Editing Postal voting (section)

===Germany===
Postal voting is common in Germany, with 47% of the electorate voting by post in the [[2021 German federal election|2021 general election]].<ref>{{cite web |title=2021 Bundestag Election: share of postal voters at 47.3 % |url=https://www.bundeswahlleiter.de/en/info/presse/mitteilungen/bundestagswahl-2021/53_21_briefwahlbeteiligung.html |website=Federal Returning Officer |access-date=12 November 2022 |archive-date=12 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221112115833/https://www.bundeswahlleiter.de/en/info/presse/mitteilungen/bundestagswahl-2021/53_21_briefwahlbeteiligung.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Absentee voting has existed in Germany since 1957, originally in order to ensure that all German citizens, especially the old, sick, and disabled, and citizens living abroad, have the opportunity to participate in elections. At first, postal voters had to state why they could not cast their vote in person on Election Day; but this requirement was dropped in 2008, allowing everyone to use postal voting. Like in many other countries, in more recent years voting by mail has become increasingly popular among younger and non-disabled citizens residing within the country; as such, [http://network.gruene-washington.de/SitePages/briefwahl2017.aspx various tools] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310211928/http://network.gruene-washington.de/SitePages/briefwahl2017.aspx |date=2021-03-10 }} are being developed to help citizens, both domestic and abroad, more easily apply for postal voting.{{Citation needed|date=August 2020}}