Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley has issued a firm rebuttal to claims by Opposition Leader Ralph Thorne that the scheduling of the upcoming general election was premature and created administrative chaos. Thorne, addressing supporters at a Democratic Labour Party rally, contended that the election announcement precipitated ‘disarray’ because the official voters’ list had not been finalized by the statutory deadline of January 31st from the Electoral and Boundaries Commission (EBC).
Countering these allegations during her campaign stop at the R&B Bar in St. John, Prime Minister Mottley challenged Thorne to thoroughly review the nation’s election laws. She specifically referenced Section 13(1) of the Representation of the People Act, which mandates that the EBC ‘shall cause to be prepared and shall publish not later than the 31st of January in every year’ the official register. Mottley clarified that the commission had in fact published the 2026 register on January 15th, preceding her election announcement, thereby making it the legally recognized document for the forthcoming vote.
Furthermore, Mottley emphasized that a standard procedure exists for addressing registration issues, noting that a 48-hour window remained for citizens to verify their registration status or update their residential information on the preliminary lists published after an election is called. She categorically dismissed any insinuation that discrepancies appearing on the voters’ list were motivated by partisan interests. The Prime Minister illustrated her point by noting that anomalies, a recurring feature in every election since 1991, had affected the families of prominent politicians across the political spectrum, including those of late PM David Thompson and former BLP MP Gline Clarke. She urged all citizens to proactively check the list to ensure their eligibility.