The city’s parliamentary election will take place on September 12 this year, the Chief Executive announced in an Executive Order yesterday.
Pursuant to the law, it is within the government head’s sole authority to determine the election date.
Meanwhile, in a separate Executive Order, the Chief Executive also determined the budget ceiling for each campaigning list. The amount has been set at slightly more than MOP3.5 million, meaning that no list should spend more than this amount for election purposes.
Nomination forms will be available soon and must be submitted by June 15. The campaign period will be between August 28 and September 10.
On the other hand, the Electoral Affairs Committee had a meeting yesterday before it briefed the press on their latest decisions.
President of the committee, Justice Tong Hio Fong, emphasized at a press conference yesterday that according to the law, ballots must be cast in persons at a polling station. It means that if eligible voters who are currently out of Macau want to exercise their rights, they need to be mindful of any potential quarantine requirements upon arriving in Macau.
The judge issued a reminder for any eligible voters who are currently outside of Macau to leave sufficient time for quarantine.
For the time being, the committee has deemed it necessary for voters to wear facemasks throughout the voting process and have their temperature taken at the entrance of a polling station.
However, should conditions change prior to the election day, amendments to existing epidemic control measures may be implemented, Tong added.
Complaints have also been heard that residents living at the same address have, in previous elections, been assigned to vote in different polling stations. Tong believed it was caused by the residents not updating their residential addresses. He reminds voters to update their residential address with the committee.
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