FACT-CHECK: Voting suspended in parts of Sinoe County due to rains?
Claim: Voting suspended in parts of Sinoe County due to rains
Source: Facebook users
Verdict: TRUE
Researched by Sedem Kwasigah
On October 10, 2023, more than 2.4 million eligible voters in Liberia went to the polls to participate in a general election.
However, some social media users (here, here, and here) claim voting was suspended in certain parts of Sinoe County due to torrential rains that got some of the ballot papers wet.
A screenshot of a Facebook post
A Facebook user further claimed that the ballot papers were being exposed to the sun to get them dry and later would be used for the elections.
This fact-check report seeks to verify the claim.
Background
Africa’s oldest republic, Liberia have gone to the polls to elect a President, Senators, and House of Representatives.
This 2023 general election will be the fourth democratic electoral process after the civil war, in a country with a population of 5.3 million.
Fact-check
The National Elections Commission (NEC) of Liberia has confirmed the reports that voting has been suspended in parts of Sinoe County due to torrential rains.
In the first press briefing after the elections, the Chairperson of NEC, Davidetta Browne Lansanah said (Between 38:32-38:58 mins) :
“In Sinoe County, elections were held on 10th October in almost all of the precincts except Karquekpo and Jarpuken in electoral District 2. It is worth mentioning that while transporting electoral materials, including ballots, for the two precincts, some of the materials got wet due to torrential rains and flooding.”
According to the election management body, the damaged materials will be replaced for the conduct of the elections in affected areas within the next week.
“The NEC will dispatch a team to assist the magisterial team in the county as soon as possible,” Davidetta Browne Lansanah added (Between 39:00 – 39:24 mins).
