Proof of residency a must to vote-Chief Elections Officer

The Electoral Office here is cautioning potential electors that they must fulfill a residency requirement to be eligible to vote in the next general elections.

According to the Electoral Office this means that a citizen who wishes to vote must be living in the polling district in which they intend to register for at least three (3) months prior to the date of registration.

This comes against the background of rising speculation that Haitian nationals now living in Dominica will be able to vote in upcoming elections, constitutionally due by May 2020.

“The Registration of Electors Act (Chap. 2:03) requires that any citizen of Dominica who submits a claim for registration, must have been living in the polling district in which they intend to register for at least three (3) months prior to the date of registration,” a statement from the Electoral Office states.

“For Commonwealth member state citizens, the requirement is that they be resident in Dominica for at least twelve (12) months and in the particular polling district in which they want to register for at least three (3) months prior to registration. These conditions must be met when registering along with the age, required by the act as 18 or over, and citizenship,” it continued.

The statement says further that electors must be citizens of either Dominica or any other Commonwealth Member State and can only be registered in one polling district at a time.

The office also cautioned against making false claims.

“We admonish those persons who knowingly make false statements for the purpose of being registered as an elector. The public is reminded that any person who does this is by law guilty of an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of $1500.00 or to imprisonment for three months,” the statement said.