DRC ELECTIONS UPDATE: VOTING MATERIAL ARRIVES AS

UNCLAS KINSHASA 000763 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV KPKO KDEM CG SUBJECT: DRC ELECTIONS UPDATE: VOTING MATERIAL ARRIVES AS BALLOTS SENT FOR PRINTING REF: A. KINSHASA 676 ¶B. KINSHASA 681 ¶1. (U) The Independent Electoral Commission (CEI) announced May 9 that it had received a first shipment of nearly 60 tons of voting material to be used in the DRC's July 30 elections. The elections kits, which were manufactured and delivered from South Africa, contain such items as voting booths, ballot boxes, and official forms and other material to be used in the planned 53,000 voting stations across the country. A similar shipment of elections material arrived in Kisangani May 8, while another was delivered to Lubumbashi May 10. A series of flights from South Africa will continue deliveries to these three distribution points until May 16. CEI officials have estimated it will take approximately six weeks to deliver all 2,500 tons of material throughout the DRC. ¶2. (U) Meanwhile, the CEI sent to South Africa on May 8 the final design of the DRC's presidential ballot. The ballot will be printed on one single page, with three columns of 11 candidates each. Each of the 33 candidates will be listed with their photograph, name, party logo, and party name. The CEI has said previously that the printing of the 25 million ballots will take nearly five weeks, while an additional five weeks will be necessary to deliver the printed ballots to all voting stations. MEECE