Despite reports of a slow day at the polls for the local government election, now underway, the Electoral Commission of Jamaica (ECJ) is reporting that there was a slight increase in voter turnout within the first few hours of voting.

According to the ECJ’s data, up to 10:30 a.m. this morning, there was 11.19 per cent in voter turnout.

This is a 1.26 per cent increase compared to the 9.93 per cent seen at the same time in the last local government election in 2016.

A recent Don Anderson poll projects a 36 to 37 per cent increase in voter turnout, despite a pattern of low voter turnout in the Local Government Election.

In 2016, there was an overall 30.06 per cent voter turnout for the local government election.

Polling stations opened at 7 a.m. this morning and are expected to close at 5:00 p.m. this evening.

Some 2,031,356 Jamaicans are registered to vote in the municipal election.