Voter registration to test ECN’s resolve
Commission says all eligible voters must register afresh
The electoral commission says it might consider introducing online voter registration in future.
If the number of registered voters in 2019 is anything to go by, the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) will have to register an average of 26 000 people every day for the 52 days set aside for voter registration.
The national voters’ register comprised of 1 358 468 voters in 2019, which signalled an increase of 144 274 voters from the 2014 polls.
With the census results indicating that the Namibian population has since grown to over three million, analysts expect a significant increase in the new voters’ roll.
ECN said it is almost all systems go for eligible voters who will visit its 4 258 registration points countrywide between 3 June and 1 August, adding that the process of finalising the registration points is at an advanced stage.
The electoral commission's chief electoral and referenda officer Petrus Shaama this week told Namibian Sun that he is confident that the 52 days they have set aside to register voters for the national elections later this year are more than sufficient.
“The commission will deploy registration teams to all 121 constituencies. Depending on the population density, some constituencies will have more registration points than others. Meticulous planning has gone into this based on the commission’s experience of conducting a general registration of voters [GRV] in 2014 and successfully registering over 1.3 million voters over a period of 42 days in 2019,” Shaama said.
He said a total of 2 700 election officials will be on duty to register new voters between 08:00 and 19:00 daily, except on Sundays, during the registration period.
Fresh start
ECN has indicated that “all eligible voters are required to register afresh”.
Registration stations will be located at a wide variety of premises across the country for registration purposes. These include schools, community halls, churches and other community venues.
Probed about the possibility of introducing an online registration platform to make it easier for the public to register, Shaama said it is a possibility.
“The 2024 GRV [for] the Presidential and National Assembly elections will be conducted in terms of the Electoral Act. This Act does not make provision for online registration or online voting. Any change to the law requires a consultative process with stakeholders. However, the commission might consider this in the future."
Namibians will be among the two billion voters in 50 countries worldwide who will cast their votes during the course of 2024, and with the country’s population having increased from 2.1 million to just over three million, the ECN will have its work cut out for it to ensure that all eligible citizens are registered to cast their votes come 27 November.
The national voters’ register comprised of 1 358 468 voters in 2019, which signalled an increase of 144 274 voters from the 2014 polls.
With the census results indicating that the Namibian population has since grown to over three million, analysts expect a significant increase in the new voters’ roll.
ECN said it is almost all systems go for eligible voters who will visit its 4 258 registration points countrywide between 3 June and 1 August, adding that the process of finalising the registration points is at an advanced stage.
The electoral commission's chief electoral and referenda officer Petrus Shaama this week told Namibian Sun that he is confident that the 52 days they have set aside to register voters for the national elections later this year are more than sufficient.
“The commission will deploy registration teams to all 121 constituencies. Depending on the population density, some constituencies will have more registration points than others. Meticulous planning has gone into this based on the commission’s experience of conducting a general registration of voters [GRV] in 2014 and successfully registering over 1.3 million voters over a period of 42 days in 2019,” Shaama said.
He said a total of 2 700 election officials will be on duty to register new voters between 08:00 and 19:00 daily, except on Sundays, during the registration period.
Fresh start
ECN has indicated that “all eligible voters are required to register afresh”.
Registration stations will be located at a wide variety of premises across the country for registration purposes. These include schools, community halls, churches and other community venues.
Probed about the possibility of introducing an online registration platform to make it easier for the public to register, Shaama said it is a possibility.
“The 2024 GRV [for] the Presidential and National Assembly elections will be conducted in terms of the Electoral Act. This Act does not make provision for online registration or online voting. Any change to the law requires a consultative process with stakeholders. However, the commission might consider this in the future."
Namibians will be among the two billion voters in 50 countries worldwide who will cast their votes during the course of 2024, and with the country’s population having increased from 2.1 million to just over three million, the ECN will have its work cut out for it to ensure that all eligible citizens are registered to cast their votes come 27 November.
Comments
Namibian Sun
No comments have been left on this article