ERC, EU election observers discuss 2025 elections preparations

The Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) on Monday met with representatives from the European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) to discuss preparations and collaborative efforts ahead of Guyana’s 2025 General and Regional Elections.
In a release the ERC said that the EU EOM delegation included Legal Analyst Colm Fahy, Media Analyst Veronica Laputska, and Social Media Analyst Inta Lase. Representing the ERC were Chairman Shaikh Moeenul Hack, Deputy Chairman Charles Ogle, Commissioners Alphonso Porter, Norris Witter, Neaz Subhan, Ras Khafra, Ashton Simon, and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Gomin Camacho.

The engagement facilitated an exchange of information between the two bodies, focused on promoting a peaceful, transparent and credible electoral process. The ERC said that shared key initiatives planned for the election period, including the upcoming signing of the Code of Conduct for Political Parties scheduled for August 5, 2025, the monitoring of campaign activities, and observation on Election Day.
Both the ERC and the EU EOM noted operational similarities in monitoring traditional media, social media platforms, and political campaigns. These aligned approaches underscore their shared commitment to ensuring electoral integrity and maintaining public confidence in the process.
The ERC reaffirmed its dedication to fostering national unity and mutual respect during the elections and welcomed the involvement of both local and international partners in supporting its mandate.
In July, GECOM had said that six political parties have had their Candidates Lists approved to contest the upcoming General and Regional Elections on September 1.
The approved parties are A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), Peoples Progressive Party / Civic (PPP/C), Alliance for Change (AFC), Assembly of Liberty and Prosperity (ALP), Forward Guyana Movement (FGM), and We Invest in Nationhood (WIN).
After nearly a smooth polling day on March 2, 2020, chaos erupted during the tabulation of the results at the elections after former embattled Returning Officer for Region Four – Guyana’s largest voting district, Clairmont Mingo, sought to declare inflated numbers in favour of the then APNU/AFC Coalition regime.
That attempt to rig the 2020 elections saw Guyana being plunged into a five-month political and electoral deadlock. However, with push back from the opposition parties at the time coupled with support from the international community including overseas observers and after a series of litigation, a national recount was held and confirmed that the PPP/C won.
Mingo, along with former CEO Keith Lowenfield and other GECOM staffers as well as PNC party activists are currently before the courts facing several electoral fraud charges.