Former President Leonel Fernandez denies he is on the campaign trail. He says his political party, People’s Force (FP) is immersed in an organizational phase. Fernandez, who at the time was the president of the PLD, founded the FP after accusing President Danilo Medina of rigging the PLD primary in October 2019.
Temístocles Montás, the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) vice president, said that the party is at a disadvantage. He explained that the two other leading parties, the ruling Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) and Fernández’s FP, are quite clear on who their presidential candidates will be for the 2024 presidential election. President Luis Abinader can opt for a second term in office in 2024 and Leonel Fernández can run for office again.
The leader of the PLD, former President Danilo Medina, nevertheless, is impeded to run for office by the 2015 Constitution passed during the last Fernandez term in office. Montas says that the PLD needs to decide who will be the presidential candidate and thus the flurry of activities by the pre-candidates. Those that aspire so far are former Vice President Margarita Cedeño, Santiago Mayor Abel Martínez, former Minister of Environment Francisco Domínguez Brito. A media story said that former PLD presidential candidate, former Public Works Minister Gonzalo Castillo could consider running again.
On 30 September, a day after the JCE note was published, the PLD called a meeting with several of the presidential candidacy aspirants. “We dealt with issues related to their activities and their absolute and decisive integration into the restructuring and renewal process that is taking place within our organization,” said Charles Mariotti, spokesperson for the PLD.
The meeting was attended by former President Danilo Medina, who is the president of the PLD. Also, party vice president Temístocles Montás, and the heads of liaisons and electoral affairs, Ruben Bichara and Danilo Diaz, respectively.
Maritza Hernández, Abel Martínez, Margarita Cedeño and Francisco Domínguez attended as aspiring pre-candidates.
Before the meeting, Montás had said in a TV interview that the candidates for the PLD presidential candidacy have the authorization of the party to enter into contact with the party militants and to make known their proposals and ideas concerning their aspirations.
The Central Electoral Board (JCE), the government entity in charge of organizing the presidential election for 2024, ruled that the campaign activities were premature and in violation of the Political Parties and Electoral Regime laws. The JCE said in a statement that the violation could be punished with the banning from political activities of those that violate the laws.
The laws establish that political pre-campaigns need to be kept out of the media, and meetings be strictly for party members and off limits to the general public. The law establishes that pre-campaign activities will open on the first Sunday of July 2023 to select candidates to run in the party primaries.
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Diario Libre
El Nuevo Diario
1 October 2021