Civil society group MARUAH has issued a public advisory urging overseas Singaporeans to take great care when registering and voting by post in the upcoming parliamentary elections, following a high rate of rejected postal ballots during the 2023 Presidential Election.
According to MARUAH, more than 40% of postal ballots cast by overseas voters in 2023 were disallowed.
Among those accepted, a further 4% were rejected due to irregularities in how the ballot papers were marked.
Despite this significant rejection rate, the Elections Department (ELD) has not announced any procedural changes ahead of the coming elections. MARUAH cited a Parliamentary Question raised by Non-Constituency Member of Parliament Hazel Poa, where the government indicated no major updates would be made.
Postal voting, introduced for overseas voters in 2023, involves several steps and strict compliance with instructions. While ELD did provide a detailed instructional video and guidelines, the complexity of the process has led to confusion and errors, MARUAH said.
One of the major logistical hurdles is timing. Under current regulations, postal ballots must reach ELD in Singapore within 10 days after polling day.
However, voters can only download their ballot papers one day after nomination day and must send them before polling day.
This gives voters just eight days to download, decide, and dispatch their ballots internationally—amid the unpredictability of global postal systems, MARUAH highlighted.
Further complicating matters, return envelopes must bear a legible postmark dated at least one day before polling day. In 2023, many ballots were rejected due to faint, illegible or missing postmarks.
Although ELD provides business reply envelopes, MARUAH noted that many countries do not routinely postmark such envelopes.
To mitigate this, ELD advises voters to affix their own stamps so that a postmark is applied.
However, postmarks are not guaranteed even then. Some postboxes are not emptied daily, and delays at sorting centres may result in postmarks being dated after the deadline.
To avoid this, MARUAH encourages voters to visit post offices in person and request a manual postmark.
The group also warned against using courier or express services. These often enclose the official return envelope inside an outer courier envelope, which results in no postmark on the return envelope itself.
Such ballots are rejected because ELD only considers postmarks on the official envelope.
MARUAH urged voters to carefully follow ELD’s instructions.
Common mistakes that led to ballot rejection in 2023 included:
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Printing the ballot and return envelope double-sided on a single sheet—ballots must be printed single-sided on separate sheets.
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Signing the ballot paper—ballots with identifying marks are voided. Signatures should only appear on the return envelope.
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Missing or mismatched signatures on return envelopes—these must match the signature provided at registration.
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Placing multiple ballots in one return envelope—each voter must use and sign their own envelope.
Though these requirements may seem stringent, MARUAH noted they are necessary to ensure vote authenticity and integrity.
Another critical point MARUAH raised was voter registration.
Overseas voters must register each time the Electoral Registers are revised. The latest revision was made today, meaning all overseas Singaporeans—even those previously registered—must register again to vote.
Registration is available online at the ELD website and will remain open until three days after the writ of election is issued. Voters can choose to vote by post or at designated overseas polling stations.
However, if a registered overseas voter is in Singapore on polling day, they may still vote at a local polling station.
MARUAH called on eligible voters abroad not only to register promptly, but also to review all ELD materials, including instructional videos, to avoid unintentional disqualification of their vote.
The group emphasised that protecting every Singaporean’s right to vote includes ensuring they have the knowledge and tools to cast a valid ballot, especially when voting from abroad.
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