Republican News · Thursday 4 September 2003

Voter registration nightmare continues

BY ÁINE Ní BHRIAIN

Just when you thought that the appalling mess that plagued the last electoral registration drive might actually be sorted out in time for the still-to-be-announced date of the next "scheduled" election, it seems the nightmare has begun all over again.

Sinn Féin Councillor Michael Browne says that many people will not be registered to vote at all if the Electoral Office doesn't publicise its current campaign.

"Representatives from the Electoral Office are currently working on a door-to-door registration process in West Belfast," said Browne this week. "There are, however, a number of difficulties surrounding the current operation.

"There has been no publicity advising people of the current registration drive, and people who registered during the last round of registration may believe that they remain registered.

"But people need to be alerted to the fact that if they do not register to vote again between now and 15 October, then they will be excluded from new electoral registers, thereby losing their right to vote."

Currently, electoral staff are only carrying forms addressed to people who had been previously registered. This means that no provisions have been made for first-time voters or people who were unable to register during the last drive.

"Despite the probable requirement at the next election of photographic identification, people are not being asked whether they are in need of ID or not," Browne continued.

"Considering the fact that as many as 132,000 names were dropped from the last Six-County electoral register due to changes to the registration process, one would have thought that the Electoral Office would have gone out of its way to do everything possible to maximise the numbers registering this time around."

Sinn Féin has met with both Chief Electoral Officer Denis Stanley and the Electoral Commission to express the party's concerns about the registration process that was carried out last year as a result of new legislation.

"The party highlighted its concerns around the performance of electoral canvassers," says Sinn Féin's Six County Director of Elections Danny Power, "and we also had concerns about the large number of young people and first-time voters who were unable to register as a result of the new process.

"We strongly proposed that the Electoral Office take our concerns on board and immediately embark on a proactive campaign to encourage young people to register. We also stressed that people need to re-register each year to be listed as eligible voters."

In other words, even if you endured the hassle of registering earlier this year, you must register again to ensure that you will appear on the list when a date for the next election is finally set. If you do not, you may lose your vote.

d if you require photographic identification - which is currently a compulsary requirement under the new legislation - you will also have to make arrangements to obtain the necessary ID before polling day.

Sinn Féin is concerned that electoral canvassers are not making people aware of either of these facts.

"One difference this year is that the box people were to tick to request further forms for photographic electoral cards is gone," says Power. "If people still require photographic identification, they must tell the canvasser.

"Canvassers should also ask about young people in the home who might have turned 17 since the last canvass, or anybody eligible for the permanent postal proxy list."

So, it appears that the chaos surrounding voter registration is no better now than it was more than eight months ago, when Tony Blair unceremoniously decided to suspend the democratic process.

In spite of the fact that the postponment of the election provided the Electoral Office with an extended period of time to get their act together, provisions for voter registration and identification remain in gross disarray.

All this is designed - unofficially, of course - to disenfranchise voters, exclude nationalists and republicans, and ensure the status quo.

Fortunately, the people of the Six Counties are not so easily thwarted.

Protect your rights. Claim your vote, and do it before it is too late.