SANTO DOMINGO. – The Dominican Republic is getting ready for the general elections that will be held next Sunday, May 19. In these elections, not only will the President of the Republic be chosen, 32 members of the Senate and 190 members of the Chamber of Deputies will also be elected.
The president of the Central Board Electoral (JCE), Román Andrés Jáquez Liranzo, pointed out that the organization guarantees the holding of elections “integral, civil, safe, peaceful, dignified, transparent and fair.”
For its part, the Dominican Catholic Church urged the population to avoid violent and proselytizing behavior. “May the transparency and organization of the process make us feel proud to live in a country that is climbing steps on the ladder of democracy that we long for. “That which promotes the common good, having justice and freedom as the banners of its implementation,” said the clergy in the editorial titled “Prudence and Wisdom.”
Nine candidates ran for the Presidency of the Republic, but the elections focus on three. This is the current president, Luis Abinader (Modern Revolutionary Party-PRM), former president Leonel Fernández (La Fuerza del Pueblo- FP) and Abel Martínez (Dominican Liberation Party-PLD), who was mayor of Santiago de Los Caballeros.
The other candidates are Miguel Vargas Maldonado (Dominican Revolutionary Party), María Teresa Cabrera (Frente Amplio); Fulgencio Severino Cruz (Homeland for All Movement); Carlos Peña Batista (Generation of Servers Party); Virginia Rodríguez Grullón (Democratic Option Party) and Roque Alejandro Espaillat (Democratic Hope Party).
Electoral offer
To obtain victory in the first round electoral It is required to obtain 50% plus 1 of the votes. Otherwise, the second round is scheduled for June 30.
According to the survey Libre-Greenberg Diary, Luis Abinader would win the elections with 58%, followed by former president Leonel Fernández (25%) and former mayor Abel Martínez (13%).
“Everything has been accomplished, the truth is that I believe it will be an exemplary process,” said the president. Luis Abinader at a press conference held on Tuesday, May 14. The 56-year-old president won his first term in 2020.
Abinader assured that Dominican Republic has made progress in the fight against corruption. He also admitted that the immigration of Haitians has increased.
He asserted that some immigration agents have been prosecuted for corruption. “The borders are very sensitive areas. In the United States they have (the problem) with the Mexican border, they have not yet been able to stop the large amount of narcotics that enter through that border, because there is also corruption and many interests that move” , said.
The Government of Luis Abinader seeks to consolidate power for a new period and arrives at the elections bolstered by the victory in the municipal elections of February 2024.
For his part, Leonel Fernández, 70 years old, who governed the country three times, is the candidate of the La Fuerza del Pueblo party. The politician has denounced that the public administration headed by the Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) has left the Dominican Republic a “legacy of failed management.”
In the opinion of former President Fernández, among the country’s key issues are economic growth, employment, inflation, public debt, and the crisis in the productive sectors.
For his part, former mayor Abel Martínez (Dominican Liberation Party-PLD) has said that each polling station is a key territory in the elections and emphasized that his political organization will defend the vote tooth and nail. Martínez, 52, emphasized on May 14: “The elections are not defined. They are defined by the vote of each Dominican. “We have to work for the people and for a secure future.”
Election observation
On May 13, the Electoral Observation Mission (MOE) of the Organization of American States (OAS) for the elections presidential, senatorial and representative offices began its work in the Dominican Republic.
In this sense, it was reported that the mission is headed by Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle, former president of Chile, and is made up of 84 people of 19 nationalities. They will monitor aspects such as electoral organization and technology, voting abroad, electoral violence, electoral justice, political-electoral financing, women’s political participation, and campaigns, media and digital communication.
@snederr
Source: Central Electoral Board (JCE) / Diario Libre / Daily Listin / OAS
