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The process was criticized for the haste with which it was carried out. Among the changes introduced is mixed electronic voting, a large increase in the Registrar’s office and parity in the lists.
The Senate plenary took out the Electoral Code at full speed, just on the last day of ordinary sessions of 2020. The accidental commission ended up being the protagonist when deciding the more than 500 proposals presented by the parliamentarians. With the role it played, the day was speeded up to the point that only about 10 articles were discussed in depth, among them parity, national security and sectional registrars. The text that remained has a broad similarity to the one that was carried out in the Chamber, which also processed and voted expeditiously. However, the conciliation is pending, which is why the Government called in extras.
Thus, and with large majorities, Colombia will have a new electoral code after more than 30 years since its last reform, which was in 1986 – five years before the drafting of the current Colombian Constitution. Despite the ease with which it was approved, the project and its journey through Congress has not been free of controversy, and is that several congressmen warned that in an effort to get it done before the end of the year, several major issues were approved. openwork without due dissertation.
Also read: Historical: Congress approved parity in the Electoral Code
The sessions of the last days would be an example of this element, since on Monday the presentation was voted on without having it completely clear. Moreover, it was rumored that the approved document was the one that the Chamber carried out last Friday and the alerts for processing defects began, as this text had not been published in the Official Gazette. Then, on the following day (Tuesday) a good part of the articles that did not have a proposal and that were not the bulk of the reform were voted en bloc. And yesterday those issues that had various considerations and that were discussed in a subcommittee that studied more than 200 requests for modification were processed. However, a good part of the text remained in a similar way to what was discussed in the homologous corporation.
In this way, and pending conciliation, today, tomorrow and Saturday, Congress will have to harmonize the project in a single text so that it passes to constitutional review and presidential sanction. Among the most important points that remained in this reform is the introduction of technology in electoral processes. This means the use of electronic machines to cast the vote and that will deliver a physical support to be deposited in the ballot box. Likewise, the early vote was given yes for the first time, although it can only be carried out in positions abroad.
Other advances in the reform aim to allow polling stations in rural areas and guarantee public transport during the sessions. Also, it goes from the registration of cédulas, which opened the door to transhumance, to a system of electoral domicile in which voting stations are assigned according to this. Beyond these elements, there were many others that were not without controversy.
Although electronic voting passed without major problems, its implementation and audit processes were in continuous discussion. In the first point, it was achieved that the first pilots are in the youth elections and that they cannot be applied before the electoral processes of 2023. On the other hand, compared to the audits, the fights were given to guarantee that they could be given on time and not after the application of the systems.
In this Wednesday’s session the other debates took place regarding the issues of great controversy of the reform, such as the name of national security of the activities carried out by the Registrar’s Office and the National Electoral Council. From the opposition, led by Angélica Lozano, they pointed out that this type of figures can be used to hide information about the electoral process and direct hiring – by finger – without taking into account the rules of the tender.
Lozano, of the Greens, presented a proposal to clarify that for no reason the national security condition would prevent access to information to monitor electoral processes and that direct contracting could not be used as an excuse for national security . However, the effort was defeated. Only the issue of hiring was saved before the approval of an article authored by Paloma Valencia that requires that the Registrar’s processes be governed by Law 80 of 1993, which is the legal framework for hiring in the country.
At this point there was a clash between members of the opposition, as the rapporteur for the bill, Senator Fabio Amín, hinted that the one proposal presented by Senator Roy Barreras included the possibility of hiring directly at the Registrar’s Office. The recrimination of the former member of the U came from Senator Angélica Lozano, but it was later clarified that Barreras’ intention was to fix a writing error that implied that the authorities could prevent the oversight.
The little debate that took place in the Senate also focused on the issue of increasing the number of the Registrar’s office with the creation of sectional delegates for civil registration and identification and electoral matters. The opposition tried to eliminate this point from the articles, but those close to the government maintained their endorsement of this point, arguing that two delegates could counterbalance possible irregularities or discrepancies. This point also had a discussion and result in the Chamber, so it is one of the insurance that will be maintained during the conciliation.
The session was reaching its last discussions when it came to the issue of public servants, since the Democratic Center proposed that public servants be prohibited from being electoral juries. One of the arguments expressed was the supposed left-wing indoctrination that professors from the official sector who are members of Fecode would have. Supposedly this affiliation could sow doubts about their impartiality. In the end, the plenary said no to the proposal since it would deny the right to participate in the electoral exercise to a sector of the population for the simple fact of being a State employee.
One of the most controversial aspects that upset the entire session was the issue of parity. After the collapse of the political reform, the new electoral code was seen as the only way to approve this issue that has been so controversial. In the code from the discussions in commissions it was established that the lists of more than five applicants should be made up 50/50 between men and women.
In the plenary session this Wednesday, an attempt was made to expand the terms of parity, allowing the zip lists to be implemented in the parties, and there were more extreme proposals such as Roy Barreras’ requesting that the articles establish that the Congress should be composed 50 / 50 between men and women. This gave rise to those close to the government, many of them with a conservative tendency, to criticize even the parity proposal and reject it for supposedly passing over the democracy of the parties, as María del Rosario Guerra did.
In the end, Barreras’ proposal was denied, under a majority claim that it was unconstitutional and that it should be carried out through a constitutional reform. On the other hand, the Senate endorsed parity in a majority way: 90 votes for yes and only one vote for no. In this way, from now on, the lists of corporations and positions of popular election must be made up of 50% women. In case the list is less than five, this percentage will be reduced to 30%.
