EC warns of longer voting time for 3-ballot poll
Elections Commission President Mohamed Zahid said polling will proceed until 4:00pm and will only be extended under conditions set out in the regulations.
The Elections Commission (EC) has stated that voting in Saturday’s elections may take longer due to the requirement for voters to cast three ballots.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday night, Elections Commission President Mohamed Zahid said polling will proceed until 4:00pm and will only be extended under conditions set out in the regulations.
For the first time, voters will be issued three ballot papers. These include a referendum on whether Presidential and Parliamentary elections should be held concurrently, the election of Local Council members, and the election of Women’s Development Committee (WDC) members.
The press conference was held jointly by the EC and the Maldives Police Service at Seneco Hall of Voice of Maldives. It marked Zahid’s first media briefing since assuming office last year.
“We urge the public to be prepared for a longer process at the polling stations. Marking three ballot papers will take more time than marking a single one,” Zahid said.
He said arrangements have been made to manage the process, including the deployment of additional officials at polling stations to assist voters. Zahid also advised voters to place each ballot in the correct box and to attend polling stations early.
The EC stated that queues will close at 4:00pm, and no additional voters will be permitted to join after that time.
Zahid said any extension of polling hours would be decided in line with existing regulations. “If all five members of the commission determine that an extension is necessary due to natural disasters or unforeseen circumstances affecting a specific ballot box or the entire country, we will act accordingly,” he said.
He added that Article 31 of the General Regulations on Elections allows changes to polling hours only in the event of natural disasters beyond human control.
According to the EC, 294,876 individuals are eligible to vote.
A total of 678 seats are available each for Local Councils and WDCs. There are 1,368 candidates contesting for council seats and 1,597 candidates for WDC positions.
The elections will be conducted using 588 ballot boxes, with 6,581 officials deployed. More than 8,000 monitors and observers have been accredited to oversee the process.
