The Election and Boundary Commission (EBC) assured Tobagos that its move to introduce new technology for the Tobago House of Representatives elections on Monday was not an attempt to influence the results or manipulate the voting system.

Rather, it aims to track voter turnout.

In a live demonstration at the Magdalena Grand Gulf and Beach Resort, Fern Narcis-Scope, the chief executive of the committee, said on how the pilot project will run in parallel with the existing voting system, that the system is safe and reliable and does not involve traditional craftsmanship.

“I can say this 100 times and there is no change in this process. It is just an additional individual sending us data in real time. This process is about those who enter the station on election day,” she told the media on Saturday afternoon.

"We don't rely on this data for anything other than analysis."

The live demonstration showed that voters entered the station, disinfected, and presented their voting card and valid ID to the polling station staff.

Voters will follow the usual procedures to the deputy host’s station, where they will be further verified, and the equipment will be left in the basket at the station. Then voters will go to the ballot box to vote.

At this point, the process is slightly adjusted, set at another station, far away from the ballot box, and use special software installed on the device for data input.

After the vote is completed, voters will be required to confirm that the vote has been completed by showing their voting fingers dyed red.

The co-chair will update the count on the device. This will be done under the full picture of the election officer of each participating party.

EBC officials will receive real-time updates throughout the day as voters publish their votes. EBC has identified 13 polling stations as pilot projects in two areas-Scarborough/Grace Hill and Mount St. George/Goodwood.

Narcis-Scope stated that if unforeseen problems arise during the trial phase of the new tracking system, the voting process will still be easy.

"By doing this, we will know what backup plan we need... We hope this will improve our ability to provide the public with information about the election of the day.

"As there are expected to be three elections in 2025, we stepped back and said,'What problems can we work on and solve without spending too much money on implementation?'

On Saturday, during the EBC mock voting held at Magdalena Resort and Spa, Roxboro's left-wing Shaquille Mitchell put his finger on the voting checkpoint. EBC will pilot a project to complete voter count digitally during the THA election on Monday. -Photo by David Reid

"We strive to do better in every election, not only in terms of training, but also in terms of what we can do to provide better services to political parties, candidates, voters and the media."

Narcis-Scope talked about plans to develop the system into a reliable data-driven tool for the public, which will include collaboration with Internet service providers and internal ITC experts.

EBC further assured voters that everything is in place to ensure compliance with all covid19 agreements.

All political parties and independent candidates were invited to participate in the demonstration, but no one was present.

After calling on the committee to reconsider its decision to introduce any new features on election day, the PDP publicly rejected the EBC’s invitation to witness the on-site demonstration.

In a letter in response to the committee's invitation, PDP political leader Watson Duke stated that the party supports the call to oppose the introduction of new technology for the election.

A few hours before the event, Duke’s brief letter said: “We think this is careless and overbearing.” The party accused the EBC of prejudice and welcomed the open dialogue after Monday.

The party stated in its first letter that although it is aware of the need to streamline all functions within the EBC and improve its efficiency, it does not believe that using a new system that has never been tested is the best decision at a critical moment, such as this island. .

The PDP also raised the issue of not negotiating with any political parties in Tobago.

EBC responded that the information collected from the project will be used to “establish the efficiency of the process and provide information for the future development of the election management process.

"All voting procedures and procedures used in these two constituencies and all other constituencies on polling day will continue to be the same as in previous elections. In addition to the same manual process, the pilot project will also run."

It assured the parties that “the project will never replace traditional craftsmanship.”

The opposition UNC also strongly opposed the use of technology at polling stations in Tobago elections.

In a letter sent to Narcis-Scope on Friday, opposition leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar considered the move ambiguous and stated that it raised many questions, "Our confidence in a free and fair election process is seriously doubted."

She said that before considering this move, it is necessary to consult with the opposition parties.

"We (UNC) want to know under what law the EBC authorizes such a radical change in the electoral process, and why the EBC believes it is legal to neglect to negotiate such a change with the opposition party."

Although UNC did not send any candidates in Monday’s election, Persad-Bissessar said: “As the official opposition to the Trinidad and Tobago parliament, we are a key stakeholder in the democratic process.”

She claimed that the opposition party "has the primary responsibility for safeguarding the democratic process and defending the Constitution from abuse by the government and the entire country."

She said that the technology used by EBC may not be limited to Tobago, but could also be used in Trinidad.

Persad-Bissessar claimed that EBC knew in advance that it was testing the technology at a polling station in Tobago on Monday, but failed to notify the political parties in time.

In response to this question, Narcis-Scope acknowledged the concerns raised by other parties and added that it plans to discuss the matter in the future.

Communications Officer Bobby Rogers stated that the EBC will be prepared to deal with any confusion among voters' polling stations. She encouraged voters to visit the website to confirm which polling stations they need to visit to vote.