From Caribbean News Now

NASSAU, Bahamas — A former foreign minister from Ghana, Hanna Tetteh, will lead a team of Commonwealth election observers to The Bahamas for the country’s general election scheduled for May 10, 2017. The Organization of American States (OAS) will also deploy an electoral observation mission.

This is the first time the Commonwealth will observe elections to The Bahaman parliament and the second such mission that the OAS has deployed in The Bahamas. The first OAS mission was sent to the May 2012 general elections.

The Commonwealth observer group, following an invitation from the government of The Bahamas, will consider all aspects of the electoral process and assess whether the election has been conducted according to the standards for democratic elections to which The Bahamas has committed itself.

The Commonwealth group will be in The Bahamas between May 4 and 13 inclusive.

The OAS mission will be headed by the ombudsperson of the Organization, Sherry Tross, and will begin its deployment on Wednesday.

The interim representative of The Bahamas to the OAS, Chet Neymour, thanked the OAS General Secretariat for accepting the invitation and said, “With a view to adhering to the best international practices, the government of The Bahamas believes that the presence of international observers will enhance the credibility of the election results. It is for this reason that The Bahamas welcomes the Organization of American States electoral observation mission.”

For his part, OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro said, “The OAS is committed to accompanying The Bahamas in this important democratic exercise. We look forward to the successful conclusion of the process and to hearing the authentic voice and will of the people of your great democracy.”

IMAGE: Interim Representative of The Bahamas to the OAS, Chet Neymour (L) and OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro signing the election mission agreement on Tuesday at OAS headquarters in Washington, DC. Photo: OAS

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