The Mexican Senate has passed a measure that would allow Mexican citizens living abroad to vote in the country's 2006 presidential elections.
The bill passed in the Senate on a 91-2 vote. It would require potential Mexican voters living abroad to have a valid identification card which allows them to vote by mail via absentee ballot.
Officials say only about four million of the 11-12 million Mexicans living in other countries have the identification cards.
The lower house of Congress must now approve the bill. It passed an expatriate voting bill in February, but with significant differences.
Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.