High voter turnout expected in election

All is set for the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) election today as 46,601 people are eligible to go to the polls to determine who they want to lead them for the next four years. After more than a month of constant campaigning, the three political parties in Tobago—the People’s National Movement (PNM) lead by Orville London, the Tobago Organisation of the People headed by Ashworth Jack and The Platform of Truth (TPT) with Hochoy Charles at the helm—have put forward 12 candidates in an effort to run the THA.

Many political analysts have anticipated a very high voter turnout for this year’s elections. The Elections and Boundaries Commission revealed that out of the 42,623 registered voters in 2009, 23,916 actually turned up at polling stations, an estimated 56.39 per cent. The total electorate for the 2013 THA election increased by 3,978 or 8.54 per cent since the 2009 polls.

The highest voter turnout in recent times for the THA election was 60.13 per cent with an electorate of 37,616, in 2001 when the PNM first took office. Polling stations in Tobago are expected to open at 6 am and close at 6 pm. Results are expected to start rolling in by 8 pm.
It is customary for a clear winner to be defined by 10 pm on election night.