SANTO DOMINGO (Reuters) – Millions voted on Sunday in a hotly contested presidential election in the Dominican Republic, defying a coronavirus outbreak that delayed the vote and forced the top candidate to briefly suspend the campaign after falling ill with the disease.
A policeman watches over the empty streets of the colonial district, after the state of emergency decreed by the government last Thursday, as a preventive measure against the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, March 24 2020. REUTERS / Ricardo Rojas
Voters wore face masks, and sometimes face shields and overalls as well. Polling stations, which closed at 5 pm (2100 GMT), provided antibacterial gel for people to disinfect their hands before casting their vote. But electoral observers said they saw many flaws in social distancing.
The choice will determine who will tackle the COVID-19 outbreak and its impact on the Caribbean’s largest economy, which is highly dependent on a pandemic-leveled tourism industry. Preliminary results will be released starting at 8:30 pm (0030 GMT Monday), electoral authorities said.
Polls suggest that the ruling Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) will lose power after 16 years, as criticism has mishandled the outbreak, internal strife, corruption allegations and inequality overshadowing strong economic performance.
The PLD candidate, former Minister of Public Works Gonzalo Castillo, 59, has followed Luis Abinader, 52, from the opposition Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM). Both parties are centrists.
President Danilo Medina, 68, was not eligible to seek re-election, after having served two consecutive terms. It failed to obtain sufficient support for a constitutional change to be implemented again.
With an expected tight race, Abinader may not get the absolute majority necessary to win. Results are expected late on Sunday or Monday and a second round, if necessary, will take place on July 26.
“Tonight, I will be president of all Dominicans,” Abinader wrote on Twitter on Sunday shortly after casting his vote.
The country of 10.4 million, which shares the Caribbean island of Hispaniola with Haiti, is also holding parliamentary elections even as coronavirus cases reach daily highs. Four months after the first reported cases, there are now more than 37,425 cases and 794 deaths.
Critics say the government did not act fast enough, reopened the economy too early last month and is too slow on the evidence.
POSTPONED ELECTIONS SINCE MAY
Abinader had to suspend campaign appearances for a while after testing positive for the coronavirus last month. He says he has recovered.
After postponing the May elections, the government would have had to amend the constitution to postpone them again.
Some voters were nervous about whether the vote would go smoothly after the municipal elections in February were suspended mid-vote. Officials at the time said there had been a technical problem in the electronic voting system, but some Dominicans suspected foul play.
“We hope that everything goes well and that the will of the people is respected during the vote,” said Luis Tito, a voter in the capital, Santo Domingo.
Some Dominicans abroad were unable to vote due to coronavirus blocking restrictions.
The ruling party was seriously weakened after former President Leonel Fernández, 66, split to form a divided party in October. As a candidate, you are surveying a distant third party.
However, in a twist, his wife, Vice President Margarita Cedeño, has stayed with the PLD and is executing Castillo’s ticket.
Under the leadership of the PLD, the Dominican Republic has achieved annual growth of 7% in the last decade. But the country has fallen 38 places on Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index during that time to 137 out of 180 countries.
Report by Ezequiel Abiu López; Written by Sarah Marsh; Editing by Tom Brown and Peter Cooney
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