Poll: Should Cayman have territory-wide MPs?

| 11/12/2023 | 69 Comments

(CNS): Of the five British Overseas Territories in the Caribbean, the Cayman Islands is the only one that does not have “at-large” (territory-wide) elected political representatives among its legislative body. The fact that the constitutions of other BOTs allow for this demonstrates that it would be possible to amend our Constitution and introduce at-large MPs here, which many believe would be a good idea, and it appears that the UK would be supportive, if not enthusiastic.

Nevertheless, the system is not a panacea to eliminate corruption, as suggested by events last year in the British Virgin Islands.

The 16,000 voters in the BVI (population approximately 30,000) can each cast five votes: one for their local representative in one of nine electoral districts and four at-large candidates in the Legislative Council.

To quote the Jamaica Observer: “The four at-large seats [in the BVI] were introduced under some pressure from the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office in the mid-1990s. The rationale behind their introduction was that there was a risk that constituency seats can become too closely tied to a particular local figure, and that if a certain number of local figures join the same political party, then the voters have no real choice in selection of their government.”

In the Turks and Caicos Islands, which has a population of around 45,000 but only 9,000 voters, there are ten elected members in the House of Assembly representing single-member districts and five at-large members — which has been in place since the new TCI constitution came into effect in October 2012 following the suspension of the old constitution in 2009 and UK’s three-year imposition of direct rule

Each voter gets six votes: one for their constituency and five for the plurality block voting. There are also four appointed members — one by the government of the day, one by the opposition and two by the governor. However, the TCI has successfully negotiated with the UK to swap the appointed members for four more elected representatives, among other constitutional changes, though it’s not clear if these will be district or at-large members. 

Anguilla, which has a population of approximately 16,000 with about 12,000 registered voters, added four at-large representatives to its House of Assembly for the first time in 2020. There are also seven members elected in single-seat constituencies.

Meanwhile, Montserrat, which has a tiny population of around 5,200 and less than 4,000 voters, has nine elected members of its Legislative Assembly in a single constituency. During elections, voters are able to vote for up to nine candidates under plurality-at-large voting. 

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Should the Cayman Islands introduce at-large MPs?

Which of the following scenarios do you think would work best in this jurisdiction?


Share your vote!


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Category: Elections, Opinion Poll, Politics, Viewpoint

Comments (69)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    That’s baloney. Immigrants of long standing have the means to become voters, just like I did. Jury service perhaps is the price you pay for that right to vote. And once you are here long term, do you not have the same concerns about the economy, crime, education, cruise ships etc., as any “I born yah” people ?

    Those here in Cayman only temporarily have little or no interest in being naturalized, getting a vote or being in a jury. They are just here to work (mostly) and maybe earn a right of abode.

  2. Robert says:

    We need a national vote to sort this out .

  3. Anonymous says:

    Cayman should have an educated electorate that cares about who runs for office and forms a government. They shouldn’t want criminals running things if they expect competence or value for money.

  4. Anonymous says:

    Lots of people here failing to think outside the box.

    If we had a larger parliament it wouldn’t need to cost more. Backbenchers should be paid very modestly for what is a part time job. And they shouldn’t have to leave full time jobs to become MPs. It would be much like jury service a few times a year (common in other small countries).

    We could add any number of so-called at-large seats, increase salaries for Ministers, reduce them for backbenchers and thus reduce the overall cost.

    A larger parliament would mean a more stable government and a larger and more diverse talent pool from which to select Ministers.

    We literally don’t have enough parliamentarians to have a proper opposition with shadow ministers.

    It is incredibly short sighted to say “our politicians are rubbish so let’s have fewer of them”. By that logic we should appoint a dictator and be done with it.

    There is no conceivable way to combine or eliminate districts or representatives. Those insisting on it will be responsible for us being stuck with the status quo forever.

  5. Al Catraz says:

    The problem in Cayman is not unique to Cayman. With government offices being seen as prizes for mere celebrity, the sort of people who are attracted to them are precisely the sort of people who should not occupy them, and the converse is also true. Therefore, government officers should be selected on a lottery basis, and the selectees should be compelled, by force of arms if necessary, to serve in those offices for their appointed terms.

