
In a press conference in which journalists were not allowed to ask questions, supporters of the former President Leonel Fernandez denounced that Venezuelan political strategist Juan José Rendón was conceiving an ambitious smear campaign that would seek to lower the former President’s highest ranking among eligible contenders for the PLD presidential candidacy in the 2020 general elections.
“We ask the Dominican people to remain on alert before the dirty campaign, false information and manipulation that is intended to develop against Leonel Fernández because it represents the defense of our Constitution and the democratic values of the Dominican people,” says the press release on the event.
“The team of men and women who, along with the Dominican people, accompany Dr. Leonel Fernández, will not retreat in this fight, and these dark sectors are warned that we will not allow them to get away with this chicanery that seeks to bury the hope of continuing the paths of progress, development and social justice,” states the document.
In a tweet, Rendon denied his participation in any such activity.
The PLD is divided between the followers of former President Leonel Fernandez, who by the 2015 Constitution can run for President, and those of President Danilo Medina who are calling for a constitutional change so he can seek re-election. Polls show Medina is the leading PLD politician, but the 2015 Constitution that enabled him to seek the presidency in 2016, bans him from running for another term.
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Hoy
El Nacional
El Dia
29 January 2019