Today marks the first day Thai voters living overseas can cast absentee ballots for the upcoming March 24 election, the kingdom’s first since 2011.
As noted when the election date was officially set back in January, absentee voters have until March 16 to make their voice heard.
Thailand’s embassy in Budapest was among the first to get in on the act as day broke in Europe earlier today.
“The election booth for absentee ballots is open. We invite everyone to come register and exercise your rights to vote as Thai netizens,” the Royal Thai Embassy in Hungary wrote on their Facebook page.
According to reports from the Election Commission, 119,184 Thais across 67 countries have registered to vote this year.
With 16,183 Thai voters, Australia tops the list as the foreign country with the most Thais registered to vote. Down Under is followed by the US with 15,010 and China with 10,996.
To make sure first-time voters know what they’re in for, the Australian office of Thailand’s overseas education agency, EduYoung, even posted a series of photos to their Facebook account detailing how to vote.
Here it is for those of you who might need a rundown.
On the opposite end of the spectrum in terms of voter volume is Senegal, with just 10 registered Thai voters. Other country’s contributing small amounts of expats to the effort are Peru, with 25, and Argentina, with 27.
Across the world, photos from this year’s election have already started popping up on social media.
“I may be far, but I must exercise my vote to demand the return of the country’s democracy and start a new with fairness and justice… politicians who shamelessly consume so much should not stay,” one netizen in South Korea wrote.
เอกสารเลือกตั้งต่างแดนทางไปรษณีย์ มาแล้ว แต่ยังไม่รู้จะเลือกพรรคไหน #เลือกตั้งปี62 #เลือกตั้งต่างแดน #OverseasElection #2019ThailandElection pic.twitter.com/2SIgQHZbww
— Yui KK (@KKLukin) March 2, 2019
“My documents to cast my vote overseas is here, but I still don’t know what party to choose,” the message of another, less confident, voter living in London reads.
“I’m casting my vote this year all the way from Osaka (Japan), 20 more days till election day,” said another on Facebook.
We like your style, Osaka. Here’s hoping every eligible Coconaut out there is ready to make their voice heard on March 24.
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