BY:
L.N REKLAI
October 3, 2016 (Koror) TRO is denied at absentee ballots
casted for the national primary election on September 27, 2016 will be counted
today.
Court order denied counting of Temporary Restraining Order
and Preliminary Injunction to Richard Silmai, Joel Toribiong, Ephraim
Ngirachitei, Moeses Yobech, Israel Demei and Richard Sundei’s (plaintiffs)
request to stop counting of absentee ballots received by the Palau Election Commission
for the national primary election held last week.
According to the court order, the plaintiff’s request is
denied based on the fact that it did not meet the legal standard for granting
such request. Under the legal standard, the plaintiffs failed to show that they
have a likelihood of success based on the merits of their case that they will “suffer
irreparable harm” if not granted injunction, and that public interest will be
harmed if injunction is not granted.
In denying the plaintiffs motion, the court feels that
the defendant’s (Palau Election Commission) argument is “through and compelling”
and demonstrated that the plaintiffs failed to show that their interpretations
of the laws governing this case will be adopted by the court.
Moreover, the court did not rant the TRO based on the
plaintiffs argument that they will “suffer irreparable harm” if injunction is
not granted. The plaintiffs did not show proof that the court does
not have the authority to invalidate the results of the election and order a
new election once the ballots have been granted. The plaintiffs did not show
proof that the court did not have such authority.
Defendants (PEC) argue that many on-island voters whose
votes have already been counted would be invalidated if plaintiffs win on the
merits of their arguments those votes cannot be accounted for or identified
now.
Plaintiffs attempt to justify Palau’s adoption of “single
district” somehow changed the registration system failed because it did not
address voters who registered before the “adoption of single senatorial
district” or those voters who registered outside of Palau but voted in person
in Palau.
Those voters have already been counted and it would cause
a significant cost to the public plaintiffs’ argument succeeds.
The court denied the request because it would not be in
the public interest to grant such injunction.
Source: Island Times
