Josiah
Leading up to the 2024 elections, the Electoral Commission (EC) has indicated the implementation of measures to augment the number of polling places.
The EC aims to cap the number of voters at each polling place to 500. Chairperson Jean Mensa mentioned during a forum hosted by the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC) in Accra that the addition of more polling places is intended to alleviate congestion at voting sites.
Furthermore, the EC proposed adjusting the closing time for voting in the 2024 general elections from 5:00 pm to 3:00 pm.
“In 2020, 70 percent of our polling centers had a voter threshold of 500 and below. This time, our goal is to ensure that all polling station centers accommodate 500 voters or fewer. Concurrently, we plan to increase the number of polling stations nationwide.
“We believe this will significantly reduce the lengthy queues characteristic of our elections, facilitating a smooth and hassle-free voting process. In 2020, voters took no more than five minutes to cast their votes due to the introduction of this policy. Building on our 2020 experience and feedback from various observer groups, we propose closing the polls at 3:00 pm.”
According to EC Chairperson Jean Mensa, the primary aim of this adjustment is to simplify the process for electoral officers to transparently and systematically tally votes in broad daylight.
Mrs. Mensa underscored that this strategy is informed by insights gained from the 2020 elections, where, by 1:00 pm, approximately 70% of polling places had experienced minimal activity.
“If you compare the turnout in 2016 to 2020, despite the hassle-free process in 2016 with no long queues, we achieved a voter turnout of 79 percent plus, compared to 67 percent in 2020,” Mrs. Mensa added.
Source:Omanghana.com
