The Organization of American States (OAS) Electoral Observation Mission (EOM)
for the Sunday, 5 July 2020 presidential and congressional elections arrived on Monday, 29 June in the Dominican Republic. The mission is made of more than 80 experts and observers of 18 nationalities. The head of the mission, former Chilean President Eduardo Frei, is monitoring the process from Santiago de Chile using virtual platforms.
According to a statement from the regional body, OAS Secretary for Strengthening Democracy Francisco Guerrero is leading the mission on the ground. The OAS explains that given the global health situation’s challenges, the EOM will combine experts and observers’ presence in the country with some of its specialists working remotely. The EOM will deploy a team of more than 70 people in the country, made up of OAS officials, specialists in electoral organization and technology, and international observers residing in the Dominican Republic, who will observe the process in the different provinces of the country. International observers have been selected through a competitive process and have no political ties, to guarantee their neutrality. The EOM will also have observers in Madrid, Miami and New York, who will monitor the voting of Dominicans living abroad.
Specialists in women’s political participation, political financing, electoral justice, and other Mission members who carry out support tasks are working from their home countries. Since last week, these specialists have initiated meetings with the different actors of the elections through virtual platforms.
This will be the eighteenth electoral observation mission that the OAS has deployed in the Dominican Republic.
Following the elections, the EOM/OAS will present a preliminary report with its observations and recommendations to contribute to the strengthening of the electoral processes in the Dominican Republic.
30 June 2020