Romanian government increases foreign polling stations and extends voting hours for referendum

The Romanian government has announced an extension of voting hours and extra polling stations outside Romania for the upcoming referendum. The Ministry of Foreign affairs will increase the number of polling stations on foreign soil from 150 to 301 for the vote on whether to impeach suspended president Traian Basescu on July 29. The majority are in Italy and Spain, which have the largest expatriate communities, but Romanian citizens will also be able to vote in France, the US, the UK, the Republic of Moldova, Germany and Canada. The Romanian Parliament has also voted in favor of extending the voting hours from 08:00 – 20:00 to 07:00 – 23:00 in an attempt to improve the chances of getting a big enough turnout for the referendum to be valid. A turnout of at least 50 percent plus one of the electorate is necessary for the July 29 vote to be valid. Liam Lever, liam@romania-insider.com (photo source: sxc.hu)