Electoral registration down in the CIV

The number of registrations has dropped since the second week of September. To date, nearly 760,000 voters have been registered out of an initial target of 4 million set by the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP).

Electoral registry agents note that registrations are rare and that they can go days without receiving any visitors. "It's always like this these days," they state, "registrants are not legion."

The registration process is simple: it takes three minutes on average to verify that the citizen's Unique National Identification Number (NINU) is correctly recorded in the database. Only one person has encountered problems with their card since the center opened.

The CEP has scheduled registrations until October 13, 2026, but several voices have been raised to criticize this in-person registration method. Wadner Edouard, national coordinator of Soleil and the RDNP, is advocating for online registration or the deployment of mobile teams.

Several citizens interviewed are unaware of the new registration requirements ahead of the elections. "I have always voted without being required to register," complains one voter, "I don't see the need for it."

Critiques and suggestions

Critics suggest that the CEP should make online registration possible to facilitate greater voter participation. Wadner Edouard also proposes deploying mobile teams to public markets, cockfighting arenas, churches, and peristyles.