Elections 2025: GECOM in receipt of ballots from diplomatic missions

With five days to go before the September 1 General and Regional Elections, the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has confirmed that all diplomatic missions’ ballots have safely returned to the country, signaling that preparations remain firmly on track. Deputy Chief Elections Officer (DCEO) Aneal Giddings told reporters that a total of 92 ballots were dispatched to 20 Guyanese diplomatic missions abroad to facilitate voting. “All of the missions have returned their packages to us – the last of which was received yesterday [Sunday],” Giddings confirmed. “The ballots were prepared in special envelopes and sealed packages in the presence of political party agents. They were then delivered to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and subsequently to ballot attendants at each overseas mission, who returned them securely to the Chief Election Officer (CEO).”
According to Giddings, the ballots remain sealed and in the custody of CEO Vishnu Persaud. Later this week, they will be sorted by district for intermixing on Election Day, following the same process used for the Disciplined Services ballots.

Local distribution of ballot papers
Meanwhile, GECOM has begun local distribution of ballot papers to Returning Officers across the 10 administrative regions. Sensitive election materials, including ballot papers, Statements of Poll, and tally sheets, arrived from Canada earlier this month and have since been extracted, packaged and dispatched for overseas, disciplined services and local voters.
In fact, CEO Vishnu Persaud has assured the public that the Commission is on course to deliver a smooth and credible General and Regional Election on September 1.
Speaking at a press briefing, Persaud revealed that the packaging of ballot boxes for polling day is underway by administrative regions, with political party agents present to observe every step of the process. He stressed that transparency remains central to the Commission’s operations.
“We ensure that all packaging is done in the presence of party agents. If we pause, it is in accordance with schedules given, and recommencement is also done in their presence. This is all with the aim of ensuring stakeholders are adequately informed and involved,” the CEO explained.
Persaud also disclosed that the assignment of polling day staff to stations has been completed, but acknowledged that a number of individuals initially identified for Presiding Officer posts have declined the appointment. GECOM is therefore adjusting personnel across polling stations to ensure staffing needs are met.
“Some may assume the assistant presiding officer would automatically step up, but that is not always the case. We are managing our resources carefully to ensure all polling stations are adequately manned,” Persaud said, while expressing confidence that the matter will not disrupt operations.
On the wider logistical front, Persaud noted that all levels of the Commission’s election machinery, from returning officers to their deputies, are in place, with contingency measures activated to address any unforeseen issues.
“I do not foresee any hiccups at this time, and should any issue arise, we are in a position to respond quickly,” he stated, pointing to GECOM’s rapid response to an earlier ballot issue during Disciplined Services voting.