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    • Anonymous says:

      The system works fine in Cayman. The problem in Cayman is not the number of MPs or the size of the government. The problem is that the country as a whole is not making sensible economic decisions, and pandering to special interests, namely environmentalists. For example, a road is needed to the Eastern Districts, and yet there is pandering to environmental interests. Sand is not restored to the beach despite the low cost (20 million) and the enormous benefit from having a beach, probably again due to overblown environmental concerns. A lot of effort is spent on trying to be “green” in terms of energy, when the effort is pure virtue signalling, and will have absolutely zero impact on the world.

      Cayman needs to get back to making common sense decisions like in the time of Vassel Johnson, who was a sensible, practical, economically knowledgable leader.

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      • Anonymous says:

        SMH.

        Those decisions are made by elected politicians and parties. Change the people, change the decisions.

        You can’t keep doing the same thing and expect a different result.

  6. Anonymous says:

    Problem is no matter which form of representation you chose the gene pool simply isn’t there 🤪🤪🤪

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    • Anonymous says:

      and 9.40 that wont improve things for Caymanians by allowing outsiders to run.

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    • Anonymous says:

      facts.

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    • Anonymous says:

      This is bullshit. The reason Cayman is so successful is because of the gene pool of successful seaman and their wives and progeny. Cayman was a mosquito infested, agriculturally barren rock which was turned into a financial center, and a diving and tourism destination by the ingenuity of the Caymanians. If anything, the problem is the recent arrival of numerous people that are only looking for a handout or to rob and steal.

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  7. Anonymous says:

    Now at 36% It looks like doing away with Districts and making 19 politicians serve the entire country makes sense.

    Do not ADD more politicians!! Crabs in a bucket doesn’t work for us.

    Also- what is the truth (curious about certified vote numbers) that Ju Ju actually won her seat with less than 400 votes and now due to our silly district voting, she has risen to Premier? It was political positioning not the will of the voters. So really…. Does she represent our entire country or pandered to the smallest group of voters and now rules?

    Again- no more salaries to ADD!!

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    • Anonymous says:

      5.58pm Caymanians don’t call it silly that they get to choose their representatives, so I take it you’re against that.By the way that system was approved by the UK Govt. or should I say ‘silly UK Government’.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Allow non born Caymanian citizens to run, maybe some ex heads of company’s might be better with some proper experience in running a large company, rather than a donkey hearder.

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  8. Anonymous says:

    Duh.

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  9. Anonymous says:

    We don’t need at large MPs we need a Parliament that actually functions – currently we have no backbenches, the government of the day has nearly all the votes they need to pass anything just with the 8 ministers appointed who all are massively overpaid, get ridiculous perks like being chauffeured around on an Island that when most places they need to be are within 30 minutes of any other place by car (outside of high traffic times of day) and who barely do any actual legislating they mainly just spend 3 years signing the country up for vanity projects and then spend the last 6 months leading up to any election essentially campaigning from their offices

    At large MPs will just tell people to go to their local constituency MPs for assistance because the number of their constituents will be too large for

    We need a few changes

    1)Either decrease the total number of Ministers OR increase the total number of MPs (and in either case reduce their pay and tie it to the median wage of Caymanians) Ministers should not be just under 45% of all MPs

    2) Implement the district councils to handle and organise constituency issues in a similar manner to councils in the UK (they are required under the constitution)

    3) Hold sessions of Parliament more than for a few days every 3-5 months, Parliament should meet at a minimum biweekly with a rolling agenda

    4) Limit the appointment of Parliamentary secretaries which is just a convenient way for the government to pay backbenchers not to cause any trouble – Parliamentary Secretaries should be limited to specific projects / programs and have them report their progress regularly to Parliament and the country

    5) Implement a strict anti-corruption and campaign finance laws, end the Christmas appliances, buying of hams and turkeys and all the other gimmicks that are used to sway elections

    Those are changes that would be much healthier for our democracy than allowing the PPM to tell their mindless followers to vote en masse for the slate of clowns they run the way the used to do in George Town when there were multimember constituencies

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  10. Anonymous says:

    I would suggest a bicameral system.
    A) some number of district representatives, one person one vote. (Perhaps 9, splitting some of the more populous districts, leaving the historical divisions for the less populous ones.)
    B) A nine member Cabinet (8 Ministers and the Premier) voted on by the national vote (so 9 at large seats). (Or whatever number.)

