Advertisement

More suspected election abuses found

Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP

More possible abuses have been found in district council voter registrations, following a spate of recent vote-rigging claims that have prompted an official investigation.

Advertisement

In one case - discovered and dealt with before the November 6 council elections - a voter listed an abandoned cinema in Southern District as his address, while in another an elector claimed to live on the 32nd floor of a 21-storey building.

The Democratic Party said it had found at least 33 problems in three of the 412 constituencies, while pan-democrats are still checking records to gather a full picture.

Critics say the problems stem from loopholes in the voter registration system that have yet to be plugged, despite years of complaints from lawmakers and election candidates.

The loopholes include no requirement for proof of residence when registering, too little time for the public to check the provisional registers and a long process to remove existing voters from the provisional and final registers.

Advertisement

Electors are also not required to bring their poll cards when casting votes and there is no cross-checking of personal particulars between the Registration and Electoral Office and other government departments.

Advertisement