The National Elections Commission (NEC) has revealed that it has yet to receive any information from Saygbeken, Jokoken, Gpateken, Kajaliken, and Ducorfree in Sinoe County as a result of a lack of mobile coverage.
"Once it becomes possible to reach those areas, the commission will inform stakeholders about the conduct of the elections in those places," said Davidetta Brown-Lansanah, NEC's Chairperson, during a press briefing update held yesterday.
Lansanah further noted that in Rivercess, the election magistrate confirmed that, despite the delay in the arrival of electoral materials at a few precincts in District One due to the flooding of the Timbo River, elections were successfully conducted in all precincts on October 10.
However, there was one exception, precinct 36007, which consists of a single polling place in Suakon Debah Town. The polling there was delayed due to the late arrival of materials, but it is ongoing as of today.
She continued, "Sinoe County elections took place on October 10 in almost all precincts, except for Karquekpo and Jarpuken in electoral district two."
Lansanah added that during the transportation of electoral materials, including ballots for two precincts, some materials got wet due to torrential rain and flooding.
Additionally, elections did not occur in Togbaville in electoral district three due to poor road conditions. The damaged materials will "be replaced within one week for the affected areas, and the NEC will dispatch a team to assist the magisterial team immediately," Lansanah said.
The NEC assures Liberians that all necessary steps are being taken to complete the elections in the affected areas in the coming days.
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The tallying process began on October 11 in some magisterial offices, with candidates' agents and independent observers present. The tallied results from magisterial offices are progressively transmitted to the data center at NEC Headquarters, where they are collated for announcement.
Meanwhile, the NEC had earlier attributed the logistical challenges it faced in delivering ballot papers to Sinoe and Rivercess counties on October 10 to unfavorable weather and poor road conditions.
The Commission cited the "overflowed Planson River, located on the outskirts of Greenville," as one of the reasons why voting did not take place at most centers in Sinoe County's electoral District Two. Electoral staff faced challenges during the day of the election in crossing the river and reaching the polling places with the ballots in a timely manner, despite their best efforts, NEC disclosed.
The NEC also noted that a truck, which was carrying election materials to Sinoe County's electoral district one, became stuck in the mud in the Butaw area due to heavy rainfall and poor road conditions on October 10.
