Greece’s Interior Ministry has counted 1,438 municipal ballots and 105 regional ballots that have been approved by Greece’s courts to stand in the forthcoming local elections, which are to take place across Greece on May 18 and 25.
Voters will be able to choose between over 30,000 municipal and over 10,000 regional candidates. In the regional units of Attica and Central Macedonia candidates number more than 2,850, while 1,200 candidates have been approved in the municipality of Athens.
It is the first time ever that ballots will feature twice as many candidates as there are members in the municipal boards, for example, in the municipality of Athens ballots can include up to 98 candidates, 49 of whom will be finally elected to municipal counselors.
The number of candidates is expected to reach 50,000, following the Greek Supreme Court’s decision Sunday on which of the 46 registered parties will be allowed to run in the European Parliament elections, which are scheduled for May 25.
Amendments to electoral law earlier this year have allowed the number of candidate Greek MEPs to double, with parties being now able to put up to 42 candidates on ballots compared to 22 in the 2009 European Parliament elections.
Around 22,584 electoral centers are expected to be set up across Greece, which will house 47,000 ballot boxes in the first round, and 70,500 in the second.
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