MPs expressed general support on Thursday for a bill introducing automatic voter registration, though some raised concerns about allowing 17-year-olds to vote.

Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou told the House internal affairs committee that the government aimed to simplify the electoral process and make voting more accessible.

He clarified that, based on the current electoral roll, parliamentary seat allocations by district would remain unchanged if elections were held today.

Committee chairman and Akel MP Aristos Damianou said the committee was set on meeting the deadline ahead of next year’s elections. Any unresolved issues, he noted, would remain open for further discussion.

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Ioannou explained that on January 22, the cabinet approved 13 amendments aimed at increasing voter participation. Among them is the automatic registration of eligible voters, allowing participation in all national elections under certain conditions.

It also provides for the voting age to drop to 17 years.

According to Civil Registry data, 92,129 Cypriots aged 17 and above currently meet the criteria for automatic registration, including 85,235 aged 18 or older.

Another proposed change would eliminate voting books, allowing voters to use their ID cards or driver’s licenses, either physical or digital, at polling stations. The minister said the goal was to pass the amendments into law as soon as possible.

Speaking after the meeting, Ioannou said measures were in place to address the issue of false addresses used for voting purposes.

Legislative regulations now prevent address changes from taking effect within a year before local elections. He added that voters suspected of providing false addresses for the 2024 elections had been reported and were under police investigation.

Permanent secretary of the interior ministry and chief returning officer Elikkos Elia told reporters that efforts were being made to update the civil registry.

Head of the Electoral Service Menelaos Vasiliou said the issue of false addresses was a significant problem in the past.

A representative from the commissioner for the protection of personal data said recommendations had been adopted, including a measure ensuring that voter names would not be called out in polling stations.

A representative from the Cyprus Youth Organisation (Onek) voiced support for lowering the voting age to 17 and pledged to help inform young people about the change.

A representative from Psem said any measure that encouraged youth participation in politics was a step forward.

Akel supported the voting age reduction, arguing that 17-year-olds were mature enough to vote. Dipa also backed the proposal, while Edek and independent MP Alexandra Attalidou expressed general support but stressed the need for complementary state measures. Diko, however, questioned whether lowering the voting age would meaningfully increase youth participation.

Damianou was optimistic that the committee would wrap up discussions by May, allowing the bills to be submitted for a vote before the House adjourns for the summer.