The legislative elections have already started for some. Since May 27, at noon, the French living abroad can indeed vote by Internet to elect their deputy. A possibility they already had in 2012 as an experiment, but it had not been repeated in 2017 for security reasons. The goal this year? Fight against the particularly strong abstention of the French abroad.
With our correspondent in Amman, Hermine Le Clech
It is from her home, identifiers and password in hand, that Marie Patreau is about to vote online for the French legislative. A first for this 23-year-old student for whom the dates of the ballot at the embassy fell badly.
” I will be on the way out. It was going to take me back and forth when I had other things to deal with at the moment. And what’s more, it’s the first time that I can vote on the Internet. So, I was a little curious to know how it goes “, she notes.
The vote takes place in a few minutes in a very different atmosphere than that of a traditional election day. ” I no longer felt like I was really doing my duty as a citizen by going to the embassy, putting my little piece of paper in the ballot box. Here, well, I’m all alone in my kitchen, there’s no one. So it’s a bit different, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. On the contrary, I am pleasantly surprised. I thought it was gonna take a little longer “, continues our voter.
” I had to look right, left for who I was going to vote for »
In this way, the authorities hope to lower the record abstention rates of French people living abroad. But for Marie Patreau, the device cannot be effective alone. ” There has to be a whole communication program behind it. For example, me, many programs, I received them in my spams. I had to look a little right, left for whom I was going to vote. The embassy must offer things so that we have easier access to them, and that it interests us, and that we feel that it can serve our interests and our lives. “, she also believes.
In the 2017 legislative elections, only 25% of registered voters in Jordan turned out to vote. French people living abroad have until June 1, at noon, Paris time, to vote online. The counting of the electronic votes will take place on June 5, the same day as the ballot for French nationals living abroad in the embassy.
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