Commission sets referendum absentee ballot deadlines

Latvian citizens abroad who wish to vote by mail in the upcoming referendum on changes to two national security laws have until June 16 to submit their requests and passports to one of 15 diplomatic representatives, the Central Election Commission has announced.

The list of countries is based on absentee voting activity in the last parliamentary election, the commission said in a May 15 press release.

Vote-by-mail requests will be received by the Latvian embassies in Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Georgia, Germany, Ireland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States. Requests also will be received by the consulates in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and in Adelaide and Melbourne, Australia.

Voters who expect to be abroad on July 7, the day of the referendum, have the right to request an absentee ballot. The request should include the voter’s name, personal identification number (personas kods) and address where the absentee ballot should be sent. The voter also must submit their Latvian passport.

A request for an absentee ballot must be mailed to one of the following locations:

  • Australia (Adelaide): Honorary Consulate of Latvia, 648 South Road, Glandore 5037, South Australia, Australia.
  • Australia (Melbourne): Honorary Consulate of Latvia, 2 Mackennel Street, East Ivanhoe VIC 3079, Australia.
  • Belgium: Embassy of Latvia, 158 av. Molière, 1050 Brussels, Belgium.
  • Brazil: Honorary Consulate of Latvia, Rua Jacques Felix 586, Ap.12, 04509-002 San Paulo, Brazil.
  • Canada: Embassy of Latvia, 350 Sparks St., Suite 1200, Ottawa, Ontario, K1R 7S8, Canada.
  • Denmark: Embassy of Latvia, 17 Rosbaeksvej, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
  • France: Embassy of Latvia, 6 Villa Said, 75116 Paris, France.
  • Georgia: Embassy of Latvia, Rezo Tabukashvili ielā 17, 380008, Tbilisi, Georgia.
  • Germany: Embassy of Latvia, Reinerzstr. 40-41, 14193 Berlin, Germany.
  • Ireland: Embassy of Latvia, 92 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland.
  • Norway: Embassy of Latvia, Bygdoy Allé 76, Post Box 3163 Elisenberg, 0208 Oslo, Norway.
  • Russia: Embassy of Latvia, ul. Chapligina 3, 105062 Moscow, Russia.
  • Sweden: Embassy of Latvia, Odengatan 5, Box 19167, 104 32 Stockholm, Sweden.
  • United Kingdom: Embassy of Latvia, 45 Nottingham Place, London W1U 5LY, United Kingdom.
  • United States: Embassy of Latvia, 2306 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20008, United States.

At the embassy or consulate, the request and the passport will be reviewed. If all is in order, the passport will be stamped.

After June 16, the absentee ballot will be mailed to the voter and he or she will have until July 7 to return it.

Latvian citizens age 18 and older may vote in the referendum.

Andris Straumanis is a special correspondent for and a co-founder of Latvians Online. From 2000–2012 he was editor of the website.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *