Caracas Chronicles

CNE will discuss and approve the rules governing voting center members and vote counting methods on Friday. The date for signing the services contract of the recall vote and the possibility of setting up fingerprint-reading machines in the electoral centers will be considered on Monday

The National Electoral Council (CNE) approved the rules for international observation, which states that the final reports of the international missions will be confidential. They also lay down that observers cannot make declarations and must sign a document whereby they commit themselves to observe the rules issued by the electoral authorities.

The article from the rule draft presented by the CNE’s legal adviser, Andrés Brito, that gave precedence to Latin American electoral organization as observers was eliminated.

This modification allows the CNE to consider issuing invitations to the Carter Center, the Organization of American States (OAS), and the Centro de Asesoría y Promocion Electoral, Capel, as well as to the presidents of electoral courts in the continent, to act as guarantors of the presidential recall vote. Additionally, the creation of a follow-up committee, which will see that the rules for the international observation be obeyed, was approved.

Written notification

When the final voter list is approved and published by the CNE’s directorate next July 24, the exact number of automated and manual electoral centers for the referendum would be known.

Electors “relocated” by the CNE will receive a letter informing them about the electoral centers where they should vote. Preliminary figures by the National Electoral Board suggest that 800-1,000 new voting centers will be created. The CNE has approved a budget of $80,931 for this process.

Military vote

The CNE’s directorate unanimously ratified the right of the military forces to vote in the presidential recall vote. The directors will evaluate on Friday the rules for vote counting and members of the electoral centers. On Monday they will discuss the possibility of setting up fingerprint-reading machines and satellite transmission of the referendum outcome.