Door to door petition checks to begin in two weeks
(CNS): The Elections Office has confirmed that the door to door verification process of the petition for a referendum on the cruise port project will start in around two weeks. But voters who have signed the petition can now visit the office to verify their signature during office hours with their voter card or another valid ID. Over the next two weeks, elections officials will review the petition and organise the signatures, based on districts and households, and begin the training to ensure the extra staff will be able to carry out the official process.
Various methods will be used to confirm that the number of signatures meets or exceeds the required 25% (5,289) of registered electors (21,155) in accordance with section 90 of the Constitution. All of the signatures will be checked to ensure they correspond with the electoral register. The manual checks with petitioners will be conducted to ensure the signatures were made by the voter, as claimed on the petition
Elections Supervisor Wesley Howell urged all electors who signed to ensure that the office has their actual place of residence on the register.
“Under the law, all persons must maintain updated registration details with the Elections Office,” he said. “With this referendum process, and an upcoming election year, it is vital that these details are kept accurate. As we move forward, the Elections Office is fully committed to ensuring this process is as fair, accurate and transparent as possible. We will work expeditiously to conclude this verification process,” he added.
Campaigners for the referendum still have a number of concerns about the verification process. It is still unclear on what grounds or terms of reference the office is using to justify the need to check all 5,289 signatures face to face rather than using random sampling or verifying signatures with the Elections Office database, as there is no legislation in place to support the constitutional right of the people to request a vote on issues of national importance.
The CPR activists are worried that the verification process is taking place at a time when people are likely to be overseas for an extended period on summer vacation. In which case, their democratic rights could be undermined and the petition put in jeopardy because they are not here. Therefore, everyone who plans to be away this summer is urged to go to the Elections Office or call in if they are overseas.
Elections Office staff members will be available at various public locations throughout the Cayman Islands in the coming weeks and those details will be made public once finalised.
The office is located on the second floor of Smith Road Centre in George Town, and can be contacted at (345) 949-8047 or by email at office@elections.ky.
Office hours are Monday through Friday from 8:30am to 5pm.
Category: Local News
Time for each MLA TO STATE THEIR POSITION ON THIS MADNESS.
Come see the British Elections Office telling the media after the British registered voters signed the online petition and triggered their referendum that the British Elections Office was now going door to door to verify if the 30 million registered voters really and truly signed the petition!
Sorry, but which U.K. online petition, 30m voters and referendum are you referring to?
This is just a delay tactic by Government. Yes, all signatures need to be verified but going door-to-door to do so!! Really?? Government has access to passport data and voters registrations. Simply cross-reference the signatures to those data bases!!!
We are such a bunch of passive pussies! In other countries people would march in the streets for these issues!!
The day will come when many Caymanians will move from being subservient passive to aggressive.
Many who are not paying attention now will ask why?
For the answer, those who are not involved in the fight for democracy will see it in any mirror!
GET INVOLVED IN THE FIGHT FOR DEMOCRACY TODAY.
Really, where do these recommendations for verification come from?
It seems to me that there are so many people with concerns about the onerous procedure that with the Governor stating he will ensure fairness and objectivity people need to email the elections office office@elections.ky so that he can be informed.
This could be easily sabotaged by collusion. After they verify your signature in your presence, how would you know that that checkmark or whatever is not changed from verified to unverified by some crafty individuals?
Secondly, I’d like to know that verification requirement is supported by law and constitution.
The port will be built by the time this exercise is done
in your dream
Hers an idea. If they are going door to door anyway why don’t they ask if anyone else in the house wants to add their signal as well
That would be hilarious. Now, obviously they can’t ask, as that wouldn’t be neutral, but the people in your house can say ‘add my name’ and since the only petition list that matters is the one at the Elections Office (verified by them) and its open until they verify enough people to close it then they should be able to add a name almost as easily as deduct a name.
Elections Office, please make this possible. (Just needs a separate form page on the ESO electronic pad.)
