The Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) has registered more than 5.3 million voters called on today to approach the 8,451 polling stations of 1,595 voting centers across the country.
El Salvador is preparing this day to elect its new deputies and mayors for the term from 2021 to 2024. The elections are held amid allegations by the political opposition that the government has used public funds to campaign in favor of the parties. New Ideas allies and Great Alliance for National Unity (GANA).
Also to questions from the ruling party that there would be alleged election fraud and in the middle of the COVID 19 pandemic.
On this day, Salvadorans will hold elections in which they will elect 84 members of the Legislative Assembly, 262 city councils and 20 new representatives of the Central American Parliament (Parlacen), out of a total of 17,074 candidates.
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The Parlacen is a political and democratic representation of the Central American Integration System (SICA) whose members represent Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, the Dominican Republic and El Salvador.
After the last elections in 2018, El Salvador has 20 delegates in the Parlacen, of which 8 from ARENA, 8 from the FMLN, 2 from the GANA party, 1 from the PCN and 1 from the PDC.
According to data from the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), this Sunday, more than 5.3 million voters are being called to approach the 8,451 polling stations of 1,595 voting centers across the country.
The electoral roll consists of 5, 389017, of which 2,877,016 are women (53.39%) and 2, 512, 001 are men (46.61%).
Magistrate Noel Orellana confirmed to this medium last November that there are more than 200,000 new voters for these elections, based on the number of elections in 2018 when deputies and city councils were elected, with a roll of 5,186,042 people.
Irregularities prior to elections
In recent weeks, the executive has been accused of using state resources to campaign for elections and influence voters, despite the country’s laws prohibiting it.
On the first day of the electoral silence, sellers from the Dueñas market in Santa Tecla confirmed that the government was giving them a box of food, along with a calendar with the photo of the President of the Republic of Nayib Bukele.
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Along with the delivery of the food box, New Ideas candidate for the Santa Tecla Mayor’s Office, Henry Flores, posted in his public profile a greeting to the Dueñas market sellers saying: “I send a big hug. for our friends from the Dueñas market ”.
Despite the electoral law prohibiting government officials from undertaking the inauguration of works of any kind a month before the election so as not to influence the voter’s intent at the last minute, President Nayib Bukele and officials of his government have surpassed this. Prohibition by delivering computers to students of public schools and “allowing” the diversion of Liberty less than 15 days before today’s election, lawyers said.
The Supreme Election Criminal Tribunal (TSE) criticized these actions during the last week of February and ordered the government and its institutions to “refrain from publishing in media contracts, inauguration of works they have performed, are performing or intend to perform. “
Likewise, the Collegiate Body had suspended a seat of the presidency of the Republic and officials, noting that this was intended to influence the decision of the citizens.
On repeated occasions, TSE magistrate Guillermo Wellman denounced the disrespect for the country’s laws, as well as the provision of food, subliminal advertisements, inaugurations, and other executive actions.
“There have been seen irregular situations, there is no respect here and he knows that the first to break the order is the chief magistrate of the country, the president, the president did not want to accept the rules of the game, despite the fact that they have rules from them. taken him to where he is, ” the magistrate criticized in a radio interview last Friday.
Chairman of the Assembly criticizes Bukele
On the other hand, the President of the Legislative Assembly, Mario Ponce, publicly denounced this Saturday through his Twitter account on the social network that the government has not respected the law by violating electoral silence and the current legal system.
“The executive continues to use state mechanisms and has the upper hand over the institutions to call for the vote,” Ponce said.
In the same vein, the president urged the presidency to respect the law and not use the state apparatus.
Salvadorans are in a moment of reflection just hours after deciding who the next leaders will be. It is important that the law is respected and that the state apparatus is not used to vote, ”Ponce wrote.