Less time for postal voters for the Bundestag election

Postal voters in Saxony have less time than usual to vote in the Bundestag elections. The postal voting centers in the three largest cities in the state will only open three weeks before the election, which is almost two weeks later than usual. Voters should therefore make sure they apply early and return their postal ballots as soon as possible, according to Leipzig, Dresden and Chemnitz.

Election date during the Saxon winter holidays

In Saxony, the Bundestag election on February 23 falls in the middle of the winter vacations. They begin on February 17 and end on March 1. This is likely to have an impact on the number of postal votes. Some of the staff needed for the count are also on vacation, said a spokeswoman for the city of Dresden. However, there will not be a blanket vacation closure across the board.

Great willingness among the population

In Leipzig, there will be more counters in the postal voting office due to the shortened postal voting period and the expected high demand. Opening hours have also been extended. There should be no staffing problems in the trade fair city. So far, more than 8,000 people have already volunteered as poll workers, it was reported. This is well above the requirement of around 6,000.

The situation is similar in Chemnitz. So far, enough volunteer election workers have registered. "The willingness of the people of Chemnitz to help ensure the election is very high despite the location of the election day in the middle of the winter vacations in the Free State of Saxony and shows a high level of commitment among the citizens." The postal voting office has been staffed up.

State electoral officer: 36,000 electoral assistants needed

In general, however, electoral assistants are still needed in Saxony for the Bundestag election. According to the state electoral administration, around 36,000 poll workers are needed in the state for the approximately 4,500 polling stations and postal voting districts.