Locals in quarantined areas to be able to vote on December 6 without restrictions

Locals in the quarantined areas will be able to exercise their right to vote on December 6, with no restrictions in that regard, Prime Minister Ludovic Orban said on Monday. "I would like to send a message because there is some concern on the part of the public regarding the exercise of the right to vote. In all quarantined areas, which will be quarantined on December 6, locals will be able to exercise their right to vote. There will be no restrictions regarding the movement of the people to the polling stations for the exercise of this fundamental right," Orban said after a meeting of the National Liberal Party (PNL) leadership. He said that people infected with the novel coronavirus and those in isolation will also be able to vote using the mobile ballot box. "Also, all people who are in isolation or in quarantine due to the fact that they are infected with the coronavirus, either due to the fact that they come from a country with a higher infection rate than Romania and are quarantined for 14 days, or people who have come into contact with sick people, they will be able to exercise their right to vote using the mobile ballot boxes, which will be sent to all citizens who want to vote: the mobile box will come to their homes due to the fact that they are in isolation or quarantine at home. So, the exercise of the right to vote of every person will be secured, whether in isolation or in quarantine, or hospitalised with COVID," added the prime minister. Orban said the necessary measures will be established by decision of the Central Electoral Bureau (BEC). "If the Central Electoral Bureau still needs any regulation from us, such regulation will either be introduced in the government decision on the state of alert, or it can be introduced in the quarantine orders in which travel for the exercise of the right to vote will be exempted from restrictions." He mentioned that it was possible to open a large number of polling stations abroad for the vote of Romanians overseas. "Overseas we have managed - and I want to congratulate [Foreign] Minister Bogdan Aurescu - we have managed to get the opening of a large number of polling stations and there will be the possibility to exercise the right to vote and we are clearly in talks with all authorities to allow travel in restricted areas for the exercise of the right to vote," Orban added. AGERPRES (RO - author: Alina Novaceanu, editor: Mihai Simionescu; EN - author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Adina Panaitescu)

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