Presidential election: 143 international observers and 22 monitors

Aug 20, 2023, 5:43 AM
EU observer delegation.

EU observer delegation.

Elections Commission (EC) has stated that 143 international observers and 22 monitors will be working across the country for the September 9 presidential election.

This is the largest number of international monitors and observers registered for an election in the Maldives.

EC Vice President Ismail Habeeb said all the international observers and monitors would be active during the election period.

He added that 31 observers are working on the invitation of the EC. They will be deployed in six regions of the country.

Former Chief Election Commissioner of Sri Lanka Warunasiri Mahinda Deshapriya would act as the chief observer of the special team.

"The largest number of monitors are from the European Union (EU) and the Commonwealth, with 40 EU observers and 21 Commonwealth observers," Habeeb tweeted.

He also listed the countries of origin of the monitors and observers. They are from the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, South Africa, Cameroon, Jordan, Georgia, Honduras, El Salvador, Uzbekistan, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines.

Some 22 monitors are from France, Japan, India and Sri Lanka.

EC on Sunday finalized the list of eligible voters for the presidential election. The list includes 282,395 people of which 27,006 are first-time voters.

A total of 574 polling stations will be set up with 176 in Male' region, 319 in the atolls, 65 in resorts, eight in different countries, five in prisons and one in industrial islands.

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