Dhaka: A total of 557,859 voters have registered through the ‘Postal Vote BD’ app to participate in the upcoming 13th Jatiya Sangsad election and referendum. The registration targets expatriate Bangladeshis, government employees on election duties, and those residing outside their registered voting areas.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the Election Commission (EC) website update as of 12:30 pm today revealed that 523,238 male and 34,619 female voters have registered. Among expatriates, Saudi Arabia leads with 136,319 registrations, followed by Qatar with 51,582, Oman 37,755, and Malaysia 35,467, among others.
Within Bangladesh, 83,082 voters have registered through the app, with Cumilla recording the highest number at 56,889, followed by Dhaka with 48,254, and Chattogram with 47,339 registered voters. Feni-3 constituency tops the list with 8,792 registrations.
The EC has commenced the dispatch of postal ballots to expatriates, confirming the sending of 41,543 ballots to 10 countries over the weekend. Salim Ahmad Khan, the Team Leader of the OCV-SDI project, stated that ballots were sent to three countries on Friday and seven on Saturday, with specific allocations to each country.
Election symbols will be allocated to candidates on January 21, after which voters will receive notifications through the app or EC website. Voters can then cast their votes by marking their chosen symbol on the ballot paper.
Salim Ahmad Khan emphasized that votes cast before symbol allocation will remain valid, although expatriates are encouraged to vote post-allocation. The EC also sent ballots to countries including Australia, the UK, and Malaysia on Friday and to the US, China, and several others on Saturday.
For election officials, the EC has mandated registration completion between December 18 and 25. Voters in legal custody have a registration window from December 21 to 24. Accurate address details are essential for receiving postal ballots, which can be sent to workplaces or known addresses.
The EC Secretariat instructed revenue-funded officers outside their voting areas to register by December 21 through the IT-supported postal ballot system. Government employees can register from the election schedule announcement until December 25.
The ‘Postal Vote BD’ app was launched on November 18 by the Chief Election Commissioner, marking the registration schedule for 148 countries. Expatriate voters must use a local mobile number for registration via the app, available on the Google Play Store or App Store.