Fri | Sep 5, 2025

Jamaica Chamber of Commerce calls for comprehensive update of voters' list

Published:Friday | September 5, 2025 | 1:03 PM
Voters in line at a polling station at the Morant Bay Primary School in St Thomas Eastern.
Voters in line at a polling station at the Morant Bay Primary School in St Thomas Eastern.

The Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC) is calling for a comprehensive and timely updating of Jamaica's voters’ list to enhance confidence in the electoral process, amid the voter turnout recorded at Wednesday's general election.

The turnout was 39.5 percent, with a voters' list of over two million Jamaicans.

The association expresses concern that the current voters’ list remains substantially inflated with names that should have been removed long ago, and therefore, urgent electoral reforms are needed.

"The JCC encourages all Jamaicans to remain actively involved in civic life, recognising that participation is the cornerstone of a thriving democracy,” the chamber said in a statement on Friday.

"The JCC will continue to hold all elected officials accountable, engaging with both government and opposition to ensure that policies and actions reflect the best interests of Jamaica’s economy, business community, and citizens," it added.

Former Director of Elections Orette Fisher believes Jamaica’s reported voter turnout is misleading, as the current voters’ list is significantly overinflated with names that should have been removed long ago.

Speaking with The Gleaner following Wednesday’s general election, Fisher said the actual number of eligible voters is likely closer to 1.5 million, not the over two million currently on the list.

“The list should be updated regularly to remove people who have died or have migrated, but, instead, new registrations are added to the existing list,” he said.

He explained that, although electoral law mandates the removal of deceased or migrated persons, in practice, many of these names remain on the roll for years.

This bloated list, he argues, significantly distorts the true turnout percentage.

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