16 teenagers deprived of first vote
(CNS): Premier Alden McLaughlin’s political decision to call early elections has disenfranchised 16 teenagers who will turn 18 years old between 14 April and 26 May and had expected to be able to vote in their first general election this year. The Elections Office has confirmed that these 17-year-old would-be voters will now be removed from the draft election register as a result of the move by the PPM leader.
According to a release from the Elections Office, these teenagers are now no longer legally entitled to vote and they will be contacted by officials. However, these teenagers may not be the only ones impacted by the decision to call the snap early election.
While the supervisor of elections has said his office can handle bringing the national poll forward, the move has shortened the window of opportunity for postal votes.
Postal voting was always going to be an important option for electors at this general election because the pandemic has stranded many people overseas. But now, with the new register due to be settled just two weeks before the actual ballot, the time-frame is extremely tight. Howver, the Elections Office has said it will send out ballots before the list is settled to all those who were already on the previous register published in January.
Any of the new 1,406 eligible votes who wish to vote by mail will not have their ballots dispatched until after 1 April, reducing the time that they have to return the vote. The supervisor confirmed that all postal ballots will be dispatched by commercial courier.
Election officials stressed that the date which has now been selected was “in part to ensure newly registered and eligible voters will still be able to cast their vote”, suggesting that this was the earliest possible date that the premier was offered for the snap move.
The Revised List of Electors, which was published for public review on 3 February, is currently available on the Elections Office website and voters have until the 25 February to register any claims or objections. These will then be published on 4 March.
The Revising Officer, who is the Chief Magistrate, will then hear these claims and objections between 22 and 26 March. After that, the revised list will be finalised and become the Official List of Electors on 1 April.
Everyone on that final list will be entitled to cast their vote in person in the General Election on 14 April 2021 or apply for a postal ballot.
Mobile voting will also be provided to anyone on island who is unable to visit a polling station on Election Day. Requests for mobile voting can now be submitted.
Before the announcement of the 14 April General Election date, registering officers will contact everyone who submitted postal and mobile voting forms for the May Election date to determine if they still require postal voting or mobile voting for the new date.
See the Revised List of Electors and how to make Claims and Objections.
See who can qualify for postal voting or mobile voting and find the necessary forms to complete.
Contact the Elections Office at office@elections.ky or visit the office at 68 West Bay Road, George Town.
Category: Election News
These 16 are not losing the right to vote, they will be able to vote in any election,on or after their 18th birthday. If they do not turn eighteen on or before 14th April this year then they will be unable to vote on that date. Again tbey still have the right to vote in an election held on or after their 18th birthday.
It called moving the goal posts and shouldn’t be allowed just because Alden didn’t want to deal directly with McKeeva’s “issues”.
So they’re only going to mail out postal ballots on April Fools Day and they expect that people will receive them and be able to mail them back on time?! Do they know how long international mail is taking right now?! Of course they do…
Be quicker sending a letter to the UK and back then it is to West Bay! Just got a letter delivered that was postmarked in GT on Dec 9. Not sure what the PO has been doing with it in the meantime.
Sorry but I don’t care that a few teens didn’t get to vote. Probably should raise the voting age to at least 25 anyway. Start voting when you start contributing in a meaningful way.
Start voting when you start contributing in a meaningful way? – like all the adult PR holders who have contributed for 10 years or more but cant vote at all.
16 across how many of the 19 voting districts ? Learn to ask real questions, not only those to which the answers suit your agenda.
Mail votes? Just received letter from UK posted in June 2020!
Age for voting should be 16
To comply with Elections Law, Notice of Nominations should be next week, and Final Nomination deadline closing in two weeks. It cannot be any later than 6 weeks prior to poll date.
An exception should be made for these teenagers who obviously choose to exercise their rights to vote by registering before the dateline. It is not their fault the adults are acting like school children. They should not be excluded. Make it happen no excuses do the right thing and amend the situation. What kind of message/ example we are showing them. No person who registered to vote and was deemed illegible should now be disenfranchised irregardless of their age. Are we saying that older persons, who just registered to vote a few days ago can vote in the upcoming elections because they are older? We want our young people to grow up to be responsible Civic minded persons and do the right thing and register to vote. Let us do the right by them and legally include them.
I don’t think this is in the cards for Alden. They could do it in Cabinet with the Governors approval but they won’t. They are running scared of the youth vote..Even the old heads are taking a second look this time around.
How about the breakdown of the disenfranchised voters from each constituency to see how much of an impact this will have?
Would all of them have voted?
How many people will be able to vote that might have unfortunately pass away between the 14th April 2020 and 26th May 2020 that will now be able to vote?
This would be six weeks less pay for the present MP’s including the Speaker.
Teenagers should not be allowed to vote. Voting age should be raised to 28
Shut up with your foolishness Alden..
Yea heaven for us they get a say in their future
Maybe criminals and high-school leavers, shouldn’t be allowed to run for office?
How do we know that these teens are not losing their status on their 18th birthday, and therefore ineligible to vote anyway?
Because the Elections Office asks for a Certification of Continuation of Caymian Status. 17 year old’s can apply via C27 (formerly R21) for Continuance to Worc, then with that Cert and other gov’t ID, they can go to Elections Office and get their photo voter card (even while still 17) so long as they will be 18 as of next voting opportunity.
https://www.worc.ky/images/forms/C27_-_Right_To_Be_Caymanian_working.pdf
Mr West why you don’t have a back bone like your father and stand up to Alden as you dam well know your office was not prepared for this shit..So you are part of the blame as you could had spoken and said NO to Alden and is coward plan we can’t pull it off safely and easily I hope it doesn’t come back and haunt you which I believe it will. I’m going sit right here and wait for the BANG🤦🏽♀️
Nope. Not Caymanian until continuation is actually granted. Are you saying that the elections office is registering voters even before continuation is granted? Continuations take months. Would that not mean that non Caymanians may be being registered to vote?
Calm down and read…”with that Cert of Continuance” they can apply. The continuation cert for our daughter took less than two weeks to process. Not only that, but everyone we dealt with was really nice.
You know someone then? My daughter got told they MAY have her application processed by June 22, but certainly not before Christmas.
Apart from the fact that Immigration is taking up to 12 months to process the continuation applicants, of course.
How do I deregister as an elector?
You do realise that you’ve missed the bus this time around?
How if the list isn’t finalized until April1? You mean I can object to you being on the list and have you removed but you can’t remove yourself?
Lots of people getting hurt with this totally self serving political move on Alden’s part. We encourage the to become a part of the or (so called ) democracy and then they disenfranchise them for their own gain. Sad and Disgusting are the only words I can think of.
With McKeeva proudly boasting he’d prepared a counter-motion to air all the others’ dirt, it really makes you think, how much there could be.
I know how much there is. I do not have to imagine. There is nothing honorable about several of our leaders.