Former President Leonel Fernandez disputes the argument of governance made by supporters of President Hipolito Mejia, who stress that the PLD would not be able to govern as it will have only have one senator and 42 deputies. Since 2002, the ruling PRD party has controlled the Presidency and has majority in the Senate and is the leading political party in the Chamber of Deputies, the other house of Congress.
Speaking in Santiago on campaign, Fernandez, running for the PLD, told the press that he prefers to govern with only one senator that may defend the interests of most Dominicans, and not with 29 legislators that have contributed to the burial of the Dominican economy. Fernandez said that during the 1996-2000 presidential term, the PLD governed with one senator and 12 deputies. ?And we did so better than this government that has 29 senators,? said Fernandez, as reported in El Dia newspaper. He mentioned that with one senator the Fernandez government was able to post growth rates of 8%, generate 600,000 jobs and keep the exchange rate stable. He said he received the exchange rate at RD$13 and ended its government with the rate at RD$16, while the PRD government with 29 senators has let the value of the peso slide to RD$48 to US$1, and the nation has suffered a massive collapse of companies and loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs.
Fernandez expressed concern over the election process. ?I say it one more time. We will win by fair vote, with the majority vote of the Dominican people, but if they seek to tamper with those results and violate the will of the Dominican people, they will be forced out, because the people are saying: ?Out they go!? (E pa fuera que van!)