“Low Political Parties’ Presence at Voter Registration Centers”

The Election Coordinating Committee (ECC) has expressed grave concern over the low turn-out of political parties’ representations at various centers during the first phase of the ongoing National Elections Commission (NEC) biometric voter registration (BVR) process.

The ECC noted, among other things, that the political parties should train and deploy agents at all enters to maintain confidence in the outcome of the final voter roll.

 According to the ECC, out of the 212 centers political party agents were deployed in only 166.

“The data shows that the ruling Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), and the opposition Unity Party had the highest number of deployed agents, followed by the Collaborating Political Parties and others,” Malcolm Joseph, an ECC member disclosed during a press conference on April 19.

Joseph suggested that while the first phase of the biometric voter registration process was generally well conducted with some challenges, it is also necessary for the NEC to improve phase two of the remaining nine counties.

“There is a need for the NEC to conduct debriefing and adequate supervision of staff to evenly apply registration procedures during the conduct of the process,” the ECC recommended. “The NEC should also make public preliminary registration figures disaggregated by electoral districts; and the NEC increase the time for VR by two weeks for counties with larger populations such as Nimba, Bong, and Lofa.”

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Phase one of the BVR that targeted six (6) counties started on March 20 and ended on April 9. The ECC said it deployed 43 trained observers across the counties and 36 electoral districts to observe phase one of the BVR exercise. 

The ECC also recommended that NEC should adopt a definite contingency plan to immediately address any possible equipment failure or malfunction during phase two, considering that the counties in phase two are remotely situated.

The ECC further recommended that the Ministry of Justice should ensure that ongoing investigations into electoral offenses are properly conducted and completed and the outcomes made available to the public and also hold perpetrators accountable.

“The Liberia National Police and other security agencies should increase the presence of uniformed security personnel across the phase two counties to help enforce the law,” the ECC recommended.

The ECC also commended the National Elections Commission (NEC) for releasing its preliminary registration figures disaggregated by county. 

According to the ECC, its observers reported 21 complaints filed by rejected applicants because they were perceived to be underage, foreigners, or the inability to present a valid document to prove their eligibility.

However, all six county coordinators reported that there was no hearing held at any of the Magistrates’ offices throughout the period of Phase One. 

Critical Incidents

The ECC said a total of 12 critical incidents were reported during phase one of voter registration and they included:  “Malfunctioning of equipment due to overheating of the computers, solar panels or card printers.”

“Shortages in materials, such as ink and cards at voter registration centers which resulted in a delay of the BVR process or closure of some centers for the entire day, and Instances of voter trucking by aspirants notably in three counties, Margibi, Montserrado, and Grand Bassa, primarily targeting first-time voters; as well as, Isolated instances of violence and intimidation carried out in Montserrado electoral district 10 and Grand Cape Mount-electoral District 10.”

The ECC observed that all of the NEC registration centers generally opened on time, between 8:00 am to 8:30 am with some of the centers opening late, after 9:31 am.

Late openings were primarily due to the lack of printer cards, electricity to power the equipment, and the late arrival of some of the NEC registration teams. 

“185 of 216 registration centers opened on time, with only 31 of the centers opening late. Centers were reported to be clearly identifiable to applicants and marked by signs; 26 of 216 centers were located within buildings with stairs-making accessibility difficult to persons with disabilities,” the ECC said in its observation findings.

“Three registration staff were present at opening with at least one female who was a member of the team and 211 of 216 centers had the critical materials present during set-up- a complete BVR kit present, all the necessary forms (including rejection and complaint forms) and ledger for recording the names of successful applicants.”

The ECC further said the NEC registration teams generally followed registration procedures but did not consistently require applicants to provide proof of eligibility particularly those who did pre-registration online.

“At 206 of 211 registration centers, persons with disabilities, the elderly, and pregnant women were allowed to register before other applicants, and At 147 of 211 registration centers, applicants were asked to present proof of eligibility before being registered while in 64 of these centers, applicants were allowed to register without providing proof of eligibility,” it noted. 

“ At 126 of 210 registration centers, every successful applicant had his/her finger marked with indelible ink to minimize double registration. At 203 of 211 registration centers, applicants received their voter registration cards before leaving the center; however, in 8 registration centers, successful applicants did not receive their BVR cards mainly due to a shortage of cards at these centers.”

ECC observers reported instances of equipment failure or malfunction during the period: “At 47 of 211 registration centers, the BVR equipment experienced malfunction but was quickly resolved, and at 18 of these centers, the malfunction caused serious delay; and at 42 of 211 registration centers, the malfunctioning equipment was immediately fixed or replaced.”

It says “At 68 of 211 registration centers, ECC observers reported that the NEC staff did not fill the rejection form, whenever an applicant was rejected.” 

ECC observers, according to the report, witnessed a total of 18,639 applicants successfully register, an average of 96 successful registrants per center based on 190 reports.

A relatively higher number of women were seen registering at observed centers. Women represented 48% of successful registrants observed by the ECC. 

ECC observers also reported closing of the registration centers generally by 5:30 pm; however, in a small component of these centers, applicants in line by 5:00 pm were not allowed to register. 

“110 of 213 centers observed by ECC closed between 5:00 pm to 5:31 pm and 38 of these centers were reported to close after 6:31 pm. Only in 9 of 213 registration centers observed, applicants in line by 5:00 pm were not allowed to register.”

ECC reports show a generally low presence of uniformed security personnel at registration centers. Only 130 of 216 registration centers had uniformed security personnel present.

The Elections Coordinating Committee (ECC) is Liberia's largest domestic election observation network with diverse competencies, experiences, and expertise in democracy, elections, and governance established since 2010.