Election Changes Proposed for 2004

Kearney Gomez

Friday, March 19, 2004

The Cayman Islands Government will consider a preliminary draft of an Elections Bill that includes sections that would make voter registration compulsory, institute mobile polling stations and make major revisions to the election expenses law, Cayman Net News has learned.

Although the Elections (Amendment) Bill 2004 seeks to refine and modernise the election legislative scheme of the Cayman Islands, it contains no amendments relating to the controversial issue of electoral districts or constituencies.

When contacted for comment about the various sections of the draft Bill, Supervisor of Election Kearney Gomez said not all of the amendments are feasible to be enacted in time to take effect this year at this stage. However, Mr Gomez said some are vital to be in place for the upcoming general elections. 

One such amendment deals with election expenses. "It is essential that that amendment be enacted because we haven't been able to implement and enforce the law," he said, "We have to suspend those sections for the last two elections because the law, the way it's written, is unenforceable."

One amendment on election expenses would seek to create a stronger and more transparent relationship between candidates and their elections agents, and another would increase the maximum that could be spent per candidate in respect of an election to the Legislative Assembly from $10,000 to $25,000 in some cases, and $30,000 in others. 

The maximum would be $25,000 if the candidate belonged to a political party and was not the only candidate belonging to that party in a constituency, while the $30,000 limit would apply to independent candidates and those who were the only candidates from a party running in any particular constituency. 

Other sections of the Bill concerning election expenses would allow for greater transparency and proper bookkeeping of both candidates and political parties.

Another amendment Mr Gomez would like to see implemented in time for the next elections concerns mobile polling stations, which would take the poll to such places as hospitals, rest homes, and to elderly people living at home. 

The main benefit of a mobile polling station would be to reduce the number of postal ballots by lessening the number of people who would be eligible to cast such ballots. The various processes for casting a postal ballot are very time consuming, and the implementation of mobile polling stations would cut down on man hours of election officials. "It would definitely make my job easier," said Mr Gomez, "but it's for the Legislators to decide."

One amendment that will probably not be implemented in time for the next elections but could be in place afterwards would make it mandatory for eligible persons to register to vote. Such a provision in the law, it is felt, would counter voter apathy in Cayman, where there has been a downward trend of the percentage of the number of qualified persons who are registered to vote. Similar laws have been enacted in other Commonwealth countries like Australia, Papua New Guinea and Singapore.

Another section in the draft law concerns the registration of political parties, something that is required in many other Commonwealth countries, including the United Kingdom.

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