I went down to the elections office to sign the form indicating that I had signed the petition. The one thing I didn’t get to see was where I had signed the petition..One would think they would have something there or some type of receipt that shows that I had signed.. The forms were not even numbered..
I don’t want to accuse anyone of being dishonest but there is no paper trail other than what I signed so it would be very easy to throw that in the garbage bin the minute I walked out..
exactly what 7:08 am says
I spent 3 hours online last night trying to find some jurisdiction somewhere that follows the process that our leaders have adopted for this petition. I couldn’t find a single one. No where in Canada, New Zealand, the US or anywhere else is this how it’s done.
If you mix salt and black pepper together you will get Natures Best seasoning. If you mix 25lbs of each, you’ll get 50lbs of Natures Best. That’s enough to make 200 4oz bottles. You don’t need to check every grain in every bottle to find out that it is salt and black pepper mixed 1:1. There is a science called ‘statistics’ that most if not all jurisdictions use. Statistics allows you to check a sample of something and come up with a range of likelihood of what makes up the whole from which you took the sample. You can vary the size of the sample; you make it bigger and the accuracy goes up. BUT YOU DON’T NEED TO CHECK THE WHOLE THING.
Isn’t this how we check drugs and the Court relies on it to convict people? Who advised that this is how it had to be done? Who decided?
One can only presume that the brilliant AG Sam Bulgin got from the elected folks what they wanted to achieve (stall, stall, stall) and penned the advice to Gov Martin Roper to suit this. The equally brilliant Roper checked with the elected folks to see if they were comfortable with it. “We’re VERY comfortable with it Sir” I can hear them saying now.
And here we are – showing ourselves to be a bunch of ignoramus people who don’t even know how to sample a petition in 2019. But we’re a World Class Civil Service right?
You know something, we need to take a lesson form them people in Hong Kong and shake the sh__ out of Roper, McKeeva, Moses, Alden, Bulgin, Franz and all of the rest of their merry followers.
I personally know three people that will withdraw their signature due to misrepresentation.
and they will have that right and opportunity. Just like those who wish to vote for the port will have the opportunity to do so. Isn’t democracy grand?
Makes you wonder why those in power seem so afraid of it…
Maybe they should not have that right. They signed the petition. They should not have a right to unsign it. The signing is what triggers the referendum. There ought to be no do-over.
And you are the same pro piers bot that repeats the same claim on every story. Very likely just another lie! Well guess what I personally know at least three people if not more who disagree with you and WILL now sign the petition. I will contact them and encourage them to do so in front of the elections office staff! So there – you are back to square one or worse!
An initial test sample sample is plainly the sensible way to go. That would confirm whether the petition was signed by registered voters. Approaching it the way they are shows a callous disregard for the use of public funds and resources, and possibly, a worrying lack of understanding of the democratic process.
If it’s important enough to take a year long campaign for collecting signatures, sure a couple weeks to officially verify is no waste
How do you figure this will take a couple of weeks?
Given that they verified the entire voters list in a couple of months using this process a few years ago then it should only take a few weeks to get 25% of the voters list.
The Elections Office staff have nothing to do between elections. This is why they are making a mountain out of a molehill.
Actually the Electoral list is updated quarterly so it’s incorrect to state the staff has nothing to do between Elections. They just work extraordinary hours during the Election season which they do out of a sense of duty as no Govt could afford to pay them for every hour. They are also one of the best Caymanian teams around and all should be proud of them.
If they are working so diligently on an ongoing basis why do you routinely find people who have been convicted of serious crime, and all over the press, still on the register?
And why are there non Caymanians on the register?
Because they depend on the Courts not the Compass to provide the data. As soon as that is received & the sentence is 12 mths or more (per the law) those persons are removed.
This is illegal for government to be doing this to us!
The UK allows British citizens to start an ONLINE petition to trigger a referendum JUST LIKE THE ONLINE PETITION WHICH TRIGGERED THE BREXIT REFERENDUM!
We don’t need to reinvent the wheel for crying out loud!
https://petition.parliament.uk/
Then pass a law making that the legal standard here. No law, then you’re stuck with this process which may be slow but is ironclad.
