By: P. Uriah Suah | 0881-137-395
The Representative of Nimba County Electoral District #2 and Secretary General of the Nimba County Legislative Caucus, Hon. Nyahn Flomo, has defended the recently passed Threshold Bill that seeks to create 14 additional electoral districts across Liberia, including two new districts for Nimba County.Speaking on the matter yesterday, Rep. Flomo disclosed that the House of Representatives passed the bill on December 9, 2025, and subsequently forwarded it to the Liberian Senate for concurrence.
However, a motion for reconsideration later introduced by one of his colleagues sparked intense debate within the Legislature. According to Rep. Flomo, the bill was crafted based on the official results of the 2022 National Population and Housing Census, which places Liberia’s population at approximately 5.2 million.
He explained that the legislation aligns with constitutional provisions outlined in Articles 80D and 80E of the 1986 Constitution.Article 80D stipulates that each electoral constituency should have an approximately equal population of 20,000 citizens, or such other number as the Legislature may prescribe in keeping with population growth. Meanwhile, Article 80E mandates that following a national census and prior to the next election, the National Elections Commission (NEC) must reapportion constituencies in line with updated population figures to ensure near-equal representation, provided that each constituency remains entirely within a county.
The lawmaker noted that constitutional interpretation and census analysis also require that the total number of electoral constituencies in Liberia must not exceed 100. He explained that dividing the national population of 5.2 million by 20,000 citizens per constituency would far exceed this constitutional limit. Even adopting a higher threshold—such as 50,000 citizens per constituency—would still push the number beyond 100.
“To remain within the constitutional ceiling, the Legislature agreed to add 14 new seats,” Rep. Flomo said. “This decision was influenced by economic considerations and our responsibility to remain compliant with the Constitution.”
With the addition of the 14 new districts, the total number of seats in the House of Representatives would increase from 73 to 87.Rep. Flomo acknowledged that while the new arrangement does not result in perfectly equal constituencies nationwide, it represents a reasonable compromise. Under the new structure, Montserrado County would receive four additional seats, resulting in constituency populations of approximately 91,000 people.
In contrast, counties such as Nimba, Bong, and Lofa would have average constituency populations of about 70,000 each.
He emphasized that this disparity already reflects a compromise, warning that proposals to allocate additional seats equally to every county would further strain the system.
“If we add more seats beyond the agreed 14, some constituencies in larger counties would exceed 96,000 people,” he cautioned. “Given the current economic realities, the country may not be able to sustain such an expansion.”
Drawing historical comparisons, Rep. Flomo referenced the 2008 reapportionment process, which he said disadvantaged larger counties.
At the time, Montserrado County reportedly had a voter registration population of about 901,166 but was limited in the number of constituencies it could hold under the existing framework.
He concluded by reiterating that the Threshold Bill represents a balanced effort to respect constitutional requirements, census data, and Liberia’s economic capacity, while ensuring fairer representation ahead of future elections.
