A senior National Election Committee (NEC) official said voter list review and registration have proceeded smoothly since the process kicked off on October 20.
NEC deputy secretary-general Som Sorida said the 1,652 electoral register stations – one in each commune – had reported no disruptions to the process, despite some heavy rain and associated concerns that the weather could have affected the work.
“During the first four days, the work has proceeded in an orderly manner. The staff members are working efficiently with no issues reported,” he told The Post on October 24, adding that 64,325 new voters were registered from October 20-23.
Sorida said NEC officials have updated voter lists and removed 29,206 names, noting that 3,532 citizens had corrected their data while 19,220 others had relocated to new communes.
“We’ve projected that the number of citizens who become eligible to register to vote is 409,056. If our estimates are correct, we are well ahead of schedule,” he said.
NEC chairman Prach Chan said the voter list review and registration for next year’s parliamentary elections would last for 50 days.
“All of the citizens who have turned 18 now but fail to register will not be able to exercise their democratic rights. I urge every citizen to come forward and register as soon as they are eligible, regardless of political affiliation,” he said.
On October 20, Prime Minister Hun Sen also appealed to citizens who have recently come of age to make sure they register.
“I want to take this opportunity to appeal to the public – especially young people who are now eligible to vote – to go and register. I remind all authorities that they must make it as easy as possible for all eligible voters to get their names on the voter list for next year’s election,” he said.
He said the 50-day period should be perfectly adequate for citizens to review their personal details and ensure they are correct and up-to-date.
