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GreekReporter.comGreeceElectoral Law Proposal in Greece Allows 16-Year-Olds to Vote

Electoral Law Proposal in Greece Allows 16-Year-Olds to Vote

eklogikos_nomosThe proposal for the new electoral law was submitted to the competent parliamentary committee that will vote on the bill on July 20. It includes the amendment that gives the right to vote at the age of 16.
The age change in the electoral law proposal is not considered a change in the Constitution, thereby it can pass with the parliamentary majority of 151 votes in the 300-seat House. Therefore, if passed, in the next election 16-year-old Greeks can go to the polling stations.
However, the abolition of the bonus of 50 parliamentary seats to the winning party is considered a change in the Constitution, thereby the amendment needs 200 votes to pass.
Government uncertain it would get the votes needed 
The government is trying to convince opposition parties to vote for the new electoral law and mainly for the abolition of the bonus seats and establish proportional representation.
However, there are already 102 MP’s who have openly stated that they would vote against the changes: 75 New Democracy lawmakers, 16 of the Democratic Coalition (PASOK-DIMAR), 10 MPs of To Potami and independent Haris Theoharis.
Besides the 153 lawmakers of the SYRIZA-ANEL coalition, the government has secured the nine votes of the Centrists Union. It needs 38 more. Even if they get all the votes of the Greek Communist Party (KKE) and Golden Dawn, they still can’t gather 200 votes.
An unnamed SYRIZA member told I Efimerida daily that it is next to impossible to get the 200 votes needed. However, he said, the Left would have done its duty to propose the electoral law change and that the changes would apply to the election after next.
 

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