Voter cards get biometric update in Dominican Republic, Bahamas

The Dominican Republic is hoping its new digital identity and voter registration cards will have global reach, according to a brief from Dominican Today.

Called a “major modernization,” the new cards are being positioned to “transform the country’s Civil Registry system.” A major feature is that they are valid internationally for Dominicans living abroad, available at consular offices in select cities.

The cards are integrated with digital capabilities for real-time identity verification via mobile devices, which officials say will establish the Dominican Republic within the global digital identity ecosystem.

Likewise, the Bahamas is looking to “modernize the electoral framework” with new biometric voter’s cards, according to the Nassau Guardian, which reports on a draft copy of the Parliamentary Elections (Amendment) Bill, 2025 tabled this week.

The bill would require voters to provide updated biometrics every ten years as part of a voter verification exercise, and to “improve the accuracy, security, and efficiency of the electoral process, significantly reducing the risk of fraud or tampering.”

Voters whose biometrics are already on file with the passport office can consent to have them transferred, to avoid having to enroll for the voter cards in person.

Draft regulations say a biometric voter’s card must be produced from polycarbonate material; include a printed facial photograph and signature; include embedded security features; and “contain encoded data comprising the holder’s name, date of birth, place of birth, voter registration number, constituency, polling division, national insurance number and biometric identifiers.”

The government’s critics have expressed concerns that the process was being rushed. Tribune 424 quotes a retort from Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis, who dismisses those claims as political theater.

“We are not introducing a law on biometrics, ya know; what we are introducing is the process under which we can get to biometrics,” Mr Davis told the House of Assembly this week.

Debate on the bill is expected to begin in the coming weeks.

Article Topics

Bahamas  |  biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  Caribbean  |  digital identity  |  Dominican Republic  |  elections  |  voter registration