A youth advocacy group welcomed the arrival of its first cohort of young voters to participate in the upcoming General Election.

Bermuda Youth Connect oversaw the arrival of about 20 overseas students to take part in today’s early voting opportunity.

A spokeswoman for the group said: “Over the past three weeks, we’ve worked alongside generous donors who share our unwavering belief that no Bermudian student should be denied the right to vote because they are abroad pursuing higher education.”

The BYC’s #HomeToVote campaign was designed to offer Bermudians studying overseas a chance to vote in the election, to be held on February 18.

The group earlier raised concerns about the timing of the poll in a joint statement with Bermuda Is Love and political commentator Taj-Donville Outerbridge.

In their letter, as well as in criticisms from others, it was claimed that the Progressive Labour Party’s call for a February election prevented young Bermudians studying abroad from exercising their right to vote.

The party later announced in its platform that it would introduce absentee voting for eligible overseas students.

A spokeswoman for the BYC said that more than 100 people signed up for the #HomeToVote campaign.

She admitted that most were unable to attend because of academic commitments and that 50 students were expected to arrive in total.

The spokeswoman added that students came in from the United States, Canada and Britain.

A British database revealed that 480 Bermudians studied there in the 2022-23 school year.

A similar US database showed that the country had 237 Bermudians studying during the 2023-24 school year, while the Canadian government website said there were 65 Bermudians studying in the country in 2023.

The BYC was assisted by a private donor who chose to remain anonymous.

The donor said: “Students given this opportunity must exercise their democratic right to vote and be prepared to hold each government accountable in relation to the outcome.”

They noted that students were not flown in based on their political leanings.

The donor added: “This is a democratic effort and, hopefully, this is the last election without absentee ballots.”

Nadhiri Worrell, a student at the University of Leicester in England, who flew in last night, thanked the BYC for enabling her access to voting.

She said: “Their unwavering commitment to a better Bermuda has not only enabled youth participation in voting, but has also fostered a powerful sense of unity among young Bermudians.”

Ms Worrell added: “This experience has connected students with like-minded individuals, reinforcing that we are not just observers of Bermuda’s future; we are active participants in shaping it.

“The opportunity to participate in our democracy should not be determined by outdated systems or political inconvenience.”

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