Long queues at a voting center in Venezuela for the election of communal justices of the peace on Sunday, December 15, 2024. Photo: VTV.
Through 5,300 communal circuits, the Venezuelan people participated in the election of communal justices of the peace, helping to deepen popular power, consolidate peace and stability, and find solutions to conflicts at the community level.
The Venezuelan people are participating en masse this Sunday, December 15, in an unprecedented event that deepens their participatory and direct democracy: the election, for the first time in the country’s history of 15,000 justices of the peace. This step deepens popular power and the creation of a new state, and which happily coincides with the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the Constitution of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
From various states, Telesur correspondents have reported on the electoral process and the broad, enthusiastic, and disciplined participation of the population, in a climate of absolute tranquility, in the 5,300 communal circuits. An equal number of substitute judges are also being elected, from among the 52,288 candidates registered to participate in the process.
Images captured at a voting center in the San Pedro parish, Libertador municipality, in the capital district, show long lines of citizens waiting in an organized manner to vote. A candidate for justice of the peace for that communal circuit, Maura Isabel Torres, told correspondent Luis Guillermo GarcĂa that the voting process has been dynamic.
He considered that citizens are facing a historic event of utmost importance for their country and for the organization and functioning of communal justices of the peace.
The interviewee praised the leading role played by citizens and the work that justices of the peace will do to address and resolve problems that arise in communities. All persons over 15 years of age with their identity card can participate in the election, regardless of whether it is expired or not.
Another candidate, Vanesa del Carmen Mesa Hill, reflected that the work of the justice of the peace will contribute to promote dialogues for peace and solutions within the community, streamlining processes that are currently brought before the traditional judicial circuits, archived, and not resolved.
From very early on, residents of Naiguatá, La Guaira state, joined the lines to vote and select the justices of the peace.
Voters told correspondent Rolando Segura that this election is very important in the current Venezuelan context, due to the possibility of mediation being available, and that justices of the peace help to strengthen community justice. They added that the aim is to strengthen the communal state and the participation of citizens in providing solutions to community problems.
A citizen, William, said that the work of these judges will offer guarantees for the management and resolution of conflicts, contributing to peace and social stability. He believes that this initiative will help prevent violent incidents, such as those promoted by the Venezuelan far-right after the July 28 presidential election.
Following these elections, three more elections have been held in Venezuela. This makes almost 30 elections in the last two decades in the South American nation.
The National Electoral Council (CNE) has set up 4,817 voting centres, where 15,000 principal judges and more than 15,000 substitutes will be elected from among the 52,288 candidates registered to participate in the electoral contest.
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(Telesur)
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SA
