Former Vice President Jacinto Peynado, the strongest candidate of the Partido Reformista Social Cristiano in the unlikely event that former President Joaqu?n Balaguer would decide not to run for President, opposes a new PLD-PRSC alliance. Jacinto Peynado was the PRSC’s presidential candidate in the 1996 election. But he didn’t have a chance when the party’s leader, Balaguer recommended that his personal supporters vote for Partido de la Liberaci?n Dominicana presidential candidate, today President Leonel Fern?ndez. The PLD presidential candidate, Danilo Medina, who was the key negotiator of that PLD-PRSC alliance, hopes for a repeat, now in favor of his own candidacy. Peynado campaigned over the weekend in Santo Domingo. The activity marked the start of the PRSC presidential campaign, despite Balaguer not having formally announced that he will run. Balaguer is being relaunched as a politician with a rejuvenated image, despite he will be 93 this September. Balaguer has said he needs time to decide whether he will run for the PRSC or not. He has said it will all depend on his health. "We firmly believe we have to respect the request of doctor Balaguer, but that should not be used as an excuse to cross our arms and do nothing and that way be disqualified. The PRSC cannot afford the luxury of letting its followers despair and seek another alternative," he said. He denounced that in the PRSC there are many groups that favor a new alliance with the PLD. El Nacional newspaper carried a recent headline announcing the possibility of a Balaguer-Medina ticket. Danilo Medina is the PLD’s presidential candidate. In his campaigning, Jacinto Peynado criticized the government for doing little to avoid a decline in national exports, the abandoning of farming, increase in electricity billings, increase in the cost of living, fall in tourism, and strikes of the public hospital physicians and nurses.
