No money the EEC for special election

the State Election Commission (EEC) began preparations for the May 16 special election in which 6 intriguing statesmen will be chosen. But the president of the electoral body, Francisco Rosado Colomer, warn that they will need transient employees and $ 8.9 million to carry it out.

He also said they will require ballots printed on both sides and use electronic ballot machines, which need new Dominion Voting System programming.

“You have to issue a payment to Dominion. At this time, I don’t know how much it is, but we also need to start evaluating machine maintenance issues and logic and accuracy for the event,” Rosat Colomer said.

“The first step has already been taken, which is to present (the request for funds) to the Office of Management and Budget (OGP). We are at the beginning of everything that is an electoral event that, according to the Electoral Code of the year 2020 and as soon as this law of the special election was approved, an electoral cycle of 12 months begins “, has abounded.

After the controversial 2020 elections, is the EEC ready for a special election in May ?, he was asked.

“The Commission requires additional temporary staff to be able to run this type of event, and this is subject to a budget. The Commission’s permanent employees are committed employees, and they are prepared to run it. But the resources to do so “We don’t have them,” he replied.

He has estimated that, with $ 8,900,000, that would be enough.

Following the application for EEC funds, the OGP must place the order with the Fiscal Supervision BoardHer spokesman, Edward Zayas, said they have not received her yet.

The Act to create the Congressional Delegation of Puerto Rico (Law 167-2020) was passed on December 30 by the Governor Wanda Vázquez Garced, And seeks to choose the intriguing statesmen for the Equality Commission: two for the Senate and four for the Federal House.

Vázquez Garced also approved the measure that leaves in the hands of the governor Pedro Pierluisi Urrutia to summon a new plebiscite for the state, the definitions must decide executive order. “To date, I have not had a request for additional consultation,” Rosat Colomer said.

At the moment, the EEC is concentrating on settling administrative matters on the elections and dealing with rulings of the electoral courts. Today, the briefcases of the contest for the mayor of Guánica must be reviewed again, after the Supreme Court ordered that all the votes be counted to the candidate by direct nomination Edgardo Creu Vélez.

Meanwhile, Judge Anthony Cuevas has before him two appeals filed by the Puerto Rican Independentist Party and the Victòria Ciutadana Movement to allow them to have representation in the EEC, contrary to the provisions of a resolution by Rosat Colomer.