Voting in the mobile age Presentation by Paulo Costa at the event organized by Migrantes Unidos SOAS, University of London, 23 June 2015

1. The political rights of emigrants
23rd June 5:30 pm
SOAS, University of London, room G3
Join the discussion
Voting in the mobile age

2. AGENDA
Paulo Costa, Migrants United
“The experience of a electoral registration campaign”
- André Freire, Professor at ISCTE,
Researcher at CIES, Lisbon University Institute
“The political rights of emigrants:
the Portuguese case in a comparative perspective”
- Samia Badani, New Europeans
“The vote of the ex-pats”
- Hugo de Armas Estevez, Marea Granate London
“The Spanish vote abroad”

3. The experience of an electoral registration campaign
Paulo Costa
Migrants United
Voting in the mobile age

4. The campaign
Migrantes Unidos started a campaign to get
Portuguese immigrants to register to vote for the
upcoming elections (Sep 2015 – Jan 2016)
President of the Republic
→ viveruk.org/votar-portugal/

5. Voting as a right?
There are
significant hurdles
− in the registration
− in the voting
process

6. You are out – you are out
The Portuguese state
assumes that its emigrants
do not want to vote:
when you change your
official address to a foreign
country, you are no longer
allowed to vote unless you
register to vote, again
→ Why not automatic registration?

7. Only the skilled
Change of address has to be made
on site – on the consulate.
Alternative way is to use
− THE ID card
− AND buy a card reader
− AND install the software
− AND use the pins
( process explained at viveruk.org)
→why not simplify?

8. Use your feet
Registration has to be made
physically in the Portuguese
Consulates
→ Internet, anyone?
→ Or even simple mail?

9. I am late? Really?
Latest day for Portuguese people
to register: 60 days before the
elections
Latest day for British people to
register: 1 week before the
elections
Many people will not vote
because when they find out
about the elections it will be too
late for them to register
→ Are we really this slow?
→ Can't we reduce this deadline? Really?

10. Vote, at last
Use your feet again for 2 out of 3 elections.
Postal vote only allowed for Parliament
President of the Republic

11. Against all odds
Political hurdles
− Voters do not trust politicians
− Politicians do not trust voters
Process hurdles
− Register again
Technical hurdles
− What is a card reader?
Geographical hurdles
− 5 hours trip to the consulate?
Timing hurdles
− To work or to register?
− Too late to register

12. Numbers talk
In the UK:
Portuguese living in the UK
(estimate): 200,000
Portuguese registered to
vote: 900
Voters
0
50000
100000
150000
200000
250000
Coluna 1
Coluna 2

13. The mobile age
Questions
Voters are now extremely mobile:
− Do immigration constituencies still make sense?
We live in an internet age, we transfer money
without physical interaction
− Internet registration?
− Electronic vote?
− French emmigrants already vote using the internet

15. Join the discussion
Voting in the mobile age