Recent discussion on social media has highlighted the objections being raised to persons registered to vote, in the upcoming elections, on the basis that they are not resident in the district in which they have sought to be registered. This has been a vexing issue for many years. Some persons are of the view that Anguillians, wherever they reside, should be allowed to participate in Anguilla’s electoral process by casting their vote. Others are vehemently opposed to anyone who is making his or her life elsewhere,voting during Anguilla’s electoral process.
I believe that it is useful to share and examine what are the actual requirements for a person to be registered to vote in Anguilla. I have set out below section 43 of the Anguilla Constitution, which identifies what qualifies an individual to vote in Anguilla.
“Qualification of voters
- (1) Subject to the next following subsection a person shall be qualified to be registered as a voter in an electoral district and in the single electoral district if he is of the age of eighteen years and upwards and —
(a) is an Anguillian born in Anguilla, and is domiciled there at the qualifying date; or
(b) (i) is an Anguillian who has resided in Anguilla for a period of not less than twelve months immediately before the qualifying date, and is domiciled there at that date, and is the lawful spouse, widow or widower, or the son or daughter or the spouse of such son or daughter of a person who was born in Anguilla; or
(ii) is an Anguillian who is domiciled in Anguilla and has resided there for a period of at least five years immediately before the qualifying date; and
(c) is at the qualifying date resident in the electoral district in which he claims to be registered.
(2) Every person who is qualified to be registered as a voter in any electoral district shall be entitled to be so registered provided that a person shall not be registered as a voter in more than one electoral district apart from the single electoral district.
(3) In this section “qualifying date” means such date as may be appointed by or under any law as the date with reference to which the qualifications of persons for registration as voters, for the purpose of the election of members of the House of Assembly, are to be ascertained.
(4) In this section and section 45, “single electoral district” means the single electoral district provided for by legislation enacted under section 46(2)”.
Residence is an obvious qualifying factor and objections to persons seeking to be registered to vote by querying their residence status is not new. Is it always easy to determine where a person is resident? How is a determination made as to whether or not an individual is resident in some place? As far back as 1998, the issue of residence as a qualifying factor to vote has been considered on appeal by the Magistrate’s Court.
The observation of Justice Brett in the case of Bond v. The Overseas of the Court of St. George, Hanover Square Court was referenced during the hearing of Case Nos. 27 & 28 of 1998 in Anguilla’s Magistrate Court. Justice Brett observed that:-
“In order to constitute residence, a party must possess at least a sleeping apartment, but that an uninterrupted abiding at such dwelling is not requisite and that absence, no matter how long if there be the liberty of return whenever it may suit the party’s pleasure or convenience so to do, will not prevent a constructive legal residence”.
The Magistrate, in considering Case Nos. 27 & 28 of 1998 said the following:-
“In the context of Anguilla, taking into account the history of the Island, the economic hardships that cause so many of the population to take up residence overseas and the long tradition of Anguillians returning home whenever the opportunity arises, every Easter, August and Christmas, others every August, some every two to five years depending upon their circumstances, but nevertheless all call Anguilla Home. This social and economic history, together with the Fundamental right of the people to freedom of movement under Section 5 (1) of the Constitution dictates that one should not without strong and cogent evidence that a person has abandoned his domicile of origin or of choice and has given up his residence in Anguilla deprive him or her of their right to be Registered as a voter.”
Are the views expressed above the prevailing thoughts today? It is very likely that the dilemma of residence as a qualifying factor to vote in Anguilla will not be easily resolved from a social or legal perspective. What must be encouraged is that we allow the democratic process to unfold. That process allows individuals to register in the district where they consider themselves to reside, while recognising that the electoral system allows persons of a different view to raise an objection. The relevant authorities must then be allowed to exercise their authority to resolve those objections. The dilemma of residence as a voter qualification can only be resolved through the application of the mandated legal process.