    The district reps / Parliament deal with local issues, the at-large reps (Cabinet) deal with national issues. The Parliament has to assent to the Budget & Bills brought by the Cabinet (acting as the check on their power).

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  11. Anonymous says:

    To the people who think we should have 19 at-large MPs – do you believe that each person should have one vote and we elect the top 19 vote getters?

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  12. Anonymous says:

    Why 19???
    There are 2 practical option to move away from the garrison politics we are careening towards and the corruption that we already have. One is proportional representation that would require persons running for office to campaign on a policy platform and the second is to significantly reduce the number of electoral districts and MPs. For the second option my suggestion –
    1 for GT
    1 for WB
    1 for BT
    1 for the Eastern Districts,
    1 for CB and LC plus 4 at large MPs who would form the Cabinet with the Premier being the ‘at large’ candidate who gets the most votes.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Good idea. Consolidate power to an even fewer number of Rhodes Scholars currently in the system.

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      • Anonymous says:

        Surely you meant “Roads” Scholar given the calibre of what we have at the garbage recycling plant on Fort Street.

    • Anonymous says:

      The UK has about 600 MPs for about 60 million people. That’s 1 MP per 100,000.
      Why do we need 19 MPs for 60,000 people?

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      • Anonymous says:

        *85,000 people. Also you can’t effectively run a government with less than MPs. Unless you propose there is no opposition.

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      • Anonymous says:

        IQ and education

      • Anonymous says:

        @3.29am The US has a population of roughly 340 million and 535 representatives (Congress 434, Senate 100, and the President). That equates to 635,000 per representative.You say the UK has a population of 60,000,000 and 60 MPs which equates to 100,000 per MP.
        At 1 rep per 635,000 the UK should only require 95 MPs
        (meaning the US rep has roughly six times the number of constituents as their UK counterpart). Why does the UK require so many?

        • Anonymous says:

          You’re forgetting the fact that the USA is exactly that, the United States. Each State has its own Governor and Reps running each state, so you are not comparing apples with apples.

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      • Anonymous says:

        You mean less than @20K. Due to Apartheid Cayman style, @ 1/3 of Caymanians cannot run for office and are second class citizens.

  13. Anonymous says:

    We are fast approaching/or may have already approached – where less than half of the Caymanians (ie. non generational Caymanians) have a right to run for office.

    Where can one find data on number of Caymanians? or data on number of registered voters who are eligible to run for office?

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  14. Anonymous says:

    Most of them are regular size at the first election, but after the first four years they all seem to be as wide as a territory.

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  15. Anonymous says:

    How about cutting back on their salaries and perks while we are about it? What are they doing to earn it?

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  16. Anonymous says:

    Is Cayman bound to the Westminster/FPTP system by virtue of being a British territory? There are other countries like Aruba and Greenland that use proportional representation systems that seem much more practical for a country of our size and allow for a healthy multi-party political sphere.

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    • Anonymous says:

      How about the Swiss system where everyone votes on every thing all done online, hay the place runs like clockwork.

  17. Shepherd says:

    We should go back to the old system of only a certain number of candidates for each district (6) (# of candidates per # of population) and then only 1 man 1 vote.

    The candidates with the higher # of votes take the positions.

    We can then add 5 at large MP’s.

    We can’t afford to add more positions, we need to subtract! This is putting a strain on monetary resources.

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    • Anonymous says:

      agree. the poll should have decreased the number from 19 to 7 at large and one constituency, national ballot

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  18. Anonymous says:

    Only a quarter of residents get a say, and those that do are okay with letting convicted criminals shape their laws, domestic policies, broker back room developer deals, and entrust them to handle a $2Bln budget – just so long as they fight gays, oppress foreigners, and periodically distribute theft among those working within civil service.

