Over 17,600 Czechs abroad register to vote in October’s general elections

More than 17,600 Czechs living abroad have registered to vote in the upcoming October parliamentary elections, the Foreign Ministry announced. Since the introduction of postal voting this spring, registrations have increased by 4,000, according to Martin Smolek, the ministry’s Director General for Legal and Consular Affairs. Despite the rise, the ministry expects the number to fall short of the earlier estimate of 50,000 overseas voters. Registration remains open until Sunday, August 24.

In the last parliamentary elections four years ago, around 18,800 Czechs were eligible to vote abroad through consulates or with a voting certificate from their home municipality. Roughly 13,200 of them cast their ballots.