National Assembly election 2016 - Voting starts tomorrow at special polling stations |07 September 2016

Some 4,000 registered voters are expected to cast their votes in special polling stations around the country including the outlying islands tomorrow and Friday because for different reasons they will not be able to do so in their respective electoral area on the main polling day on Saturday September 10.

Voting for the National Assembly election starts tomorrow and will continue on Friday and Saturday.

Chief electoral officer Joseph Athanasius said yesterday that voters who are to vote at the special stations are being encouraged to do so and those are people who would be working on the main polling day, those travelling on September 8, 9 and 10, those working in essential services, those on remand at Montagne Posée prison, voters from inner islands and voters residing on Ile Persévérance.

Mr Athanasius is urging all organisations to allow their employees time to go and cast their votes.

He added that all the logistics are ready for the election to take place.

“The preparations are going very well and are in the final stages and we have everything sorted out,” Mr Athanasius said.

He said the Electoral Commission will today be holding its final meeting with polling agents and all other officers working with the election.

Altogether, 71,932 people are eligible to vote in this election according to the revised voter register of the Election Commission. Out of the total of 71,932, 36,471 are females and 35,461 males.

Anse Etoile has the biggest voter population of 4,126 (2,112 females and 2,014 males) and Roche Caïman has the lowest of 1,972 (1,092 females and 880 males). The accompanying table shows the number of voters in all 25 districts.

Voting will take place tomorrow at special stations as follows:

• Inner islands and electoral areas on Praslin (in respect of voters present on Mahé) – National House (Ex National Assembly Hall) from 7am to 12 noon;      

• All electoral areas (in respect of voters residing and temporarily working on Silhouette and Ile du Nord) – Silhouette polling station from 9am to 1pm;    

• All electoral areas (in respect of voters present on Farquhar, Ile du Nord, Ile du Sud, Manahas Nord, Manahas Milieu, Manahas Sud, Ile aux Goelettes Lapins, Deposes, Bancs de Sable, Providence, St Pierre) – Farquhar polling station from 10.30am to 11am;           

• All electoral areas (in respect of voters present on Desroches, Bancs Africans, Ile du Sud Poivre, Florentin) – Desroches polling station from 4pm to 5pm;                       

• All electoral areas (in respect of voters present on Coetivy) – Coetivy polling station from 10.15am to 11.30am;                       

• All electoral areas (in respect of voters present on Platte) – Platte polling station from 2pm to 2.30pm;                    

• All electoral areas (in respect of voters present on Alphonse, Bijoutier, St François) – Alphonse polling station from 2pm to 2.30pm;

• All electoral areas (in respect of voters present on Darros, St. Joseph, Ile aux Fouquets, Ressource, Petite Carcassaye, Grande Carcassaye, Benjamin, Banc Ferrari, Chiens, Pelican, Vars, Ile Paul, Banc du Sable, Banc aux Cocos, Ile aux Poules, Desnoeufs) – Darros polling station from 10.45am to 11.45am;                

• All electoral areas (in respect of voters present on Remire) – Remire polling station from 2pm to 2.30pm;

• All electoral areas of Mahé and Inner Islands (in respect of persons temporarily residing on Praslin for employment reasons) – Baie Ste Anne primary school multipurpose hall from 7am to 4pm;            

• All electoral areas (in respect of persons residing at the North East Point Home for the Elderly and patients of the North East Point hospital) – North East Point Home for the Elderly polling station from 8am to 12 noon;                  

• All electoral areas (in respect of persons employed in essential services who will be on duty away from their electoral area on the date of election and for persons travelling on September 8, 9 and 10, 2016) – English River polling station from 7am to 4pm;      

• All electoral areas (in respect of persons residing at Ile Persévérance) – Ile Persévérance polling station, primary school dining hall from 7am to 4pm;        

• All electoral areas (in respect of persons on remand) – Montagne Posée prison polling station from 8am to 12 noon.

Revised Voter Register by EA and sex, Aug 2016