Mozambique to hold general elections polling delayed in central province, Germany

MAPUTO, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) — More than 12,500 voters in Mozambique’s central province of Zambezia and 670 others registered in Germany will be able to cast their ballots Saturday for Mozambique’s general elections, which failed to take place on the scheduled day due to logistical issues, the National Electoral Commission (CNE) announced Friday.
According to Paulo Cuinica, CNE spokesperson, who spoke during a press conference in Maputo, the Mozambican capital, 19 polling stations in the district of Gile and four in Maganja da Costa, both in Zambezia, “did not open” Wednesday due to missing voting kits and subsidy demands by polling station staff.
Following a series of efforts, the missing kits were recovered, and outstanding subsidies were paid to the polling station members, allowing the voting to proceed, said Cuinica.
“We located two kits in the district of Derre, reducing the number of missing kits to nine. However, all conditions are now restored to ensure the elections can proceed safely,” Cuinica said.
Regarding the electoral circle in Germany, around 600 voters will go to the polls, which was delayed due to the late arrival of voting materials.
These materials only reached the European country Thursday due to transportation issues, he said.
“These two electoral districts would conclude the voting process on the 12th, which is tomorrow, to allow the 12,503 voters in Zambezia and the 670 voters in Germany to exercise their right to vote,” Cuinica said.
The CNE spokesperson highlighted that security measures have been reinforced to ensure the integrity of the electoral process.
More than 17 million Mozambicans are registered for the 2024 general elections. Among them, 333,839 voters registered in the diaspora are voting from seven African and two European countries as part of Mozambique’s global electoral process.
Wednesday’s general elections included the seventh presidential election, the seventh legislative election, and the fourth election for provincial assemblies and governors in Mozambique. ■