There will be 2,100 polling stations manned by 10,000 staff
CABINET Secretary Dr Roger Luncheon yesterday reported that there will be over 2,100 polling stations and 10,000 staff to man them at the upcoming general and regional elections. Luncheon, also Head of the Presidential Secretariat (HPS), spoke at his weekly post-Cabinet press conference at Office of the President, in Georgetown.
He said Cabinet shares the confidence of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) that there will be no hitches as the elections are run off.
According to him, Nomination Day, which will have to be no less than 32 days from the date of elections, will be announced shortly.
He said that the Elections Commission has completed the procurement of all the Elections Day paraphernalia, including the ballot papers and ballot boxes.
A total of 17 political parties are expected to contest this year’s elections, the three major players being the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C), A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance For Change (AFC).
Of the 65 members in the National Assembly, 25 are elected from the ten geographical constituencies, and 40 are awarded at the national level on the basis of block votes secured.
Seats are reserved specifically for women (gender) as prescribed by the Elections Laws (Amendment) Act. Under gender representation, 33% of the seats of the national top-up list is reserved for women.
The Elections Laws (Amendment) Act No. 15 of 2000 provides for each party’s national top-up list to have a minimum of one-third females.
Seats are awarded to the political parties contesting the elections on the basis of an electoral quota. The total number of valid votes cast divided by the number of seats contested determines seat allocation as provided for by the Elections Laws (Amendment) Act.