The Central Electoral Board (JCE) approved the protocol for the use of automated voting machines together with a hand count of the votes. The mechanism is set to be used in the upcoming municipal elections of 16 February 2020. The JCE also approved an electronic digital fingerprint reader would be used to reduce fraud. The measures had been proposed by the different political parties last week.
The JCE approved the use of up to 10,000 voting machines with parallel manual vote counting in an equal number of polling stations where the JCE says there are significant complications for counting the preferential votes. The devices are to be used in the following places: National District, Higuey, San Francisco de Macoris, Moca, La Romana, La Vega, Bonao, Puerto Plata, San Cristobal, San Juan de la Maguana, San Pedro de Macoris, Santiago de los Caballeros, East Santo Domingo, West Santo Domingo, North Santo Domingo and Los Alcarrizos. In the remaining polling stations throughout the country, voting will be done using the traditional printed ballot method.
Once again, voters will be marked by a durable ink on the index finger after voting.
Voting results will be transmitted and published once each polling station has finished its work at the close of voting in all of the country. Voting hours are to be from 7 am until 5 pm, with only the exceptions established in the law.
With the measures, the automated voting system would be applied to only 60% of the 16,498 voting stations. In those stations, hand-counting using the vouchers issued by the computerized voting machines would be carried out on the same day.
The announcement of limiting of automated voting machines to the big cities was protested by the senator for San Cristobal, Tommy Galán. Galán questioned why the JCE would allow automated voting only in 16 municipal jurisdictions when it had purportedly purchased voting machines for all the voting stations.
He also said it doesn’t make sense to use different systems in the same province. “Logically, if they are going to hand count 100% of the votes in each voting station, why not used automated voting in all?”
The JCE also proposed the hiring of PKF Guzman and Tapia, working with the Interamerican Union of Electoral Organizations (UNIORE).
The contracting of Costa Rican firm, Deloitte & Touche met with general rejection. The media carried complaints that the firm had a widespread conflict of interest.
Read more in Spanish:
El Nacional
Diario Libre
Listin Diario
Z101 Digital
Listin Diario
2 December 2019