elections.”

When asked how long it would take for expatriates to be able to use the voting system, he said, “Until the system is developed, we cannot say how much time it will take. The Election Reform Commission has recommended postal and online methods and have mentioned eight steps for the trial phase. However, the duration of the trial is yet to be determined. Therefore, only technical experts can provide an answer in this regard.”