Catalan election staff don PPE for contagious voters

Citizens who were randomly selected to work at polling stations during Catalonia's regional elections Sunday in Spain dressed up with full body suits and other personal protective equipment (PPE) as they waited for potentially contagious voters to cast their ballots.

Local authorities had asked voters who are either infected with COVID-19 or quarantined due to recent contact with an infected person to wait for the final hour before polls close at 8 p.m. (1900 GMT) to cast their ballots.

Only a handful of voters showed up during that last hour. The recommendation didn't stop other non-infected voters from going to the polls at the same time. Some said they preferred voting in the evening to avoid the morning queues and felt safe voting. Some 5.3 million people were eligible to vote in Spain's north eastern region of Catalonia.

With Spain still suffering from a post-Christmas spike in coronavirus infections, authorities set up polling station in large spaces with plenty of ventilation including food markets, school pavilions and even the former bull ring of Tarragona. Polls predict a tight race between the Socialists and the two leading pro-secession parties, the left-wing Republic Left of Catalonia and the center-right Together for Catalonia.

The wealthy region with its own language spoken alongside Spanish has been the source of Spain's biggest political crisis in decades since separatists leaders failed in a 2017 secession bid in defiance of court warnings it was unconstitutional.

Officials are expected to announce preliminary results around 10pm, but a record number of mail-in votes may mean the full results will take longer than usual.

Image: AP