Latin American elections expert Orlando Goncalves has shared the theory on 106.5FM Zol radio talk show that President Danilo Medina and his supporters really would like closed, simultaneous primaries to be held but have been supporting open primaries to look like the good guy when eventually voting for the closed simultaneous primaries.
Another theory is that politicians really couldn’t care less if the Political Parties Bill and the Electoral Regime Bill are passed because they stand to gain most from the present laxly ruled regime. Others are pressuring the Central Electoral Board (JCE) to put in place the rules, saying that a law is not necessary for the JCE to take firm actions to regulate the electoral activity.
Meanwhile, the Political Parties Bill has stagnated in the Chamber of Deputies after open simultaneous primaries legislation passed in the Senate. The ruling PLD party has a majority in both the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies. But, there are differences of opinion regarding open primaries among the two factions of the PLD – one lead by President Danilo Medina and the other lead by former President Leonel Fernandez.
The 2015 Constitution impedes Medina from seeking re-election. Polls indicate that within the party, President Leonel Fernandez and his wife Vice President Margarita Cedeño are the strongest eligible pre-candidates.
The Political Parties and Electoral Regime bill and related legislation have been deliberated in Congress for around 20 years.
21 May 2018
