The Tribune

FORMER Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham voted around 4pm yesterday after initially being given the runaround by poll workers at the advanced poll.

Mr Ingraham and his wife, Delores, arrived at Gambier Primary School around 1pm to vote in the Killarney constituency only to be told there was some issue that would prevent him from casting a ballot.

He said he went to two polling stations only to be told his name wasn’t on the list. He left the site visibly upset but returned a few hours later after getting a call from the parliamentary commissioner to apologise about the error.

“It was very important to come back to vote today because if your name is on a list for today and you don’t vote today, they are going to have to take your cards, your counterfoil, put it back in the register for next week, in the box for next week, and put your name back on the register,” Mr Ingraham told reporters.

“There’s lots of opportunities for errors to be made if that happens and so I thought it best for me to come and vote today so there is no confusion about my vote.”

He also said officials need to take several steps to ensure a smoother process next week.

He said adequate polling stations need to be set up so that large crowds do not form and that polling officers need to be outside to direct voters to their respective polling divisions.