Elections Commission of Maldives has decided to place ballot boxes in 36 resorts.
The decision was made following complaints by eligible voters employed by resorts and all political parties, inclusive of the ruling party. Therefore, polling stations will be established in resorts that have 100 registered voters increasing the number of resort with ballot boxes to 36, the elections commission said.
Even though there are 130 resorts operating in Maldives, the commission initially decided to place ballot boxes in just 7 resorts which have at least 250 local employees residing at the resort. With the decision to lower the threshold to 100 local employees, revising its previous decision to place ballot boxes in resorts where more than 250 local employees reside to address the concerns raised by the political parties, the number of resorts meeting the requirement rose to 77.
The elections commission revealed discussions were held with Ministry of Tourism to place ballot boxes in all resorts, however, adding only 36 resorts agreed to place ballot boxes. Other resorts disagreed to keep ballot boxes as the management believes it could cause difficulties in the operation of the resort and as voting is possible in nearby islands, the electoral body noted.
With the increase in the number of ballot boxes placed in resorts, the total number of ballot boxes to be placed for the presidential election has increased to 483.