130,000 Expatriates Register to Vote in Postal Ballot

The number of overseas Bangladeshi voters registered to cast their ballots via postal voting for the 13th national parliamentary election and referendum has reached 130,672, according to the latest data from the Election Commission (EC).

As of Tuesday afternoon, a total of 130,672 expatriate voters completed their registration through the EC’s ‘Postal Vote BD’ mobile application. Among them, 114,083 are male voters, while 16,589 are female.

The highest number of registrations come from countries including the United States with 18,420 voters, Saudi Arabia with 13,014, South Korea with 9,397, Singapore with 9,083, Canada with 8,768, Australia with 7,553, the United Kingdom with 7,551, Japan with 6,810, Italy with 5,369, and Malaysia with 5,027.

The Election Commission has extended the registration deadline for overseas voters to December 25, up from the initial deadline of December 18 at 11:59 pm (Bangladesh time). This extension allows expatriates worldwide additional time to register.

Senior Secretary of the EC Secretariat Akhtar Ahmed explained, “We initially set December 18 as the deadline for out-of-country voting registration. However, considering requests from many expatriates for an extension and the feasibility of doing so, the deadline has been extended to midnight of December 25, Bangladesh Standard Time. Now, voters can download the app from anywhere in the world and complete their registration.”

He further noted that in-country postal voting (ICPv) will also be introduced for government officials participating in the election process, voters under legal custody, and government employees residing outside their registered constituencies. Registration for ICPv will be open for 15 days following the announcement of the schedule.

The ‘Postal Vote BD’ app was inaugurated on November 18 by the Chief Election Commissioner, who also announced the registration schedule for 148 designated countries.

Voters opting for postal ballots must register using a mobile number from the country where they will cast their vote. Registration requires downloading the app from Google Play Store or the Apple App Store, selecting a preferred language (Bengali or English), and submitting necessary documents along with accurate address details to ensure ballot delivery abroad.