After a late surge in voter registrations in 2012, one-third of Caymanians are now able to vote, according to a recent article published on Caymen News Service. The removal of a restriction that voters must be a naturalized British Overseas Territories citizen along with promotions from the Election Office boosted the number of registered voters in the country. 20% more voters will be eligible to vote in the 2013 election as compared to 2009. The polling initiative was so popular that the new premiere and the Legislative Assembly called to extend the registration period through January 22nd, according to a recent article.

Most of the 2,384 voters registered in the last quarter of 2012 come from two main areas: George Town and Bodden Town. While George Town voters have 6 ballots in May’s upcoming election, Bodden Town’s 4 ballots is likely where the election will be won or lost, according to the article. It also says, “With a large expatriate population of workers, historically there has been a disproportionately low number of residents in Cayman able to vote compared to other democracies, with less than a quarter of the adult population in some elections being entitled to vote.” However, the boost in voter registrations could make a huge difference in the upcoming election.

The increase in voter registrations means that more Caymanians will be able to vote for officials who uphold their beliefs about education, along with other issues. The PPM and UDP parties have already revealed most of their major candidates, though the Coalition for Cayman is also planning on endorsing candidates, albeit at a non-party level, according to the article.

There are now more than 18,000 registered voters in the Cayman Islands, although many of these voters waited to register. According to the article, “On the last day of the voter registration drive before the register closed at midnight on 2 January, well over 900 people turned up at the Smith Road office in George Town to get their names on the list and seize the opportunity to vote in what is likely to be one of Cayman’s most important elections.”

The extension of the registration deadline is hoped to add a few hundred more names to the list. According to Duncan Taylor, governor of the Cayman Islands, "In order that they are not disenfranchised, I have today taken the decision to issue an Order for the registration period to be extended until 22 January. I decided to limit registration to this date as I did not want the date for the register of elections coming into force to slip from 1 April. If this date were to slip it could make it more difficult for students and other eligible people off island to apply for and send in their postal votes."

Read the original article here.