Bahamas, April 5, 2017 – Nassau – Voter registration centres in New Providence experienced long lines and wait times as people rushed to have their names added to the election register a week before it closes. Parliamentary Commissioner Sherlyn Hall said the increase in registration came because of Prime Minister Perry’s Christie announcement that Parliament will be dissolved and election writs will be issued on April 11.
In a statement on Sunday, Mr Christie urged those who have not yet registered to vote in the next election to do so quickly, because the current register will close on April 10. “For general information, especially for the benefit of all those persons who would like to vote in the forthcoming general election but have not yet registered to do so, it is my intention to cause the present Parliament to be dissolved on Tuesday, April 11, and to cause writs of election to be issued the same day,” the statement from the Office of the Prime Minister said.
“This will mean that only those persons who would have registered to vote on or before Monday, April 10 would be able to vote in the forthcoming general election.” The centres have been opened since October 2015. Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Tourism Harrison Thompson complained that “Bahamians like wait for last minute” as a reason for the rush and long lines at the centres. As of March 20, 141,698 people had registered to vote in the election. This is roughly 18% less than the 172,000 on the 2012 voter registry.
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