GECOM swears in Returning Officers ahead of Sept 1 polls

…says citizens can view list of all appointed RO’s, SROs on website

The Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has announced the appointment of 10 Returning Officers (RO) and 10 Supernumerary Returning Officers (SRO), marking a significant step towards the upcoming September 1st General and Regional elections.

The Oaths of Office for the 20 senior election day officials who were approved by GECOM, were administered by GECOM’s Chairperson, retired Justice Claudette Singh, at a simple ceremony held in the secretariat’s boardroom on Monday.
“The oath-taking ceremony marks a key step in preparations for the conduct of the elections since the Returning Officers will be responsible for overseeing the electoral process in their respective districts.”
“(Meanwhile) the Supernumerary Returning Officers will have responsibility for the respective sub-districts in districts three, four, and six as provided for in the Representation of the People Act,” GECOM said in a statement.
According to GECOM, it remains committed to ensuring that transparency, professionalism and integrity in the electoral process are upheld. Further, the election agency also explained that the names of all these RO’s and SRO’s can be viewed on their website.
“Political parties and electors can now visit the offices established in their respective districts to obtain pertinent information in relation to the electoral process and key statutory timelines. A schedule of the names of all the appointed Returning Officers and Supernumerary Returning Officers along with the addresses for their respective offices can be accessed on GECOM’s website at www.gecom.org.gy,” GECOM added.
Earlier this month, the Representation of the People (Amendment) Bill 2025 was amended in the National Assembly so that either the SRO or their deputy can oversee tabulation of votes in the electoral sub-districts.
The latest amendments to the Representation of the People Act (ROPA) aim to address irregularities that occurred during the tabulation of results for Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) following the 2020 General and Regional Elections. During that process, the then RO for Region Four, Clairmont Mingo—one of nine individuals currently charged with electoral fraud—is accused of attempting to alter the results for his region.
Mingo was accused of excluding hundreds of thousands of votes from People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) strongholds, to hand victory to A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC).
Meanwhile, with the 2025 General and Regional elections scheduled for September 1st, political parties have been in the process of submitting their party symbols. These are expected to be approved by the Elections Commission by July 1. Also, in preparing for the upcoming polls, GECOM is conducting a Claims and Objections exercise.
The ‘Claims’ aspect of this exercise is already completed, while the ‘Objections’ leg will be closed off today. This will then make way for the preparation of the Revised List of Electors, which will be publicised for 21 days before it is finalised and certified. Moreover, the Secretariat is simultaneously working on other critical matters, such as identifying polling station locations.
The timeline for election-related activities after Nomination Day includes: July 15: Notification of any death or withdrawal of candidates and feedback on defects in the lists; July 17: Submission of corrected lists and further withdrawals; July 18: Issuance of approval or rejection notices by GECOM; July 20: Deadline for appeals to the High Court; July 21: Deadline for notifications of joinder of lists; and July 23: Publication (gazetting) of the approved Lists of Candidates.
Meanwhile, the next milestone event will be August 22, when members of the Disciplined Services will be allowed to cast their ballots ahead of the September 1 election day.