Election Supervisor Wesley Howell has said his team is working on contingency plans for the May general election, which includes increased use of early voting and social distancing procedures to guard against any spread of COVID-19.
Howell, speaking with the Cayman Compass at the close of registration for the Jan. 1 electors’ roll last week, said, “As a part of our planning, we prepare contingencies for scenarios and this time around we are including the COVID-19 pandemic in our contingency plans.”
The general election is scheduled for 26 May. Nomination Day is set for 7 April.
Howell said part of the contingency plans is increased mobile voting, which Cayman’s Elections Law already provides for in two forms.
“First, for persons who are are not fully able to vote, we will visit at their location to poll them where they are. The second is early voting, when you apply for permission to vote before the election,” he explained.
Early voting, he said, is usually used by people who work on Election Day, including police, Fire Services and Elections Office staff, and others.
These two measures, he said, are covered by legislation and “will allow us to minimise the number of people in the polling station”.
However, Howell added that utilising these methods for voting must be applied for, as “it is not automatic. You just cannot turn up.”
He said training for returning officers will begin in December and early next year for polling staff.
As for the electors roll, Howell said the 1 Oct. official register now contains 21,903 electors, as 132 new voters were added, and two others regained their eligibility.
A total of 55 names were removed from the register due to death or loss of eligibility.
For those who missed the 1 Oct. deadline, Howell said, the next voter registration deadline is 4 Jan. 2021, “which will be the last opportunity to register to vote in 26 May 2021 General Election”.
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