Eurovision announces changes to voting system ahead of Liverpool
Charlotte McLaughlin, PA Senior Entertainment Reporter
The organisers of Eurovision Song Contest 2023 have announced changes to its voting system ahead of Liverpool playing host.
European Broadcasting Union (EBU) said on Tuesday only viewers’ votes will decide which countries qualify from the semi-finals stage.
Other changes include viewers in non-participating countries being able to vote online and jury votes being combined with votes from the global audience to decide the final result.
🗳 From 2023, the Eurovision Song Contest Semi-Final results will be decided solely by votes cast by viewers, rather than a combination of jury and viewer votes… pic.twitter.com/4qvM1Dhk2g
— Eurovision Song Contest (@Eurovision) November 22, 2022
Judges from the professional music industry will decide with the public for the grand final.
Martin Osterdahl, the Eurovision Song Contest’s executive supervisor, said the move will “give more power to the audience” as the song contest “remains relevant and exciting” after 67 years of performances.
He added: “In 2023 only Eurovision Song Contest viewers will decide which countries make it to the grand final and, reflecting the global impact of the event, everyone watching the show, wherever they live in the world, can cast their votes for their favourite songs.
“By also involving juries of music professionals in deciding the final result, all the songs in the grand final can be assessed on the broadest possible criteria.
“We can also maintain the tradition of travelling around Europe and Australia to collect points and ensure a thrilling voting sequence with the winner only revealed at the very end of the show.”
Those who live in countries not in Eurovision will be able to vote for their favourites online.
Their votes will be converted into points that will have the same weight as one participating country in both of the semi-finals and the grand final.
The Eurovision Song Contest will be held in May 2023 at the ACC Liverpool.
The city was announced as the host as the UK was the runner-up in 2022 with Sam Ryder and Ukraine, who won with Kalush Orchestra, could not host due to the Russian invasion.
