THE electoral fraud trial stemming from the disputed March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections continued on Thursday before Chief Magistrate (ag) Faith McGusty, with the proceedings dominated by evidential challenges and procedural hearings.

Thursday’s session opened with a voir dire held to determine the admissibility of certain evidence tendered by the prosecution.  A voir dire is a hearing to decide if evidence is admissible in court, sometimes involving a “trial within a trial” where evidence is presented and arguments are made.

The voir dire concerned testimony from Bebi Mohammed, who served as a People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) counting agent during the 2020 elections.

Mohammed produced several documents as part of her evidence, but defence attorney Nigel Hughes objected to their admission, questioning their relevance, the manner in which they were prepared, and whether Mohammed was qualified to produce them.

Those objections contributed directly to the need for the voir dire hearing.

While the specific evidence examined during the voir dire cannot be disclosed, the Chief Magistrate, after concluding the exercise, directed both the prosecution and defence to put forward submissions before she rules on the admissibility of the documents.

Defence attorneys also indicated that another voir dire will be required, this time concerning former Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) staffer Enrique Livan, one of the defendants.

That hearing will address the admissibility of statements allegedly linked to Livan and it is expected to take place as the trial progresses today at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

The trial concerns allegations of electoral fraud arising from the disputed General and Regional Elections held on March 2, 2020.

Those facing charges include former Chief Elections Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield; former Deputy CEO Roxanne Myers; former Region Four Returning Officer, Clairmont Mingo; former Health Minister under the previous A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) government, Volda Lawrence; and People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) member, Carol Smith-Joseph.

Also on trial are former Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) staffers Sheffern February, Enrique Livan, Denise Babb-Cummings, and Michelle Miller.

The defendants are being represented by a robust defence team, including attorneys Nigel Hughes, Dexter Todd, Eusi Anderson, Darren Wade and Ronald Daniels.

Collectively, the defendants face 19 charges ranging from conspiracy to defraud to misconduct in public office.

Due to the charges arising from the same set of circumstances, the matters have been consolidated. Each defendant has pleaded not guilty to the charges and secured their release by posting significant cash bail.

The prosecution, led by King’s Counsel Darshan Ramdhanie, argued that each defendant played a “critical role” in the deliberate effort to inflate votes for the APNU+AFC and reduce votes for the PPP/C.

In the weeks that followed the contentious March 2, 2020, vote, Guyana’s judiciary was inundated with multiple applications and appeals filed by various political actors over the electoral process.

The saga lasted five months before a national recount, led by GECOM and a delegation from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), confirmed the PPP/C’s victory and ultimately led to the swearing-in of President Dr. Irfaan Ali on August 2, 2020.

The recount confirmed that the PPP/C won the elections with 233,336 votes against the APNU+AFC coalition’s 217,920.

The initial elections results, announced by former CEO Lowenfield, claimed an APNU+AFC victory.

The APNU+AFC coalition received 171,825 votes, while the PPP/C received 166,343 votes, according to Lowenfield’s election report.

Following the PPP/C’s return to office in August 2020, criminal charges were filed against the defendants.

GECOM made the decision to terminate the contracts of Lowenfield, Myers, and Mingo in August 2021, after the allegations of fraud came to light.

The Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the events of the 2020 General and Regional Elections have found that there were collusion and collaboration between senior GECOM officials to divert votes to the APNU +AFC instead of safeguarding and preserving the integrity of the electoral system.

Chairman Stanley John and commissioners — former Chancellor of the Judiciary, Carl Singh and Senior Counsel Godfrey Smith made these findings based on evidence from the many witnesses who testified along with the reports of the international observers.

“…our inquiry reveals that there were, in fact, shockingly brazen attempts by Lowenfield, Myers and Mingo to derail and corrupt the statutorily prescribed procedure for the counting, ascertaining and tabulation of votes of the March 2nd election, as well as the true declaration of the results of that election, and that they did so – to put it in unvarnished language of the ordinary man – for the purpose of stealing the election,” they said in their report.