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OAS Mission that Observed March 1 Elections in El Salvador Presented Conclusions and Recommendations to the Permanent Council

The Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) today received the verbal report of the Electoral Observation Mission (EOM/OAS) that the institution sent to El Salvador to accompany the elections for the Central American Parliament (Parlacen), the Legislative Assembly and Municipal Councils, held on March 1, 2015.

The former Foreign Minister of Bolivia, Gustavo Fernandez, appointed as Chief of Mission by the OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza, highlighted the "civic spirit and calm showed by the Salvadorans at the polls when exercising their right to vote," which was reflected "in the thousands of people who carried out electoral tasks." He further acknowledged the transparency with which the election was conducted; the presence of political party representatives, prosecutors and human rights attorneys at each of the tables during the day of the election; and the efforts to broadcast the work of each of the voting centers live through the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) web portal.

The Mission was composed of 60 observers from 21 member and observer countries, who confirmed that "election day took place in a calm manner," noted the report. "Every table had the necessary materials. A broad presence of party representatives was observed, with larger parties being present in almost all voting centers," continues the report, while noting that following the close of voting the main problems of the day took place, concerning the process of the counting and transmission of preliminary election results.

Regarding the pre-electoral stage, the report highlights the changes made to voting systems, including the introduction of mixed voting, a system that allows voters to select two or more candidates from different lists, until the maximum of seats are chosen in the assigned department. This "raised concerns, as the change of rules was made just three months before the elections, complicating compliance with the electoral timetable and planning and modifying an electoral process already underway." According to the report, the change made it necessary "to define various elements in order to comply with its purpose and had an impact in various areas of the process, including voter education, the preparation of electoral materials, the procedure of vote counting and the system for transmission of preliminary results."

In the field of the organization and management of the process, former Foreign Minister Fernandez said that the TSE "faced difficulties in various areas," the most sensitive being the preliminary results transmission system. At that point, the Electoral Tribunal decided to carry out its implementation and embarked on the development of a system “which showed technical and logistical problems that also led to the impossibility of carrying out successful operational tests."

In the post-election phase, the Chief of Mission noted that, in addition to the initial technical and logistical problems "inconsistencies were discovered in a large number of records, due to erroneous data and information input by many voting centers." Nevertheless he highlighted that the centers created to conduct the final count "made significant efforts to resolve these inconsistencies." "Overall, despite interruptions and delays, the overall environment was calm, and the political parties showed maturity and prudence," noted Fernandez.

"The process of the final count demonstrated large loopholes, whose consequence was the use of discretion to resolve certain inconsistencies," says the report, which cites the interposition of some applications for injunction before the Constitutional Court, which concluded in "a precautionary measure by the judicial entity that ruled for the opening of the ballot boxes for a full recount of the votes for the election to the Legislative Assembly of the department of San Salvador." This stage, Fernandez continued, "took place quietly, but with logistical and budgetary constraints."

Among the conclusions and recommendations included in the report were: the need to ensure the stability and consistency of election rules through legislation that prohibits disruptions in the electoral rules within a specific period preceding the election; to take legal and administrative measures to promote a simplified electoral system; to make changes to the electoral institutional structure; and separating administrative functions from jurisdictional functions.

In the area of political financing regulation it recommends the setting of limits on donations and advertising spending. In the area of electoral organization and technology, the EOM recommends the creation of management documents that enable the efficient and orderly development of the events and activities of the process and suggests that the Tribunal adopt a formula that brings together the various agencies of the court to coordinate activities, so as to optimize time and resources. Finally, the report urges the TSE to "assess and analyze the difficulties faced during this process and, from there, carry out an advance plan for the next elections."

The Permanent Representative of El Salvador to the OAS, Francisco Esteban Lainez welcomed the deployment of the Mission and acknowledged the team that made up the EOM. He said the elections "were a ratification of the democratic maturity of a people that continues to look for responses to the enormous political, economic, social, cultural and environmental challenges" it faces and noted that the process was marked by a “massive free, secret and equal vote."

Regarding the report, Ambassador Lainez stressed the OAS commitment to democracy and considered the report details the "strengths, weaknesses and challenges of the electoral system of our nation." In light of the report, he continued, "the institutions directly involved in the process have taken good and due note of the observations and recommendations of the Mission, and they will be considered in the context of improving the framework and procedures in order to make improvements."

A gallery of photos of the event will be available here.

The video news of the event will be available here.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-179/15