The voting procedure for the Eurovision Song Contest the following year will see significant modifications. The semi-finals no longer have professional juries, therefore only the audience will determine who advances to the championship game.
Voting will also be open for the first time to nations not taking part in the competition.
Six juries were found to have switched votes at this year’s competition in Turin, Italy, prompting the action.
According to the EBU, which oversees the competition, irregular voting patterns were found in Azerbaijan, Georgia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, and San Marino.
These jury votes were subtracted and replaced with an overall score that was derived from the outcomes of other nations with comparable voting histories.
Kalush Orchestra from Ukraine ultimately won the competition, with Sam Ryder from the UK coming in second. In 2023, Liverpool will serve as the venue.
Since at least the second Eurovision Song Contest in 1957, professional juries made up of professional songwriters and members of the music industry have been in existence (the voting system for the first competition has never been revealed).
A public vote is merged with their scores to decide the overall winner in the current system.
According to a press release from the EBU, this strategy will be used in the final.
The two-time UK jury member and TV host Nicki Chapman applauded the idea, noting that laypeople frequently have more knowledge than experts.
“Many people will be able to breathe easier because true Eurovision fans are online months in advance. They are familiar with every song, and they each have their favorites.
“So, for instance, a lot of people are sad when Ireland is eliminated. Everyone now has the opportunity to advance their favorite, and the juries will receive 50% of the votes in the final as a result of this [change].
According to Martin sterdahl, the contest’s executive supervisor, allowing non-participating nations to vote will reflect “the global impact of the event.”
Every viewer of the show, no matter where they are in the world, can vote for their favorite songs.
According to the EBU, online votes from the “rest of the world” will be tallied up and converted into points that will count equally in the semi-finals and the championship game as votes from one participating nation.
Chapman, who collaborated with David Bowie, the Spice Girls, and Amy Winehouse before transitioning to television, said, “I love the idea it’s going to go global.
“I wonder if, for example, Adele, or another artist, might suddenly decide, ‘Actually, I want to be part of this. I’m trying to represent the UK to a global audience with this. Surely that would be amazing.
Viewers of Eurovision have regularly voted against the jurors in the past. For instance, Ukraine overwhelmingly won the televote this year with 439 points but finished fourth with 192 in the jury vote.
Sam Ryder, who received 283 points and was the jury members’ favorite act, placed fifth with home viewers.
The competition will feature 37 nations next year, with Montenegro and North Macedonia withdrawing due to the high cost of entry.
Due to its invasion of Ukraine, Russia was banned from the event this year, and this ban will last through 2023.
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