Again I say people signed the petition because they wanted information. Now that they have the info they will withdraw their signature. i suspect once the dust settles CPR will need some real CPR.
I haven’t seen any information to change my mind. I signed because I want to know why we need this pier. The traffic from Hurleys to GT terrible this morning with one Carnival ship in. Who needs more ships?
Restaurants & hotels packed with stay over guests who actually spend money. If you just build a pier, put it in Cayman Brac & get tourists there.
10:47, with the new pier and new 50 storey buildings we are headed rapidly towards total traffic gridlock during weekdays.
Total lunacy by our so called leaders.
This is BS. They signed the petition so now we need to track down every person one by one and get them to sign again?! This is ludicrous! Call the referendum already!!
I agree! It’s just making it more difficult for everyone.
It is ludicrous and difficult. It is also irrational and unreasonable, and therefore unconstitutional. A random sampling would give them all the initial verification they need. Stop wasting money!
Numbnut how long did it take to get the 5,000+ signatures?
The elections office has its job to down as well.
Act civilised and stop being so dogmatic.
This is not a civil, fair or normal way to verify signatures in a referendum. Get over your dumbass self.
Collecting the signatures was done by volunteers. They were not allowed in most office buildings to collect signatures.
Verification is by civil servants who presumably already are working at full capacity (why otherwise are they paid) so this will cost a fortune in overtime. Again not budgeted like in another story on CNS
Show me what right they have to invalidate signatures because they knock on your front door once in the middle of the day in the middle of summer. “Various methods will be used to confirm”. What are those methods exactly and by what law are they capable, if they fail to confirm you yourself signed, deny you your constitutional rights to democratic government, freedom of expression, and the ability to petition for a referendum? There is no such law.
Section 70 of the Constitution providing for people-initiated referendums does not support this signature verification process. 25% of persons registered as electors is all that is needed. If you’re registered, you’re an elector, entitled to petition for a referendum. Government doesn’t get to add language to that.
Section 90 of the Constitution (“Qualifications of electors”) doesn’t provide for this either. It says nothing about signatures or registered voters proving their identities; only who may register.
Nor does the Elections Law which does not even include the word referendum. All the Elections Law allows is for the presiding officer to verify your identity at the polling station by requiring your voter ID or another ID that confirms your identity, and by asking you if you are the person whose name appears on the register.
The Government is acting outside its lawful authority and is therefore in violation of Sections 19 and 24 of the Constitution, and can be taken to court under Section 26.
All the proof needed can be presented when casting votes at the referendum. This is at best a stalling tactic but it also whiffs of a government attempt to invalidate the petition and avoid a referendum, so they can plough ahead regardless of what the electorate think.
You seem a very learned person and your points concise. In light of people’s worries do share these with the Elections Office and the Governor.
Thank you for the compliments. Unfortunately I am a practising attorney which requires me to be apolitical if I want to eat. I analysed the situation and made the comment so that someone in a position to make those arguments or take the matter to court has a road map to do so.
So all anyone has to do is go along to the Elections Office, wait while they locate the right page in the right book and show the actual signature:
AND then tell them to delete it!
Video/audio record the verification process. Less chances they would use some tricks.
Good idea. That way they will have a record of me telling them to scratch my name off that shit.
Why did you sign in the first place then, if that’s how you feel now, you damn idiot!?
Exactly 12:57, why sign if you’re now going to put your tail in between your legs….typical spineless island mentality. I signed and an proud to. While I am leaning towards the port development, I want more info, AND I have reverence for the democratic process. A referendum is our constitutional right!!! So standup 11:05 and stop being a wimp!!!
Yawn…
at 11:05 pm
aside from your weird comment, it is you, not them would have the proof.
You can say YES to the project, and that is what you signed for. Not all people who signed are against the projects. The referendum is two see what people really want.
Wes is a man of integrity as are his two deputies, although women of integrity.
I’m more concerned on the verification of people away over summer and the timeline needs to be set for three months to include September