All systems go for election

Everything is in place for the general election to be held Commonwealth-wide tomorrow.

Commonwealth Election Commission executive director Gregorio Sablan said his office is expecting a problem-free election after preparing for over two months.

ÅgWe’re all set. We’ve done our preparations in advance. I have got a good team, a bunch of dedicated staff who has worked hard in the past couple of months and even harder in the past two weeks. No words can express my appreciation for their hard work,Åh Sablan said.

Four candidates—incumbent Gov. Juan N. Babauta of the Republican Party, House Speaker Benigno Fitial of the Covenant Party, former governor Froilan Tenorio of the Democratic Party, and independent candidate Rep. Heinz Hofschneider—will fight it out for the top post in the Commonwealth.

Polling places will open at 7am and close at 7pm tomorrow, Nov. 5, 2005. An alcohol ban will be effective during this period.

For Election District 1, the designated polling places are San Antonio Elementary School, San Vicente Elementary School, Koblerville Elementary School, Kagman Community Center, and Northern Marianas College Campus.

Election District 2 voters may cast their ballots in the Saipan and Northern Islands Municipal Council Office.

Voters within Election District 3 may cast their votes in Oleai Elementary School, Garapan Elementary School, or in the Northern Islands.

Voters residing within Election District 4 are directed to go to the Tanapag Youth Learning Center, Gregorio T. Camacho Elementary School, or the House of Representatives Chamber on Capitol Hill.

Tinian voters may go to the Tinian Elementary School, while Rota voters may cast their ballots at the Rota Recreational Center.

Sablan expressed confidence in the election workers who will be assisting the commission in conducting the election.

ÅgMost of them have candidates that they support. But they are very conscientious. They took an oath to carry out their duties as election workers in a nonpartisan manner,Åh he said.

The Election Commission also ran successful tests on the tabulating machines that will be used after the polling close on Saturday evening.

Each of the two machines, provided by the Nebraska-based Election Systems and Software, can tabulate at a rate of 100 ballots per minute if the ballots are properly cast.

The machines will automatically stop in case of an ÅgovervoteÅh in any one race, Sablan said.

The tabulation will begin at 12 midnight at the Multi-Purpose Center. Two observers at a time from each political party will be allowed to monitor the counting.

Ballots from the Northern Islands, Tinian and Rota are expected to be counted first. One of the tabulating machines will be designated solely for ballots from Election District 1, where 6,123 of the 15,118 total voters are registered.

The Election Commission is also prepared for a possible power outage, Sablan said.

In case of a blackout, reserve batteries will automatically feed power into the tabulating machines. With an estimated life of over 30 minutes, these batteries should be enough to keep the machines running until the power generator at the tabulation site is brought up.