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Claim: A Facebook user has alleged that a candidate vying for election must be a registered voter of the constituency they seek to represent.
Verdict: False! Research conducted by DUBAWA shows that the Liberian Constitution and relevant electoral regulations do not require a candidate to be a registered voter in the constituency they seek to represent.
Full Text
Following the disqualification of aspirant Justin Oldpa Yeazehn, popularly known as Prophet Key, from the April 22, 2025, Nimba County Senatorial by-election, public discussions erupted across social media.
The National Elections Commission (NEC) disqualified Yeazehn for submitting a fraudulent Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) ID during the nomination process, a move that drew significant attention online.
Amid these discussions, Facebook user B Boima Magona alleged that:
“As a fundamental requirement, any candidate vying for election must be a registered voter of the constituency they seek to represent.”
This claim has since gone viral on social media and has been repeated on several community radio stations across Liberia, prompting DUBAWA to investigate its accuracy.
Verification
DUBAWA first contacted the claimant to determine the source of his claim. However, as of April 24, 2025, the claimant has not yet responded to the inquiry.
We then called Prince Dunbar, the Director of Communication at the National Election Commission, to authenticate the claim. In response, the NEC Communication Director referred our researcher to the following legal references:
DUBAWA reviewed Article 30 of the 1986 constitution of Liberia and discovered that:
“Citizens of Liberia who meet the following qualifications are eligible to become members of the Legislature.
a) For the Senate, have attained the age of 30 years, and for the House of Representatives, have attained the age of 25 years;
b) Be domiciled in the country or constituency to be represented not less than one year prior to the time of the election and be a taxpayer.”
Notably, a candidate is not required to be a registered voter of that specific constituency. What is legally required is domicile, not voter registration in that area.
Additionally, Article 8.2 of the NEC Candidate Nomination Regulations outlines documentation requirements for candidates, including a Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) ID. Still, it does not specify that the BVR ID must be from the same constituency.
Screenshot of the candidate nomination regulation
Conclusion
The claim that a candidate must be a registered voter of the constituency they wish to represent is false. Liberia’s electoral laws require candidates to be domiciled in the constituency for at least one year before the election and be a taxpayer, but not necessarily a registered voter in that constituency.
