Panama Elections 2024 LIVE | Breaking news and news from the most complex elections in the country’s history

Panama this Sunday enters the most complex and polarized presidential elections in its history, with the long shadow of the former president Ricardo Martinelli, who, although he was unable to win re-election due to a conviction for money laundering, has his dolphin leading the polls and with his candidacy ratified at the last minute by the Supreme Court. As in previous surveys by the newspaper La Prensa, the last one published last Thursday, before the start of the reflection period, José Raúl Mulino, from Realizing Goals (RM), occupies first place, among the eight candidates, with 37 .6% of the votes. intention, while his three immediate opponents remain at a certain distance.

The former president Martin Torrijos (2004-2009), by the Popular Party (PP), Romulo Rouxfor Democratic Change (CD), and Ricardo Lombanaof Movimento Outro Caminho (Moca), continue with support of 16.4%, 14.9% and 12.7%, respectively, a “technical tie” when the margin of error is 2%.

LOOK: Raúl Mulino increases his lead in voting intentions in Panama

Meanwhile, the rest of the competitors lack apparent options, with José Gabriel Carrizoof the ruling Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), the best positioned of them with 8.3%, followed by independents Zulay Rodríguez (5.1%), Meliton Arrocha (2.4%) – who surprisingly asked to vote for Torrijos at the end of the campaign – and the leftist Maribel Gordon (1%).

Former President of Panama Martín Torrijos (2004-2009), presidential candidate for the Popular Party (PP), greets his supporters at the end of his electoral campaign. (EFE/Bienvenido Velasco). (Welcome Velasco/)

“The electoral offer is now very clear and you have your options open (…) Those of us who have come many times to Panama We know that this is a society that lives politics intensely and we hope that citizens go to the polls in the same way”, said the executive director of the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights, José Thompson, at a press conference.

The 3,035 polling stations will open from 7am local time (12pm GMT) until 4pm (9pm GMT). so that the more than 3 million Panamanians called to the polls can elect 885 positions: a new president and a new vice-president, 20 deputies to the Central American Parliament (Parlacen), 71 deputies to National Assembly (AN), 81 mayors, 701 councilors and 11 councilors, all with their substitutes, for the constitutional period from July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2029.

Panama’s growth. (AFP).

There are already 4,458 votes collected through early voting via the Internet, a controversial procedure after the initial disorder of the presidential boxes in the digital version, according to figures from the Electoral court (TEA).

An employee of the Electoral Court searches bags with electoral ballots. (EFE/Bienvenido Velasco). (Welcome Velasco/)

The uncertainty disappeared

The uncertainty disappeared this Friday morning after the Supreme Court of Justice (CSJ) of Panama I declare this “The TE’s March 4 decision to designate Mulino as presidential candidate to replace Martinelli in extremis is not unconstitutional.”

This legal controversy surrounding Mulino It will be included in a final report on the general elections that will be written by some international observers, as announced.

In addition to the legal status of the candidate’s MulinoThe final stretch of the general elections was marked by unforeseen technical errors in early digital voting, which led the Electoral Court to suspend electronic voting on election day due to distrust in the parties.

“The electoral campaign is a process full of passions, controversies (and) debates. Clear, Panama does not escape these fundamental characteristics with the peculiarities that this process presents”, said the head of Electoral Observation Mission of the Inter-American Union of Electoral Organizations (Uniore), Wilfredo Penco.

The former president of Panama (2009-2014) Ricardo Martinelli – who requested asylum at the Nicaraguan embassy – gives an online speech in support of the presidential candidate of the Realizing Goals party, José Raúl Mulino. (Photo by MARTIN BERNETTI/AFP). (MARTIN BERNETTI/)

Martinelli’s shadow

But if there is one figure who is passing through these elections without being a candidate, it is the former president Martinelli (2009 -2014), which isIn March, he said goodbye to his aspirations of returning to power after the Electoral Court disqualified him from participating in the elections. after a sentence of more than 10 years in prison for money laundrywhat led him to seek asylum at the Nicaraguan Embassy in Panama waiting for safe passage.

Martinelli was very present in the electoral process, proselytizing from the embassy in favor of Mulinoor appearing in advertising and campaign videos together with his running mate until two months ago.

This raised the tension between Panama and Nicaragua throughout the electoral process, as the Panamanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed the actions of Martinelli as “partisan political purposes”, which cannot be carried out from a diplomatic headquarters.

Mulino said publicly that if he came to power he would “assist” Martinelli “as appropriate under the law.” after the current Government denied him safe passage to travel to Nicaragua.

Source: Elcomercio