Holding elections looks among Venezuelans as a way out of the prolonged political crisis in the country. Albeit necessary, it is not sufficient. It is essential to appoint a new National Electoral Council (CNE) to carry out transparent and reliable elections. It should replace the severely questioned organ that sided with the interests of the Government, in particular after the appointment of the National Assembly in 2015.
Appointing new electoral authorities through political agreements is very important to allow the formation of an impartial entity that recovers the worth of the vote as a tool of democracy and restores confidence among voters. This way it would be possible to overcome the irregularities that characterized the electoral processes in recent times.
The Venezuelan Electoral Observatory (OEV) sees with concern the partisan and institutional conflicts (division of political groups and the existence of two directives in the National Assembly) that are hindering, delaying and impeding the renewal of the CNE. This has been observed, for example, in the process of designating the Electoral Nominations Committee.
The OEV perceives the risk of repeating history and eventually letting the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ), whose support for the interests of the Government is evident, select the members of the electoral council without mediating any political agreement. This would leave us once again with a biased arbitrator which, far from contributing to solving the problems of Venezuelan society, aggravates them. The procedures matter. The Constitution and the Organic Law of Electoral Power indicate the route to follow for these appointments. Moving away from it will undoubtedly lead to distrust and questioning of an eventual new CNE.
Let us not forget the recent elections and their irregularities, including the presidential elections held in May 2018. Let us remember their role as an aggravating factor in the current political crisis of Venezuelan society.
