Sudan election, day 3

Still more from Deborah on the election as seen from Juba:

Today was supposed to be the final day of polling, but because many polling stations opened late or not at all on the first two days, the government decided to extend voting through Thursday, April 15. I’ll be staying in Juba for the remainder of polling, but will only catch the beginning of counting here.

We saw a lot of the same today as in other days- voters not finding their names on the voters lists, walking for hours from village to village to find their proper station, and the secrecy of the ballot being compromised for some illiterate voters who were helped by party agents and poll workers in casting their ballot. (See photos) The number of people at the polls declined dramatically on the third day, likely because most people who were going to vote had voted already and those who had not just simply could not figure out where to vote.

The enthusiasm observed in previous days in and around the polling station abated noticibly and some voters indicated that they were starting to give up on voting after they had walked to two or three polling centers. When asked if they thought the elections were free and fair, some responded that the National Election Commission had failed them in this election. None of the voters we spoke with said that they believed  that any political party or institution had rigged the election. Independent candidates we spoke with said otherwise, in some cases accusing the SPLM out right of using its control of state institutions to keep a tight grip on the electoral process and intimidate voters. It was reported on Tuesday that two voters killed and one candidate wounded in Unity State in South Sudan. It’s hard to determine whether voters share this view but are afraid to express it, or if they actually mean it when they say they simply disappointed with the government’s ability to carry out a clean process.