The civil society group Citizen Participation (PC), an affiliate of Transparency International, has called upon the Central Electoral Board (JCE) to ensure compliance with Article 58 of the Political Parties Law 38-18. The article establishes that parties can “reserve” up to 20% of the election spots for their candidates, releasing these from having to participate in the primaries.
The group is questioning the interpretation by the party whereby the reserved status would be applied to the totality of the 4,113 positions that are up for election in the 2020 general elections, rather than separately at the legislative and municipal levels.
Citizen Participation rejects the PLD announcement. PC says if it is approved, parties could reserve the nominations of senators, deputies, mayors, deputy mayors, and municipal directors, and leave the rank and file to elect city council members and the members of the directors of the city districts.
The civil society group asks: “Why to spend millions on a primary process to get candidates for the lowest of offices?” PC says the announcement by the PLD would just defeat any attempt at internal democracy among the political parties.
It calls for the JCE to act in the name of real democracy. “This is another brilliant opportunity for the JCE to take up the defense of the people’s interests….by preserving the rights of the electorate to choose the candidates,” concludes the electoral watchdog organization.
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El Nacional
10 June 2019