Elections Commission of the Maldives (ECM) has stated the current guideline set by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) for the local council elections forces ballot boxes to be placed in all resorts of the Maldives.
Speaking at the 18th meeting of ECM’s electoral advisory committee, President of ECM Ahmed Shareef said the HPA guideline does not allow resort employees to re-register to vote at another location. Noting ECM normally practices a policy where resort employees are required to travel to another island to vote if the resort does not reach the minimum number of re-registered voters to receive a ballot box, Shareef said ECM cannot practice this policy for the upcoming elections as resort employees are not allowed to travel between islands as per the HPA guideline. Therefore, he said ballot boxes will have to be placed in every resort in order to ensure every person is provided with the right to vote, as mandated by law.
The HPA guideline on elections does not allow resort employees to travel between islands to vote as they are classified as high-risk due to the increase in COVID-19 cases in resorts. HPA states allowing resort employees to have social interactions while going to vote in another island could elevate the risk of COVID-19 transmission.
ECM has decided to conduct the delayed local council elections on April 10. ECM said preparations for the election will officially begin on January 30.