Egyptian expatriates should find voting in presidential elections in 2012 much easier than ongoing parliamentary elections, an ambassador has said.

Ambassador Ahmed Ragheb, assistant to the Minister of Foreign Affairs for Egyptian Expatriates, said the ministry was working closely with the Supreme Electoral Commission (SEC) to find more efficient ways for Egyptians living abroad to vote.

Ragheb said one of the main obstacles faced by overseas voters was that only 20 per cent had a National ID card, which is required when voting. The ambassador urged Egyptian expatriates to quickly locate their ID cards to be able to vote in upcoming presidential elections.

For expatriates, parliamentary election runoffs will be conducted in the same way as the first round of voting, said Ragheb. He also said the number one complaint of overseas voters was that the SEC internet page did not open easily and took a long time to load. Voters use the page to register to vote and access electoral information.