Although the CNE began the National Public Hearing on Vote Counts last Saturday, the counting of votes from abroad has yet to be completed.
CNE President Diana Atamaint indicated that the Public Hearing on Vote Counts will be resumed once the Special Board for Foreign Votes completes processing all the ballots. The results will then be officially announced, and any challenges can be filed at that time.
The RC candidate stated that she will request a recount of the votes, as requested by observers from the Organization of American States (OAS), there were “irregularities throughout the electoral process, and we will present evidence of manipulation of the tally sheets.”
The OAS report states that “the mission observed that problems occurred because the ink used to mark the ballots transferred between the political options when they were folded, due to the symmetry of the design. This situation generated confusion in the interpretation of the vote and, in some cases, led to their annulment.”
The process was plagued by irregularities, and began with Noboa campaigning without a license, said González, who accused the president of misusing public resources, issuing bonuses without technical support, declaring a state of emergency, as well as “countless infractions.”
Among the most serious findings, González pointed to “multiple versions of tally sheets that were modified by the CNE itself,” altered absenteeism, tally sheets without signatures, and totals that do not match the number of voters. “We have 1,984 tally sheets without a joint signature. This would violate Article 127 of the Code of Democracy and should be invalidated,” she stated, adding that “there was an unusual decrease in blank votes, which would cast doubt on the possible direct manipulation of more than 150,000 ballots.”
Although the international observers ruled out fraud, they agreed that the process was marked by irregularities, including the lack of a license for the presidential candidate, the misuse of public funds, and the declaration of a state of emergency.
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