Guide to the 2024 elections abroad

The end of 2024 is fast approaching and, being the year with the most elections in history, Romania could not remain untouched by this phenomenon. So, after deciding on 9 June the delegation that will represent us in the European Parliament until 2029, we are once again expected to go to the polls to vote for the next election cycle.

The process can sound overwhelming if you are in the Diaspora at the time of the elections especially if it's your first time. So to make things as simple as possible, we've put together a little guide with everything you need to know before triple-header coming at the end of November.

How do we vote in the Parliamentary elections?

As I said earlier, in the coming weeks we will have the opportunity to elect the entire composition of the Chamber of Deputies + Senate, the bodies that will then nominate the Prime Minister and the new Government. Without a parliamentary majority, a party cannot be in government, while the electoral threshold to be present in Parliament is 51TPTP3T of the total votes cast.

Each elected deputy represents 73,000 inhabitants, while a senator represents 168,000. In total, Romania is divided into 43 constituencies (the number of counties in the country + the Diaspora), and citizens who have moved abroad will be assigned to the Diaspora constituency.

How do we vote in the Dutch Parliament?

To vote in the Netherlands, you need to go to any of the polling stations organised in the various cities with your identity document (identity card or passport) and proof of residence abroad. Find here the official list of documents accepted as evidence.

1. Residence permit (Verblijfstitel or Verblifskaart)
2. Card issued by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs for persons with status
   privileged (Identiteitbewijs geprivilegieerden - Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken)
3. International extract of registration of persons in the population register issued by
   primărie (Publiekszaken, Extract from the register of population)
4. Extras (Uittreksel) registration at the town hall and obtaining your own number code
   burgerservicenummer (BSN) - the documents also specify the address of residence
   (woonadres, adresgegegevens, verblijjfplaats)
5. Dutch passport or identity card (only together with the Romanian document
   valid requested for voting)
6. Valid driving licence issued by the Dutch authorities (Rijbewijs)
7. National health insurance policy, valid for the current year, issued by a company
   Dutch insurance (Polis Verzekering)
8. Student card, issued by Dutch universities, valid for the current year
   (Studentenkaart, Student card)
9. Personalised transport season ticket (with photo) valid for the current year
   (Persoonlijke OV chipkaart)

Parliamentary elections in the diaspora will be held on Saturday 30 November and Sunday 1 DecemberThe ballot boxes will be open from 7:00 local time until 21:00. In exceptional cases, if queues build up at certain centres close to the deadline and people are unable to vote in time, the opening hours of the polling station may be extended until midnight so that the group left waiting can express their right to vote in the next Parliament. This election will be held in a single round, with the party with the most votes receiving the most seats in the Senate and Chamber of Deputies respectively, and the last year we decided their composition was 2020.

How do we vote in the Presidential election?

Presidential elections are more permissive in terms of where we can vote. So you can elect your head of state for the next five years from any station in the country, or abroad, without registering in advance. All you need to vote is your identity card.

This election will be held in two rounds.

The first round takes place in the diaspora between 22-24 November. This round will have 14 candidates on the list, with the top choices in terms of number of votes going to the second round on 6-8 December in the diaspora. This time the winner will be the one who gets at least 50%+1 of the votes cast. However, if a candidate obtains more than half of the electorate's votes as early as 24 November, he or she will be declared the winner of the first round of the poll and the 8 December session will not take place. The last presidential elections took place in 2019, with the president elected every five years.

Here you can find the list of polling stations in the Netherlands.

An article by Horia Marin

Horia is a student in the Netherlands studying Marketing Management. He joined the Rompro team recently to share from his experiences studying abroad in the Netherlands and to help those moving here have a smoother start. She is an outgoing person who enjoys getting involved in as many activities and helping as many people as possible. She hates Dutch cuisine and public transport delays.