September 3, 2025 — The Carter Center has commended Guyana for the peaceful and orderly conduct of its General and Regional Elections, but urged the country’s next leaders to pursue key reforms to ensure greater transparency, fairness, and public confidence in the electoral system.

In a preliminary statement released today,  the international observer mission noted that election day proceeded smoothly, with voters exercising their rights in an atmosphere free from violence and obstruction. Carter Center observers visited 234 polling stations across all 10 electoral districts, as well as 17 tabulation centers, and reported that polling staff, party agents, and Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) officials carried out their duties with integrity and professionalism.

While acknowledging this positive outcome, the Center stressed that significant reforms are still needed. Among its key recommendations are:

• Strengthening campaign finance regulations.

• Ensuring greater access to public information.

• Implementing legal provisions to remove deceased voters from the voter list, including procedures for those who died overseas.

• Advancing constitutional reforms to establish a more independent, less politicized election commission and to reinforce checks and balances in government.

The mission highlighted the heightened importance of these reforms given Guyana’s rapid economic growth from offshore oil discoveries, which has raised political stakes and intensified scrutiny of electoral processes.

The Carter Center welcomed the establishment of a Constitutional Reform Commission in the last parliament and urged future commissioners to engage meaningfully with citizens on changes to the electoral system.

Although the preliminary statement covered pre-election activities, election day, and early tabulation, the Center emphasized that the vote tabulation process is still ongoing and official results have not yet been declared. Observers will remain in Guyana to monitor developments and will issue a final report after the resolution of any electoral disputes.

The Carter Center has observed elections in Guyana since 1991 and is widely recognized as a leader in international election monitoring, with more than 125 missions conducted worldwide.

See full statement here: https://www.cartercenter.org/resources/pdfs/news/peace_publications/election_reports/guyana/guyana-preliminary-statement-090325.pdf

(SOURCE: The Carter Center)