As El Salvador’s electoral body begins a vote-by-vote count of last week’s election results, opposition forces warned on Wednesday that they could seek to invalidate the results of parliamentary elections on the grounds of fraud.
While no one doubts the victory of popular President Nayib Boukre, who was re-elected with 83% of the vote, all eyes are on the battle for the 60 seats in parliament.
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For Mr. Bouclet, control of parliament is crucial. He continues to abandon his fundamental constitutional rights in the war against El Salvador’s gangs, which sparked his surge in popularity, and hopes to carry out other parts of his own agenda.
Bukele has already declared after Sunday night’s election that his Nuevas Idea party won 58 of the 60 seats in parliament, despite only a fraction of the seats announced.
Currently, the system for transmitting results has collapsed due to numerous irregularities and glitches, and the number of votes cast is under scrutiny. Because of the confusion, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal called for a manual recount of parliamentary election votes and some presidential votes.
Manuel Flores, presidential candidate for the leftist Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN), says he plans to speak with other opposition parties about calling for annulment of the parliamentary election results and a new vote on March 3. Stated. , when local elections are held.
Flores said “the problem is that they want to achieve the numbers” that Bukele claimed in his victory speech on Sunday. “It’s 58, but it doesn’t add up.”
A feminist protester holds a placard that reads “Dictator Bukele” in English at Plaza Salvador del Mundo in San Salvador, El Salvador, Monday, February 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)
Flores claimed less than an hour after voting began on Sunday that the election was “rigged,” but his party remains one of the most unpopular with years of corruption and broken promises.
Bukele’s Nuevas Idea party has a majority in Congress, and the friendly courts it has amassed have helped him avoid a constitutional ban on re-election. Opposition parties and election analysts also say the party’s recent electoral reforms have increased the odds in Bukele’s favor, especially in parliamentary and local elections.
Populist leaders had already expressed concerns about parliamentary elections. A week before Sunday’s vote, Bukele said in a video posted on social media and TVs across the country that if Nuevas Ideas loses seats in Congress, “the opposition will release gang members and use them.” We will be able to accomplish our only true plan to do so.” To return to power. ”
Other opposition groups, including the Nuestro Tiempo party, the VAMOS party and the conservative National Republican Alliance (Arena), echoed Flores’ concerns about the vote count. The parties said they are considering seeking annulment of the results, but are awaiting a response from the court requesting further information about the wrongdoing.
Election Judge Noel Orellana said the court had not yet received any requests from parties to set aside the results, but the priority remained to open the ballot boxes and count all votes. said.
“The most important thing right now is to provide accurate numbers,” Orellana said.
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The final vote counting process will be supervised by representatives of political parties, election prosecutors from the public prosecutor’s office, the Office of the Human Rights Ombudsman, and national and international observers.
