By Ariana Gordon

THE Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) announced on Friday that ballot papers will not be printed for four Local Authority Areas for the March 18 Local Government Elections (LGE).GECOM Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield told reporters that in the four Local Authority Areas, only one person expressed interest in contesting the elections. As such, GECOM is considered giving those areas a no-contest certification.

“We have a scenario where there are four no-contests, meaning (that) in four of the 71 Local Authority Areas, there was no contest… only one party would have indicated their interest on Nomination Day to participate,” Mr Lowenfield said.

The Local Government Elections Law states that where the list of candidates is unopposed, the lists or candidates are deemed to have been elected. The four Local Authority Areas are: Mocha-Arcadia, Kintyre-Borlam, Black Bush Polder, and Crabwood Creek- Moleson Creek.

The CEO was, however, quick to point out that though the areas are no-contest areas, it does not mean that they are sparsely populated. He could not, at time of the press conference, provide the numbers of persons who would not be voting in those no-contest areas.

“The Commission has addressed that issue as far as going forward, since it has implications for the production of our ballot papers in those areas and otherwise,” he disclosed.

Of a total of 508 constituencies, there are 149 in which the lists are unopposed. As such, eligible voters will be required to vote in only the Proportional Representation aspect of the election. Only voluntary groups and political parties can contest in the Proportional Representation aspect of these elections.

Under the First-Past-The-Post Component of the election, an individual candidate can contest for only one seat in a single constituency in which he or she is registered and resides.

Fifty per cent of the number of councillors of each Local Authority Area will be elected through Proportional Representation, while the other 50 per cent will be elected through the First-Past-the-Post method.

BALLOT PAPERS
Mr Lowenfield told reporters that GECOM is in process of producing the ballot papers for the LGE.
He said the Commission is working towards having the ballots printed and returned to the country “in an appropriate time” before the March 18 elections.

The artwork on the ballots is currently being done, Mr Lowenfield said. “I should let you know the format for the ballot; it speaks to the Proportional Representation (PR) component and First-Past-the-Post arrangement.
Of interest is that each party will have their party symbol, and in the case of parties participating in the First-Past- the-Post, the photograph of the representative of the party for whom electors will be voting in those particular constituencies.”

What it means is that the ballots will have photographs of those individuals whom the electorate is required to vote for on Election Day.

“Even if they missed the symbol for the voluntary group or for the individual, the photographs of those individuals for whom they are voting in each constituency; and if is a party…will be there,” the CEO said.

He disclosed that the ballots will be printed in Montreal, Canada, and that process will be observed by the GECOM Commissioners.
GECOM is currently “satisfying all the administrative requirements” for the acquisition of both sensitive and non-sensitive materials required for LGE. Along with the ballot papers, the Statement of Poll and tally sheets will also be printed in Canada.

“It is a work in progress, and we are confident that we will be able, notwithstanding where we acquiring them from, they’d be here in good time so that the process continues without any flaws,” Mr Lowenfield noted.

The Commission is not at all worried about securing the integrity of the ballot papers and Statements of Poll, and GECOM’s Chair, Dr. Steve Surujbally, told reporters that it would be difficult for persons to tamper with the ballot papers or Statements of Poll as was the case in the May 2015 General Elections.

“Our security system proved itself because we were able to pick up the non-correct ones immediately. It is as simple as that,” he declared. He is not at all worried about the integrity of the sensitive documents being tampered with.