Blank billboards now abound on roadsides across the islands.
While a day ago, colourful posters of political candidates and parties could be spotted at street corners, beside highways and in front yards, now blank, white boards or stripped-bare brown plywood are all that remain.
Political websites, too, went ‘dark’ as the three major political parties, observing the letter of the law banning Election Day campaigning, have not only pulled down their billboards, but have also taken their sites offline.
This from the Cayman Islands National Party homepage: “Our website is temporarily down for Election Day in accordance with Cayman Islands Election regulations. We will be back 1 May.”
The Progressives and The Caymanian Community Party are also offline.
Candidates were required to have all their campaign material taken down before midnight.
However, some signs have been left up despite what Elections Supervisor Wesley Howell calls “advance warnings and reminders” on that issue.
He reported “multiple issues with signage”.
All signage – including referendum campaign posters – should have come down by midnight.
It’s those campaign materials that appear to have caused the issue. Compass reporters noted several examples of ‘yes to cruise’ materials left up on Election Day.
A separate, but related concern, surrounded candidates campaigning at the polls.
Howell said, “Another complaint coming in repeatedly is of candidates within the 300-foot boundary and hanging out too long, getting to the point where they are bordering on harassment of voters.”
Candidates are allowed inside the polling stations to visit their election agents but they are not allowed to campaign outside.
Under Section 56 of the Elections Act, “no candidate and his agent, or two agents of the same candidate, shall be in the same polling station at the same time for more than fifteen consecutive minutes”.
In spite of these issues, voters reported a smooth polling process across the islands throughout the day.
Governor Jane Owen, who said her role was to take the “30,000 foot view”, told CIG TV she was satisfied that Cayman’s election process was free, fair and transparent, something she feels “very secure about”.
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