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Vol. 6 Issue 155 www.theolivepress.es May 19th - June 1st 2023
A GIANT two thirds of British voters have been eliminated from the electoral roll for the forthcoming May elections. A staggering 61,500 expats have lost the right to vote in the May 28 council elections. The 63% drop comes with a large
Two thirds of Brits scythed from the electoral roll for May elections
percentage of British residents failing to re-register their right to vote by the January deadline. Figures from the National Statistics Institute (INE) show the giant fall in non-Spanish participation with councils putting it down to lower British registrations. The number of British expats registered to vote in the last local elections in 2019 (97,585) has now dropped to just 36,543 residents, the official stats reveal. The alarming drop of 61,042 people has come about as a consequence of Brexit with British residents now having to separately register to vote every four years, as well as joining the padron. They are no longer automatically included on the roll. Data shows that Brits represent just 8.8% of the foreigners regis-
By Alex Trelinski & Alberto Lejarraga
tered to vote in Spain this year, a considerable decrease from 21% in 2019. Just 1,622 British expats are registered to vote in the Baleares, out of 19,000 foreign voters. This is a ‘system failure’, according to expat councillor Scott Marshall, in Benahavis, near Marbella. The Councillor of Tourism blamed it on unnecessary paperwork and a failure to better explain the new rules. “Because of bureaucracy, British residents have had to re-register again and many of them did not remember or realise on time,” he told the Olive Press. Mijas councillor Bill Anderson agreed. “The numbers don’t surprise me as many Brits got Present this coupon to get 5% OFF caught short with on your purchase of wine and liquors the registration process,” he told the OlValid only until 20th May 2023. Coupon x1 per customer. ive Press. Cannot be combined with other offers. “We were not notified until the last minute and there was a lot of confusion,” he added. However, the Scottish expat does not believe it’s the only reason for the low participation. “There
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is always a degree of apathy in the international community with regards to participating in local elections,” he continued. “For example, only 8% of the foreigners registered to vote in the 2019 elections actually did so,” he explained. Meanwhile on the Costa Blanca it is a similar story. Taking the town of San Fulgencio, as an example, in the 2019 municipal elections, 57% of the electorate was foreign, while this time the percentage has fallen to 38%, accounting for 1,728 non-Spaniards. San Fulgencio councillor, Darren Parmenter, said: “Many people didn't know what to do and this is despite us publicising registration information.”
Problems
The mayor of San Miguel de Salinas, Juan de Dios meanwhile, has predicted problems on polling day with registered foreign voters now down to 11% in his municipality. “We will see people turning out to polling stations that have voted for years who will discover for the first time they are not on the register,” he warned the Olive Press. Despite most media groups publicising on how to register to vote, most British expats have missed out on a fundamental right to express their views on who should be running their local services. Opinion Page 6
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CHEAP cinema tickets for pensioners is the latest promise from PSOE Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in the run up to local elections next weekend. The nationwide promise will encourage the over-65s by slashing cinema tickets to just €2 on Tuesdays. It comes after the socialist leader also promised subsidised domestic and European interrail train tickets for youngsters. “The pandemic forced cinemas to close and other adverse effects,” said Sanchez. “We need to make culture a state policy.” His party has promised €10 million for the plan, while €170 million has been set aside to guarantee a 50% discount for all 18 to 30-year olds on train travel in the summer months.
AUTHENTIC BEST: Where to find Spain’s best textiles and ceramics
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A MAJOR global exhibition is to recognise work of architectural the giants Herzog & ron, as they reach De Meutheir 45th anniversary. The Royal Academy ring the Swiss pair’s show, in London, is explohealthy half dozen incredible designs, with a built in Spain. These include (from top left) the Forum, Madrid’s CaixaForum and Barcelona remarkable 2007 (main) the HQ Since 1978 the pair of Spanish bank, BBVA. have grafted on jects, many yet to be built, including 600 proFrontera’s City of Jerez de la Flamenco.
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