Sixty-three candidates submit for European Parliament elections

A total of 63 candidacies were submitted at the Filoxenia conference centre in Nicosia on Wednesday for the European Parliament elections that will take place June 9.

According to Chief Returning Officer Elikkos Ilias, 61 of the candidates are running with the backing of their parties, while the only two are standing as independent candidates.

Ilias said that the candidacy submission process for the selection of the six Cypriot MEP was carried out smoothly and without any issues.

He added that, among the candidates, there are three Turkish Cypriot citizens of the Republic. Furthermore, he mentioned that, out of all the candidates, 45 are men and 18 are women.

Responding to inquiries about a woman who presented herself as a candidate but was not registered in the electoral roll, Ilias confirmed the incident.

“We examined her candidacy and, after explaining her problem, she accepted that she could not run.”

Ilias further explained that, according to the law, there is a 24-hour deadline, which will expire at 12.30pm, for any objections to be submitted against any candidacy. Any objections will need to be addressed directly to the Chief Returning Officer.

“If no objections are raised, the entire list of candidates will be included in the ballot paper for people to choose from on June 9,” he said.

He also said that the draft ballot paper is being prepared in collaboration with the government printing office and will be presented to candidates on Thursday.