AFC Demands Urgent Meeting with GECOM over Nomination Day Irregularities

Alliance For Change (AFC) Leader and Presidential Candidate Nigel Hughes has written to Chairperson of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Retired Justice Claudette Singh, demanding immediate clarification and intervention over what he describes as a procedural breach on Nomination Day that appears to favor the governing People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C). Nomination Day is Monday, July 14.

In a strongly worded letter dated July 12, Hughes cited a communication from Chief Election Officer Vishnu Persaud, dated July 11, which, he says, effectively elevated the PPP/C ahead of the AFC in the submission order for Lists of Candidates , despite the AFC having visibly registered its presence with live video documentation.

Hughes warned that such actions undermine the integrity of the elections and violate the principles of transparency and fairness. He reminded the GECOM that where the law is silent on administrative procedures, the Commission must follow established custom and practice. Any deviation from those norms, he stated, must be publicly communicated in advance, not imposed after the fact.

“The new procedures must be well advertised, not issued ex post facto,” Hughes cautioned.

The AFC is now demanding a meeting with Commission officials to obtain full clarity on several critical aspects of the Nomination Day process, including:

• The handover of Lists of Candidates from the Chief Election Officer to the Information Technology team;

• The order and timing of the encoding process;

• The timeline for issuing notices of defective lists;

• And the final approval of candidate lists — which the AFC insists must take place no later than Sunday, July 13, 2025.

To ensure full transparency, Hughes further called for party agents and international observers to be allowed to scrutinise the encoding process, ensuring that each submission is handled in the exact order of receipt.

“Each List of Candidates must be processed in the order of receipt in a fair and transparent manner,” Hughes emphasised.

Stressing the urgency of the matter, Hughes requested a response from the Guyana Elections Commission by the end of Saturday, July 12. As of the time of publication, the GECOM has not issued a response.

Notably, the letter was also copied to the Carter Center, signaling a direct appeal to international observers to closely monitor the situation.

With just weeks remaining before the September 1 General and Regional Elections, the AFC’s intervention adds to growing concerns over the Guyana Elections Commission’s impartiality and administrative conduct, and places renewed pressure on the Commission to uphold its constitutional mandate with transparency and fairness.