International election observers from the Organisation of American States (OAS) and Caribbean Community Caricom plus Mario Gumbs of St. Maarten’s Central Voting Bureau paid a visit to Gover-nor Lucille George-Wout
WILLEMSTAD—Around noon, 25,133 of the 111,781 eligible voters had cast their ballot for today's parliamentary elections in Curacao, it was announced during the first briefing of the Electoral Council at 12:00pm. This represents a turnout of 22%, 4% lower than four years ago.
At 8:00am when the polling stations opened, only one had an issue. The voting bureau at the Myr-na Dovale School could not start on time, but this problem was quickly resolved.
Police also reported two morning incidents. At one polling station, a voter remained in the polling booth for too long.
There was also a polling station that asked if a photo could be taken of someone who had just vot-ed. In both cases, officers intervened after a request from election officials.
There was also an incident with a disabled person who, according to the media, had not received any assistance with voting. But according to the council this citizens was able to cast their ballot.
Already in the early morning hours election staff but also local authorities gathered at World Trade Center (WTC). From this central location, all the voting material was brought to the various polling stations under guard.
This year’s 107 polling stations that will stay open until 7:00pm are fewer than in 2021. At that time, partly due to precautionary measures in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was decided to in-crease the number to 117.
The number of eligible voters when the registry closed on December 24 was officially 111,932. However, the council now assumes 111,781.
The difference is due to people passing away but also leaving the island from then to February 3, the day on which voting cards were issued.
The council expected the first results to be in by 7:20pm. The preliminary outcome is foreseen shortly before or around midnight.
