Deaths and few new registrations impact numbers
There are 192 fewer voters on Cayman’s official register than there were when General Elections were held 15 months ago.
The Official Register of Electors as of April 1, 2013, which was in effect for elections the following month, showed a total of 18,556 voters. The official register in effect from July 1 to September 30, 2014, shows a total of 18,364 voters.
The main reason, said Supervisor of Elections Wesley Howell, is the removal of names of the deceased. Since January this year, 68 names have been removed due to death, he confirmed last week.
The decline is seen in every district. Mr. Howell pointed out that, along with removing the names of people in their district who have died, the registering officers also remove the names of people who have been certified as being of unsound mind and those serving a prison sentence of 12 months or more. Since January, three people were removed for reasons of unsound mind, while 11 sentenced prisoners lost their voting rights.
Meanwhile, only 12 new voters have been added to the lists. “I would encourage all persons eligible to register to be an elector to apply as soon as they become eligible,” Mr. Howell said. “We never know when a [Legislative Assembly] seat may become vacant and a by-election will be called at short notice.”
Another voting opportunity could be a referendum.
A breakdown by district shows the following decreases in the number of registered voters from April, 2013, to the present:
East End, 637 – down 10 from 647
North Side, 592 – down 10 from 602
Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, 1,021 – down 25 from 1,046
Bodden Town, 4,532 – down 35 from 4,567
West Bay, 4,181 – down 56 from 4,237
George Town, 7,401 – down 56 from 7,457.
The Elections Law mandates the compiling of a list of electors every quarter. These official lists are published January 1, April 1, July 1 and October 1. Registering officers are required to keep track of deaths in their districts as well as new applicants and other changes, and then submit these revisions by a specified date. The revised list is submitted to the revising officer – currently Chief Magistrate Nova Hall – for certification and it becomes the official list for the next quarter.
There are sometimes slight discrepancies in the comparison of voter numbers, depending on whether the revised lists or official lists are used. Because the lists undergo regular revision, people are encouraged to apply to become registered as soon as they are eligible. In general, a person must have attained the age of 18; be Caymanian by birth or grant of status; be resident in these islands not less than two years out of the previous four (this requirement not applying to students, seamen and a few other categories).
“Registering officers have been doing a commendable job of maintaining the register,” Mr. Howell said.
Voter qualifications and application forms are available on the Elections Office website at www.electionsoffice.ky. Interested individuals can choose to visit the Elections Office in person at the Smith Road Centre. It is open from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
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