CARICOM election observers, who were in town for the 2026 general election held on May 12, have released their findings and recommendations.
The group recommended the establishment of an independent parliamentary registration department with adequate operational and legal safeguards against political influence. They also recommended reinforcement of the independence of the Constituencies Commission.
The CARICOM report also called for campaign finance reform, including the disclosure of campaign funding sources, the establishment of spending limits and the implementation of penalties to deter vote buying or misuse of state resources.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Science and Technology the Hon. Chester Cooper, who served on the Constituencies Commission ahead of this year’s election, weighed in on the report’s findings on Monday. He said, “I haven’t seen the CARICOM report myself, but I do support campaign finance reform. I do support the revamp and modernization of the Parliamentary Registration Department.”
The integrity of the voter register was mentioned in the report amid allegations of foreigners being included on the listing. Mr. Cooper said, “the minister responsible for this unit has been actively, and continues to be actively engaged to ensuring that we see the backs of those paper forms, for example. But I think this is work in progress.”
The low voter turnout of 66.4% was also highlighted in the report. Overall the observers determined that election process was peaceful and transparent.
