Polling stations open in Gorinchem for municipal re-election
Polling stations have opened in Gorinchem for the municipal council elections. A majority of the council decided last month to re-run the election due to suspicions of voter fraud. Most polling stations are open between 7:30 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.
Reports of fraud emerged immediately after the elections on March 18. There were indications of voters being pressured to submit a proxy. According to NOS, this occurred primarily within the Turkish community.
Several polling stations had a remarkably high number of votes cast by proxy. At one polling station, 135 of the 650 votes were cast by proxy. At this station, a candidate on the ballot visited five times, each time accompanied by one or two voters with multiple proxies.
Mayor Reinie Melissand pressed charges for various forms of voter fraud, including the solicitation of proxies and the influence of voters. The Public Prosecution Service (OM) has launched a criminal investigation.
An OM spokesperson told NOS that the preliminary investigation is still ongoing and they don’t expect to provide any clarity anytime soon. But Gorinchem cannot wait for the outcome of that investigation. Dutch electoral law states that new elections must be held within 30 days if the council decides to do so. The previous municipal council made the decision on March 31.
Given that this re-election is happening during the May holidays, there is a chance that many votes will again be cast by proxy. Mayor Melissant visited a mosque on Friday and urged people to vote in person if they can. “Voting by proxy is allowed, but it is better not to do it. And be aware that it is being closely monitored,” she said.
The ballots also included information about the elections in six languages - Dutch, English, Arabic, Turkish, Polish, and Ukrainian. And the municipality gave the chairpersons of the polling stations an extra briefing, instructing them to pay extra attention to proxies.
The polling stations close at 9:00. The municipality expects to announce the turnout percentage around 9:30 and the preliminary results around midnight.