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    • Anonymous says:

      I can’t imagine how vastly superior Cayman has to be than your other options if, even after all those negatives you’ve pointed out, you still choose to remain here. We appreciate your positive feedback! <3

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  19. Anonymous says:

    What is indisputable and clear is that work permit holders and permanent residents need political representation, and should be able to elect MPs in proportion to their percentage of the total population.

    So if 40% of Cayman’s population is wp/pr holders, 40% of MPs should be representing them and candidates should be drawn from that population.

    Very many of Caymans problems would be solved by such a rule, effectively neutering the existing failed political class, which is a rag tag bunch of criminals, losers and idiots.

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    • Anonymous says:

      That a very entitled view. Why does a temporary (yes Temporary) citizen feel they need representation in a country where they have no residency, citizenship or right to remain beyond the expiration date of their current work permit? Name one country in the world that operates that way ? Why should Cayman adopt a political system that puts foreign labour on the same standing as its own citizens? If you want that sort of TLC I suggest you return to your country of origin or resign yourself to becoming a Caymanian by embracing our culture, respecting our customs and integrating for 15 years. Then you can vote to your hearts content.

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      • The truth sucks. says:

        “Why should Cayman adopt a political system that puts foreign labour on the same standing as its own citizens?”

        Why? Because when white foreign laborers come to Cayman, it is the first time in their lives that they experience what immigrants, migrants and all of “those people” back in their home countries have been experiencing for centuries. That’s why.

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      • Anonymous says:

        Interestingly Caymanians and everybody in the Commonwealth is able to vote if they live in the UK regardless of citizenship.

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-citizen_suffrage

        Maybe UK Citizens should be able to vote in Cayman regardless in the same way that Caymanians are afforded that privilege.

        Might want to taper your bigotry and short-sightedness my friend.

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        • Anonymous says:

          There are exactly zero Caymanians that care about that “privilege”. Every single Caymanian that has ever existed could vote there and it would hardly make a dent. Your argument is absolutely disingenuous, and you know it.

          It does not make anyone a bigot to want to ensure the security and well-being of their own people first and foremost over that of financial refugees from other countries (even our “motherland”). You can’t vote here, and you knew that when you arrived.

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      • Anon. says:

        To the privileged, equality feels like oppression. That’s why.

    • Anonymous says:

      Lack of political representation will lead to alternative, more radical solutions for the non-Caymanian population.

      It will not be long before we see ELF (Expat Liberation Front – good time of year right now to start this).
      “Power to the (beautiful) people!”
      “Self Rule for Expatistan [Crystal Harbour]!”
      “Free Brunch for the (non) Workers!”

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  20. Anonymous says:

    This is absolutely needed. I would have kept all nineteen and added 8 new territory wide seats.

    We need as many at large seats as possible (for reasons explained below) but changes to the current nineteen constituent reps would be impossible – how would you decide which districts to combine or eliminate? Keep the 19 and add 8 more.

    While many believe our current parliament is already too large for the small size of our nation, the issue is that there is simply not enough person power to run a country. Hence almost every member of government is also in cabinet and ministers have absurdly large portfolios. Consider DP Andre with Financial Services, Commerce, Innovation, Investment and Social Development. Two of the most important areas… plus three others!

    The tiny parliament also pretty much guarantees a knife edge government giving much power to a small group of belligerent king-makers. Imagine if one party one 13 seats in parliament. A landslide! Except it would only take three people to cross the aisle to cause a hung parliament (assuming one of the 13 was speaker).

    This makes for a perennially unstable government.

    However, the biggest problem we have is a tiny talent pool, made even worse by forcing good candidates to run against one another. Of course, in practice people just don’t run if they don’t think they’d win.

    Look how many good people come from the Brac… and how few of them have tried to stand against Moses or Ju Ju.

    This is a complete waste of talent and a ticket to incumbency.

    If the progressives promised to reform this idiotic electoral system they would win in a landslide is my prediction.

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    • Anonymous says:

      The Brac is a good point- low population but Ju Ju and Moses know they are untouchable and wield too much power which affects the entire population a was (including Ju Ju’s failed reign at Education!)
      Did she really service all the children for the past decades? No, early childhood is still going hungry and without a head start to help struggling mothers.
      Do expats have access to decent education- no.
      We should have the highest literacy rates in the Caribbean, but under Ju Ju we have failed generations.

