Far-right opposition leader MarĂa Corina Machado giving statements to the press after a meeting with the self-styled "National Primaries Commission," on May 24, 2023. Photo: Twitter/@VenteVenezuela.
Venezuelan far-right opposition leader of the Vente Venezuela party, MarĂa Corina Machado, began bickering with the far-right opposition commission for primaries, the self-styled “National Primaries Commission” (CNP). The opposition leader attacked the fact that the participation of the National Electoral Council (CNE) in the internal opposition elections—as a technical tool—had been requested by the CNP.
The campaign command of MarĂa Corina Machado questioned the CNP with a new statement made this Tuesday, June 14. According to the text, “there is no clarity” about what the technical specifications that the CNE will apply in the primary elections are to be.
Solamente el Sistema Automatizado de VotaciĂłn integrado es lo que garantizarĂa transparencia y seguridad en la elecciĂłn primaria de la oposiciĂłn, de acuerdo con el informe de la ComisiĂłn TĂ©cnica del CNE que fuera entregado este martes a la ComisiĂłn Nacional de Primaria. 1/12 pic.twitter.com/K42PDVfPQ5
— cneesvenezuela (@cneesvzla) April 18, 2023
Since the beginning of formal talks with the opposition sector, the CNE has stated that any assistance provided to any political party should respect the integrity of the Venezuelan electoral system, meaning that it will necessitate the use of fingerprint scanners. Fingerprint scanners are a staple of the Venezuelan electoral system, designed to avoid criminal breakage of the principle of “one voter, one vote.”
“We insist that it is disrespectful to potential candidates, and irresponsible to the country,” stated Machado’s campaign command, “that the Commission has not yet clarified these technical aspects,” despite the fact that most Venezuelans already know the position of the CNE on the issue.
GuaidĂł Leads Polls as Most Unpopular Politician; MarĂa Corina Leads for Opposition Primaries
Likewise, the statement described it as “unheard of” that the CNP wants opposition candidates to register “without knowing the rules.”
Machado has maintained a campaign against the technical assistance of the CNE in the primaries, despite the fact that both the CNE and the CNP have explained on multiple occasions what the support of the electoral body consists of in the election process.
Despite this, the CNP once again responded to the “doubts” of MarĂa Corina’s campaign command. Through another statement, the commission highlighted the fact that the CNE’s requests “are public knowledge,” and have already been communicated to all the pre-candidates.
ÂżLas primarias van o no van?
Comando MarĂa Corina exige respuestas y transparencia a la @cnprimariave.
AquĂ puedes ver el video de Perkins Rocha.
📲https://t.co/vsdJDQtS5z pic.twitter.com/Lap6yT520y
— Comando ConVzla (@ConVzlaComando) June 13, 2023
Although the CNP document does not mention specifically that it is a response to Machado’s questioning, it was published hours after Machado’s campaign command statement.
“On June 6, 2023, the pre-candidates were notified that the scope of what would be confirmed in the joint Technical Commission would be explained to them before formalizing the request for technical assistance,” the CNP wrote.
The document further noted that the answers to many of the questions and doubts formulated by some pre-candidates or their spokespersons already exist in the regulations of the primary process.
COMUNICADO
La ComisiĂłn Nacional de Primaria reitera que ha mantenido cauces permanentes de comunicaciĂłn con todos los precandidatos y precandidatas en el proceso, lo cual permite canalizar dudas u observaciones. pic.twitter.com/OyzQNuFGjZ
— ComisiĂłn Nacional de Primaria VE (@cnprimariave) June 14, 2023
At the moment, the electoral race for the opposition primaries is at the registration of pre-candidates phase. As of yet, only Roberto EnrĂquez has applied, with the registration deadline held at Friday, June 23.
Henrique Capriles, Carlos Prosperi, AndrĂ©s Velásquez, Delsa SolĂłrzano, MarĂa Corina Machado, Freddy Superlano, PĂ©rez Vivas, Balo FarĂas, and BenjamĂn Rausseo have not formalized their registration so far.
(RedRadioVE) by Ana PerdigĂłn, with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/AU
