- Opposition witnesses reported that at some polling stations they were not allowed to join in to witness the process.
The installation of the polling stations for the presidential elections on July 28, scheduled for July 26, was supposed to follow a series of steps established in the manual of the National Electoral Council (CNE); however, opposition witnesses reported irregularities in the process.
Delsa Solórzano, president of the Encuentro Ciudadano party, reported that the installation of the voting tables began before the established time, which was 8:00 am.
“In accordance with the provisions of the Venezuelan legal system, the act of installing the voting tables is at 8:00 am. It is prohibited to install them before the scheduled time. We reiterate to the witnesses and members of the table that the provisions of the Electoral Table Manual must be complied with,” Solórzano said in a message posted on his X account.
Eugenio Martínez, a journalist specialising in electoral matters, also reported that he had received several complaints related to the process of setting up the polling stations.
Martínez explained that according to CNE regulations, all witnesses have the right to be present during the process; however, several of them reported obstacles to entering the voting centers.
The reporter listed the irregularities reported in the early hours of the morning of July 26:
– Voting tables set up before 8:00 am.
– Incorporation of unqualified and unaccredited persons as members of the board.
– Witnesses who were unable to attend the polling stations.
Complaints on social networks
Through social media, several users pointed out that in some voting centers in the country the voting table was set up at 3:00 am, while in others opposition witnesses were not allowed to enter.
Witnesses at the polling station of the Bolivarian School Parroquia La Vega, in Caracas, reported that officials from the Plan República prevented them from entering to witness the installation ceremony.
Likewise, the members of the board of the César Agreda Educational Unit, Puerto Cabello municipality, Carabobo state, denounced the obstacles to enter the electoral center and participate in the constitution of the process.
“They don’t let the members of the table through because they supposedly had to take a course with them, when the CNE enabled the course through the platform,” they indicated through X.
The same situation was reported at the Jesusita Martínez Early Childhood Education Center, in the municipality of San Francisco, Zulia state.
Another complaint was highlighted by journalist Luis Petit, who explained that officials from the Plan República moved forward with the installation of voting tables and prohibited the entry of opposition witnesses in Los Puertos de Altagracia, also in Zulia.
#26Jul | The journalist @Petitluisg He denounced that the Plan República brought forward the installation of the voting tables and prohibited the entry of the candidate’s witnesses @EdmundoGU in the Ports of Altagracia, Zulia state.
The CNE established that the installation of the tables in all… pic.twitter.com/Sqyv3RtD2E
— The Daily (@eldiario) July 26, 2024
In Puerto Ayacucho, Amazonas state, X users reported that the installation of the voting tables at the Guaicaipuro preschool and the Monsignor Enrique de Ferrari Educational Unit took place in the early hours of the morning.
The same thing happened at the El Lindero Bolivarian Integral School in the state of Anzoátegui, where according to citizen complaints the event took place at 5:30 am. In addition, they warned that people presumably not accredited by the CNE managed to enter the center.
Other witnesses from Carabobo state also reported that the installation of the voting tables at the Juan Ramón González Baquero Educational Unit began at 3:00 am.
The situation was repeated in the states of Lara and Barinas. Specifically, members of the polling station and witnesses from the Dr. Ambrosio Perera Technical Commercial School in Barquisimeto had problems receiving approval from the coordinator accredited by the CNE to enter the center.
While at the Ezequiel Zamora School in the Rojas municipality (Barinas), the members of the table arrived at the premises at 4:30 am and until after 7:00 am they were still not allowed to enter despite being duly accredited.
Steps to set up the polling station
According to the CNE Electoral Board Manual, those selected as board members or alternates for the presidential elections of July 28, had to go to their corresponding electoral centers for the installation of electoral machinery.
The installation process of the 30,026 voting tables in Venezuela was scheduled to begin at 8:00 am, so the Electoral Power required those who will perform this function to present their respective accreditation with the QR code.
The process had to follow the following steps:
-Presentation of accreditation.
-Reception of the material.
-The Integrated System Operator (OSI) had to install the machine and print the configuration reports.
-Confirmation that everything is optimal in the machines by the operators of the Integrated System.
-Filling out of minutes by the secretary.
-The president of the table and the OSI must deliver the electoral material and the voting machine case to the military personnel of the Plan República for safekeeping and custody until the day of the election.
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2024-07-26 15:47:16