The deadline to register to vote in next month's general election will expire before the end of this newscast. But as we've been reporting all week - this week there has been a mad rush of immigrants applying for nationality certificates at the Immigration Department in Belmopan. And that's what our team found when we got there after 1 this afternoon. Most of the people we met were frustrated - saying they had been waiting out there since morning - and most said this isn't the second trip or third trip for the week.
Of course it probably isn't the fault of employees at the department - as the volume of applicants is unprecedented. So why the mad rush? Well it probably has to do with tonight's deadline. We spoke to one of Belize's newest nationals. She can't speak English, has been living here for 11
years, and says she wants to vote.
New Belizeans,
"She says yes she will vote for this election and she is glad that she has her nationality."
Of course to vote - she and all of these other new citizens will have to be sworn officially. But unlike Monday, there was no activity at the George Price Center. Information is that the new residents are going to individual commissioners of the Supreme Court - which avoids the public spectacle. There are no official estimates, but sources tell us that as many as three thousand and likely over two thousand voters registered in the past four days, that's about 2% of the voters' list.
And candidates will have 5 days to peruse the new list of voters. That is because January 15th will be the deadline for Objections to the list and January 18th, the day for court approvals. The court date should have been January 25th but the Elections and Boundaries Office says it has been moved up because the law stipulates that the name of electors need be on the list on nomination day which is on the 21st.
