Electoral Commission on alert for busy Christmas

Employees at the Electoral Commission have been unofficially warned “it will be a different Christmas” for them this year as the likely announcement of a general election is fast approaching. As the two main political parties informally agreed on a three-week truce from electioneering, sources close to the Electoral Commission told The Times that employees had been put on an alert in case an election writ is issued next week. According to the law, voting documents have to be printed and distributed by the police and party representatives to all eligible voters within 19 days of the publication of an electoral writ. This means that while the country comes to an almost complete halt due to the festive season, commission employees and police will be working to ensure the legal requirements of the General Elections Act are met. “It seems we won’t be having any holidays this year,” an official from the commission’s offices at Evans Building said. “We have been preparing for the eventuality of an election being called for the past months and we are ready to go,” another official said. As Monday’s crucial parliamentary vote on the Budget is fast approaching with no apparent signs of...