Young stars from across Europe will eagerly make their way to Tbilisi, Georgia this November, as it is announced that 16 hopeful participants will perform at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2017. For the first time ever, a new voting structure will be introduced to allow viewers from around the world to vote online for their favourite artists, the organizers said in a statement on Wednesday, August 9.

Hoping to continue in their success after a win at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest 2017, Portugal have returned to the Junior stage after a 10-year absence, having last competed in 2007. They will join past winners Armenia, Belarus, Italy, Malta, Russia and Ukraine in the Georgian capital along with other 2016 participants Albania, Australia, Cyprus, Macedonia, Ireland, Poland, Serbia and The Netherlands. Completing the 16-strong line up will be host country Georgia, who triumphed during last year’s contest in Malta.

Georgia’s public broadcaster GPB will host the event at the modern 4,000-seat Olympic Palace in Tbilisi which was considered more suitable than the previously announced Sports Palace for its numerous facilities for delegations, media and fans.

During the live show, online voting will start again after the last performance and will be open for 15 minutes. The final audience result will be a combination of both pre-show and live voting rounds, accounting for 50% of the total vote.