Namibia: Voters At Aris and Mix Settlement Face Delays Due to Shortage of Ballot Papers

Some voters in Namibia's November 27 election are queuing to cast their votes with chairs, food, and sunscreen to protect themselves from the sun.
28 November 2024

Hundreds of voters at Aris south of Windhoek endured a long day without being able to cast their vote by late afternoon yesterday.

This was due to the Electoral Commission of Namibia (ECN) allegedly running out of ballot papers at another voting point in the area.

One voter, who preferred to remain anonymous, yesterday told The Namibian that according to a notice, the ECN team would have commenced with voting at Aris at 12h00.

By the time of going to print yesterday, voting has, however, not started yet.

ECN spokesperson De Wet Siluka yesterday said he could not comment on the issue until the end of the day.

At another polling station at Mix settlement, voting was hampered too due to a shortage of ballot papers.

When The Namibian visited the polling station, hundreds of dejected voters were waiting for voting to commence.

Presiding officer at Mix settlement Emilia Ndemueeda yesterday confirmed that the ECN team ran out of ballot papers.

"So far, so good, but the only issue is that we are running out of ballot papers, and this may cause delays. We have sent our officers to get more ballot papers at the ECN's office," she said.

Eliaser Heita, a voter at this polling station, yesterday said the queues were extremely long and did not seem to be moving.

"I have been here since 06h00 and now it is almost 15h00, but I still have not voted yet," he said.

Heita said despite delays he will make sure he casts his vote.

AllAfrica publishes around 500 reports a day from more than 100 news organizations and over 500 other institutions and individuals, representing a diversity of positions on every topic. We publish news and views ranging from vigorous opponents of governments to government publications and spokespersons. Publishers named above each report are responsible for their own content, which AllAfrica does not have the legal right to edit or correct.

Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica. To address comments or complaints, please Contact us.