Voters Trucking, A Nightmare to Liberia’s Democracy

NIMBA, Saclepea: The runoff election is witnessing a very low turnout as compared to the first round on October 10, 2023. A spotlight on Nimba County shows very few participants. 

Larry Saye of District #7 blamed the low turnout on voter trucking. According to him, people who were trucked by mostly representative candidates could not afford transportation in the runoff.

“The first one people was plenty but this one, people are low… the people (Rep. Candidates) that are looking for the job, they can truck people but time for the runoff, they can’t bring them back,” Saye said.

Abel Saye, a resident of Saclepea says voter trucking is great cheating that he wants the government to eradicate 

“I am recommending to the Liberian government to eradicate voters trucking, it's not correct, it’s great cheating,” he added “If it continues, in 2029, the next elections it will become cautious it will become a problem,” Saye said.

To encourage participation, he also wants NEC to allow people who were previously trucked by candidates and cannot afford to transport themselves, to be allowed to vote from their respective locations.

“NEC should allow people to vote from anywhere now that it is only about the Presidency," he said. 

Unlike Abel Saye and Larry Saye, Veronica Koryenkah believes that the low turnout is mostly caused by candidates including presidential, Senatorial, and representative who did not win in the first round.

“First time, when the representatives were voting, because they wanted the vote, they trucked people to come here, now that they lost the elections, so they don’t have money to truck again,” Madam Koryenkah said.

She wants Liberians to vote where they are and not be carried away by petit cash.