Coalition writes Chief Justice seeking early hearing of election petitions

Lawyers for the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance for Change (APNU/AFC) have written to Chief Justice (ag) Roxane George requesting an early hearing of two election petitions filed by the coalition challenging the results of the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections.
This disclosure was made on Friday by Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon during his weekly press conference. “The lawyers, I understand, have written to the Chief Justice asking for directions with respect to an early hearing,” Harmon informed.
Following its loss at the polls, the APNU/AFC filed two election petitions. Both of them are challenging the validity of the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections and the National Recount that followed it. Notably absent from both of the coalition’s petitions are its SoPs.
The first petition was filed on August 31, 2020, by Claudette Thorne and Heston Bostwick, both of Albouystown, Georgetown. The petitioners in the second election petition are Monica Thomas of Lot 58 Norton Street, Lodge, Georgetown, and Bernnan Joette Natasha Nurse of Lot N16-1079 Critchlow Street, Tucville, Georgetown.
They say that during the period January to August 2020, they were employed at the Office of the Elections Agent as Assistants to Harmon, who was appointed as Election Agent for the APNU/AFC.
In the first petition, the coalition attached the form that embattled Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo used to declare the results for Region Four, which listed the total number of valid votes for all lists as 217,425 for which APNU/AFC received 136,057 votes and the PPP/C 77,231 votes.
In actuality, the results of the National Recount found that there was a total of 202,077 ballots cast in Region Four, with 116,941 for APNU/AFC and 80,920 for PPP/C. As it relates to the overall elections, the gazetted results show that 460,352 valid votes were cast, with 233,336 for the PPP/C and 217,920 for APNU/AFC.
APNU/AFC is asking the court to declare the elections null and void as it is in violation of the Constitution, the Representation of the People Act and Order No 60 of 2020, and consequently this affected the results. They are also seeking to nullify the declaration of President Irfaan Ali as the winner of the elections.
Against this backdrop, the petitioners are seeking an Order that fresh elections are held in Guyana within 90 days or such other reasonable timeframe or 180 days of the date of an Order setting aside the elections.

Heard first
The PPP/C has insisted that the High Court must first hear the election petition filed by the party shortly after it lost the May 2015 General and Regional Election. The ruling party said that it is only fair that its petition is heard before the ones filed by the coalition.
In its preliminary report following the March 2020 General and Regional Elections, the Commonwealth observer team expressed concerns at the delays of the High Court in dealing with the 2015 elections petition filed by PPP/C member Ganga Persaud.
Head of the Commonwealth Observer Mission, the late former Prime Minister of Barbados Owen Arthur had said, “We were informed, for example, that an elections petition filed by the PPP/C following the 2015 elections is still pending before the High Court.”
With regards to the 2015 Elections, the PPP/C claims that the entire electoral process was flawed, and therefore not in conformity with electoral laws and the Constitution of Guyana.
Lawyers for the coalition have asked the High Court to strike out the PPP/C’s petition on the basis that sections of it failed to disclose reasonable cause of action and are frivolous and vexatious.
The law permits an election petition case to be filed in the High Court within 28 days after the elections results are published in the Official Gazette.