Election 2024: Special voting applications low

Applications for the upcoming special voting exercise are low.

The challenge of having to appear physically at the Electoral Commission’s office, even though personal details have been submitted to them has occasioned the low patronage.

The Electoral Commission earmarked June 17, 2024 to July 1, 2024 for application to participate in the special voting exercise.

The fifteen-day exercise has been designated for security personnel, media practitioners, Electoral Commission officials and people from institutions who will be performing essential services on December 7, the day the country goes to the polls.

The special voters exercise has been scheduled for December 2, 2024 and it is expected to take place in all constituencies.

Per the application process, the participating institutions are to collate and present list of their members to the Commission detailing their name, voter Id number, polling station code, telephone number and place of work.

Members whose details have been submitted will then have to make physical appearance at the EC’s office in the constituency in which they originally registered for their details to be verified and imputed into the Commission’s system.

EC officials say, without the physical presence of prospective applicants at their offices to validate their personal details submitted, their details will not be captured.

A visit to some EC constituency offices in Accra show low patronage of the exercise.

The Ghana Police and Fire services have presented full list of their members to the Electoral Commission but members are yet to walk in to verify their details to be captured into the data base for the special voting exercise.

Personnel who have been transferred from their original jurisdiction of registration and did not take advantage of the voter transfer period will have to revert to their constituencies in other to partake in the special voting exercise.

Some personnel who visited the EC office to go through the application process were concerned about the low education about the process.

Apart from the substantive voters’ register that will be used by the EC officials on December7, another register or list dubbed the absenteeism register containing names of individuals who voted during the special voting will be made available to check double voting.

By: Stanley Nii Blewu