Would an advance of elections as is the Constitution and the electoral norms be appropriate?
Early elections are not regulated in the country, unless the President of the Republic expressly resigns or when Congress is dissolved. For example, article 117 of the Constitution speaks with crystal clarity about when a president of the republic can be impeached and article 134 establishes when the president can dissolve Congress and what the procedure is like and article 113 establishes the vacancy of the president . These new elections, if they take place, are at the request of the population, at the demands of the population. The electoral norms are given for a normal act, for the normal changes of a national or sub-national government every five and four years, respectively. At least there must be a period of one year to be able to hold an election. For each electoral process, a register must be made one year before the day of the election. That is first. After that, also a year before, the affiliations and resignations of all those who are going to participate in the process. After this, we have 270 days for the president of the republic to call general elections. In addition, this election would cost the state one and a half million soles, both the primary elections and the first and second rounds.
Is it the only way to call elections? Can’t those deadlines be shortened?
It is that there is no specific rule for an emergency. That they say 6 months, 4 months or just around the corner, it is impossible. It cannot be given, materially legal it is not possible. If we forget about the electoral roll and only work with the roll of regional and municipal elections, even with that we would need 9 months, because the call for an election is 9 months. You can’t before, because you have to put together a lot of procedures.
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So, the rejection of the advancement of elections for 2023 of Congress is correct?
No. The Executive has told the Legislative to change the rules of the game and has asked them to have elections in a year and 4 months, that is, by April 2024. That is indicated in the bill that they disapproved yesterday. Various congressional benches, under the pretext of a constituent assembly, have rejected the bill. The population wants everyone to leave, the president echoed that and said: I’m leaving and we’re all leaving. And we are going to call the elections in April. It is enough time to elaborate several political and electoral reforms. It seems feasible to me.
Is the personal and political interest of congressmen taking precedence?
There are several who have said that bicamerality must first be approved, the re-election of Congress, when those are subordinate interests of the congressmen and the government cannot allow it. It is not possible that Congress wants to legislate first in its favor and then in favor of the population. The election must be approved immediately and correct certain errors along the way. Until when can we correct certain errors? You have to have the rules of the game a year before the election and that is why a year and 4 months is prudent because you will have a little more than 3 months to change all the games of the electoral process.
There is a fear that if President Boluarte resigns, William Zapata will take office and intend to stay. If she resigns, must the current president of Congress necessarily take office?
There are two ways, if the president of the republic resigns, who would assume the presidency would be the president of the current Congress or, the other way, a new board of directors would have to be convened and that new president assumes office. This is what happened with Paniagua in 2001. The president of Congress was another, Fujimori had resigned by fax, a new board of directors was convened and the president was Paniagua.
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In other words, what the president said, April 2024, is the most appropriate thing for you
It is the most appropriate for me. And I would ask José Tello (Minister of Justice) that the first reform that the executive makes is that no person who is a candidate for the presidency of the republic or congress has a judicial process. Those who have judicial processes cannot apply for the presidency of the republic. You will see how the politics of the country begin to change. I am not saying a complaint, no, those who already have at least formalized a complaint and the judiciary is investigating them as defendants. Let’s forget a bit about the famous principle of innocence, let’s be democratic. If not, the electoral reforms will continue to be a Chinese story. We cannot make electoral reforms at the whim of the current rulers: before calling elections, let’s approve bicamerality, first let’s approve the re-election of congressmen because there is experience. Experience of what? They have shown that they have no experience of anything, this congress has proven to be one of the worst congresses in the history of the country.
El Comercio has released a report stating that up to 237 electoral bills have been submitted. What are the most urgent reforms right now?
I believe that at this moment the most urgent reform is to put locks on the candidates for the presidency of the republic and for Congress, that is the most important thing. In those bills there is none like the one I am telling you about. Now, the bicamerality can wait, the country is not prepared to have a bicameral congress. And it is not prepared because there are no conditions, there is no political class that certifies that this will be fine. First, for there to be bicamerality, there must be the strengthening of political organizations; For there to be bicamerality, there must be elections within the parties, and those elections must be held with all those who are affiliated with the political parties.
