Heavy blizzard conditions are forecast for East Iceland on election day. The National Electoral Commission is meeting with district electoral committees today to decide whether and how to respond, as it is permitted to postpone elections if necessary, reports RÚV. The weather is expected to improve significantly by Sunday.
The commission is specifically addressing the adverse weather forecast for Saturday when voters are set to head to the polls. The outlook for East Iceland is grim, with heavy snowfall and strong winds that could make it challenging to transport ballot boxes to counting locations.
Hlynur Jónsson, chairman of the electoral committee in Múlaþing, does not expect difficulties flying the ballots to Akureyri. However, he noted that the ballots could be counted locally, if necessary.
“In such cases, the district’s electoral committee has the authority to appoint a regional election committee to handle the counting. While I cannot say for certain, I assume the counting would take place in Egilsstaðir. This would involve counting votes not only from this municipality but also from Fjardabyggð, Fljótsdalur, and possibly Vopnafjörður,” Hlynur explained.
“This is perhaps the biggest challenge of holding elections in winter — weather can disrupt plans. We’ve been closely monitoring the forecast, and at the moment, it doesn’t look great. There’s snow and high winds expected. First, voters need to be able to reach polling stations, and second, election materials need to be transported between locations. In our case, election materials must be brought from Djúpivogur, Seyðisfjörður, and Borgarfjörður Eystri to Egilsstaðir. From there, they will be flown to Akureyri for counting after polls close,” Hlynur said.
Additionally, election materials from Fjardabyggð must be collected and transported across Fagridalur to Egilsstaðir.
“The National Electoral Commission is evaluating the situation. We will, of course, take every possible measure to ensure the process runs smoothly. However, the law does allow elections to be postponed if transportation is completely impossible. Ultimately, it is the National Electoral Commission that makes that decision,” Hlynur concluded.
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