By TANEKA THOMPSON

Tribune News Editor

tmthompson@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie last night suggested that he is not yet ready to set an election date, telling The Tribune shortly after being re-elected party leader that the pace of voter registration was still too slow.

He spoke to The Tribune on the sidelines of the Progressive Liberal Party’s national convention, after he was embraced by a crush of supporters who were all eager to touch and speak with the nation’s leader as he moved through the crowded ballroom of the Melia Nassau Beach Hotel.

“I’ve just been re-elected leader of the Progressive Liberal Party, which is a wonderful experience to have,” Mr Christie said, when asked when he was going to set an election date.

“In fact, I’m so gratified to see the people have given me such an overwhelming support. I’m going to sit for a day or two, talk to colleagues, see where we are moving forward and determine the extent to which we must put more resources into registration because that is the be all and end all. Registration defines when elections take place and so we’re going to be governed by that.”

When asked if he would possibly make an announcement on the election date next month, he shied away from specifics.

“We’re going to be governed by the rate at which people are registered,” he said. “There’s always a number that you are looking for. We’re not at that number now.”

Some party observers had speculated that Mr Christie may have made an announcement pertaining to an election date during his victory speech, after he resoundingly trounced leadership challenger Alfred Sears. As he spoke to the raucous crowd, many shouted for him to “ring the bell” and let voters know when they would be heading to the polls.

While there has been some uptick in the pace of voter registration over the past few weeks, the numbers are much lower when compared to this same period ahead of the 2012 election.

As of January 17, some 80,000 had registered. The 2012 voter registry consisted of 172,000 voters, 134,000 of whom had registered by November 2011.

Earlier this month, Minister of National Security Dr Bernard Nottage expressed concern about the “unprecedented” pace of registration, saying the government has sought to make it more convenient for people to register by increasing registration sites and reducing restrictions.