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      • Anonymous says:

        Expats can get education in their own country if our education is not up to par for you. Caymanians on the other hand have to stay here and take a sub par education system.

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        • Anonymous says:

          Classic Caymanian response. That’s why you get left behind. Expats are laughing at you behind your backs and you don’t even know it.

          Your anger is at expats first, your own kind second. No expat has ever made a decision in the Parliament of the Cayman Islands. You were not in the past, but you most certainly are in the present, second class citizens in your prescribed overseas territory. You sold it out, and now reap what you sow.

          We will leave just as the Jamaicans take over (and it will happen, 3 generations remember due to your own laws on running. Must have a grandparent that is Caymanian so it’s coming up soon) and you my friend will be left with the consequences of 30 years of blatant ignorance. It will look like Kingston though so you at least can start preparing now.

          Enjoy.

          Kind regards
          SMB Corridor Expat (Paper Caymanians)

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    • Anonymous says:

      I’m assuming this is sarcasm?

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  21. Corruption is endemic says:

    Cayman is essentially a town with a few additional layers in terms of Government. We have overcomplicated things and increased costs beyond a reasonable level. Objectively we get terrible representation. Many sitting in Parliament are not fit for purpose.

    No matter what system we use the underlying problem is the people that are attracted to the role and those that get elected. Maybe if we had fewer and larger constituencies, we would get better elected members. As it is we have GIGO. Garbage Candidates In, Garbage Government Out.

    We are routinely held hostage by MPs that have received only a few hundred votes. In JuJu’s case only 225 votes, winning by a massive 42 votes over Elvis…

    I don’t know anyone of reasonably intelligence that believes our system doesn’t need major changes. The large number of representatives compared to the voting population means that vote buying works. That has given us several generations of terrible government along with a bloated Civil Service and pandering to a number of other voting blocks. We may also hold the record for the highest percentage of actual convicted criminals sitting in Parliament.

    Democracy is a system where people get the government they deserve. In Cayman’s case we continue to get it good and hard!

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  22. brackattacka says:

    “Have seven single-member constituencies and 12 at-large MPs
    14”

    I like this one. It would still provide for some localized representation, but essentially force national unity based on the collective’s vote. Currently, people like Ju ju and Mac are almost guaranteed re-election due to them being head of their local tribes. This sort of leads to a fixed government.

    However, in this configuration, we would all have to agree on the leading government. Perhaps even a reduction in horse trading.

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  23. Anonymous says:

    Why 19 MP’s? Reduce the total number…

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  24. Anonymous says:

    Direct rule is really the only option at this point.

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  25. Anonymous says:

    we are only 27,000 people. A small town anywhere else. I don’t see a need to complicate things honestly.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Single member constituencies is the biggest mistake since the mass cabinet grants. Thank you Sir Alden.

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      • Anonymous says:

        2.15 Dont nlame Sir Alden only, the Constitution was voted on and approved by a majority of the voters. Nojody held a gun to their heads.

  26. CG says:

    Changing the system will hardly change the result.

    Fact is the people have shown their standard and what kind of representation they desire and accept.

    One man, one vote, two vote or three vote or at large wont make a difference.

    Instead of spending untold millions on a referendum and changing the electoral system, the money would be better spent educating our children about how government works, how to hold representatives accountable and the importance of transparency, good governance, paying attention and participation.

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    • Anonymous says:

      With a National Vote, with all politicians accountable to the entire electorate, many people below the standard required would simply not get elected. It would become almost impossible to “buy” votes.

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      • Anonymous says:

        Actually, the entire electorate will not matter in your system, just those living in the western half of Grand Cayman because the other half of the country doesn’t have enough voters to be worth campaigning for. Sorry. Your solution is not a good solution to the problem you have identified.

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  27. Anonymous says:

    Our current system doesn’t work. It somehow is like cream rising to the top, but the cream is in fact a layer of putrid scum.

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  28. Anonymous says:

    How about “none of the above?” Cayman is just too small for single-member constituencies and do we really need 19 representatives, which amounts to one representative for less than every 2,000 voters.

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