2 Sep 2008

Lengthy queues at Vanuatu polling stations - some irregularities discovered

4:30 pm on 2 September 2008

Some voters in Vanuatu have faced lengthy waits at some polling stations in Port Vila during today's general election.

Voters have today been choosing, from among 341 candidates, the country's 52 members of parliament.

At Pango village, a polling station for the Efate rural seat, about 20 minutes from Port Vila, voters have had to queue for around an hour.

The station's presiding officer, Stanley John, says so far, he's discovered about 10 irregularities.

"Things have been going along we but there have been some things that we have been finding is that some of the voters that have cards, register cards, but they don't have any name on the electoral roll."

Stanley John says he doesn't know if the anomalies are because people had enrolled after the final roll has been printed, or because they are trying to vote illegally.