BOGOTÁ, COLOMBIA. – Former Dominican Republic President Leonel Fernández, who headed the Organization of American States (OAS) Electoral Observation Mission in Colombia, described the country’s presidential election as civic, peaceful and highly participatory, while urging all parties to respect the sovereign will of the Colombian people.
Presenting the mission’s preliminary assessment, Fernández said the OAS deployed 96 observers and specialists across 26 departments, the Capital District and five cities abroad to monitor the various stages of the electoral process.
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The former president highlighted the work of electoral authorities, security forces and polling officials, stating that their efforts allowed citizens to exercise their right to vote in an environment of freedom and security.
According to Fernández, the mission verified the opening of 100 percent of polling stations both within Colombia and at voting centers abroad. Observers visited 412 polling locations and 1,340 voting tables, where they monitored the orderly conduct of the election and compliance with procedures governing vote counting and ballot security.
Fernández also praised the speed of the preliminary vote-counting system, which allowed election officials to release initial results just hours after polls closed.
During his statement, he congratulated the two presidential candidates who advanced to the runoff election and encouraged them and their campaign teams to maintain a climate of respect, democratic dialogue and issue-based debate throughout the final stage of the campaign.
He also called on national and international stakeholders to respect the decision of Colombian voters and urged that any complaints or challenges related to the election be addressed through the country’s established institutional and legal mechanisms.
The head of the mission said the OAS will continue monitoring the vote-counting process and will issue a report containing its findings and recommendations ahead of the presidential runoff.
Fernández added that the hemispheric organization will deploy a new observation mission for the next round of voting as part of its efforts to support democratic institutions in Colombia.
The presidential election concluded without any candidate obtaining the majority required to win outright in the first round. As a result, the two leading candidates will compete in a runoff election to determine Colombia’s next president.
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