#JaVotes2020 | Long Wait Frustrates Voters In August Town

By: Admin

Image caption:

Judana Murphy/Gleaner Writer

Voters at St.Cyprian’s Church on August Town Road, in St.Andrew Eastern, complained of the long wait at the polling station.

A frustrated Trevor Francis said he has been waiting in line for two hours and is yet to cast his vote.

“Dem slow yah suh man!” he lamented. “Dem seh because of di sanitising and suh it ago tek a likkle time and dem seh di computer a tek longer than it normally woulda tek."

Approximately 30 other voters were in line behind Francis, a couple of whom expressed a similar tale.

“From morning mi deh yah, yuh think me have time fi siddung ya suh?” one man loudly questioned as an Election Day worker summoned a voter inside.

People’s National Party (PNP) canvasser Chantel Ellington told The Gleaner that voters in the Papine Division have been cooperative with mask wearing and social distancing.

“Based on the list, I could say approximately 15 per cent (have voted) thus far. Not many persons are coming out, so we just pray and hope that they come out and cast their vote,” said Ellington.

Meanwhile, Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) canvasser Ann Henry said the voters are turning out in their numbers.

“This morning we had a massive amount of persons voting. We are trying our very best and even though they aren’t very distant, we still have them at a distance,” she explained.

In the 2016 general elections, the PNP’s Andre Hylton secured 3,159 votes in the Papine Division to the incumbent’s Fayval Williams' 2,875, for a 284 vote margin.

St Andrew Eastern

2020

JLP - Fayval Williams

PNP - Venesha Phillips

2016

JLP - Fayval Williams - 7,176

PNP - Andre Hylton - 7,015