GECOM taken to court for excluding parties from regional ballot paper
August 20, 2025
The Forward Guyana Movement (FGM) today, moved to the High Court with a Fixed Date Application, alleging that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) has unlawfully omitted duly approved parties from ballots in several regions, in breach of the Constitution and the Representation of the People Act.
“This morning the Forward Guyana Movement has filed a Fixed Date Application in the High Court challenging the Guyana Elections Commission regarding the omission of duly approved political parties from ballots in several regions,” FGM Presidential Candidate, Amanza Walton-Desir, told members of the local media corps.
The application, she disclosed, seeks constitutional relief under the Civil Procedure Rules, arguing that GECOM’s exclusionary ballot practices violate the Constitution of the Republic of Guyana, as well as provisions of the Representation of the People Act.
According to Walton-Desir, “…approved parties were omitted. The Forward Guyana Movement and the Assembly of Liberty and Prosperity (ALP), have been excluded from the ballots in Regions 7, 8 and 9, while ALP is excluded from Regions 1 and 2, despite both parties meeting all legal requirements to contest.”
FGM’s filing also alleges unlawful discrimination against Indigenous communities. She qualified this position, outlining that, “the affected regions are predominantly inhabited by Guyana’s Indigenous Amerindian population. Excluding parties in these regions disproportionately burdens Amerindian voters, amounting to discrimination on the grounds of race and place of origin.”
The party contends that the alleged omissions skew the national outcome, since “by artificially reducing the total national votes available to excluded parties, GECOM’s practice distorts proportional allocation of seats in the National Assembly.”
The motion, filed by Attorney-at-Law Dr. Vivian Williams, of VMW Law, asks the court for urgent remedies, including “a declaration that elections held without full party inclusion are null and void; an order restraining GECOM from excluding any duly qualified party from national ballots; and to direct GECOM to immediately include the Forward Guyana Movement list of candidates in Regions 7, 8 and 9, and ensure that voters in Regions 1, 2, 7, 8 and 9 are not restricted in their electoral participation.”
She was adamant, “…this court challenge is not just about the technicality. It is about giving the people of Guyana the knowledge and fair choices they need to make the right choices come September 1, and indeed, in any election we are going to have in this country. When voters are denied the full truth of their options, democracy itself is weakened.”
