Santo Domingo.– The National Council of the Judiciary (CNM) ratified this Tuesday the new judges who will make up the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) for the period 2025-2029, in a session held in the Private Room of the National Palace and headed by President Luis Abinader.
The meeting, which was initially scheduled to also discuss vacancies in the Supreme Court of Justice, modified its agenda to focus exclusively on the selection of the five regular judges of the TSE and their respective substitutes. The process for the Supreme Court will continue on a date that will be announced soon by the Council itself.
The appointed judges
Judge Nancy Salcedo Fernández, judge of the Supreme Court of Justice and secretary of the CNM, announced the final selection, after exhausting the evaluation of 41 preselected applicants, under articles 179 and 215 of the Constitution and Law 138-11.
The designated regular and alternate judges are:
• Ygnacio Pascual Camacho Hidalgo – Substitute: Lourdes Teresa Salazar
• Pedro Pablo Yermenos Forastieri – Substitute: Juan Cuevas
• Fernando Fernández Cruz – Substitute: Juan Manuel Martín Garrido
• Rafaelina Peralta Arias – Substitute: Freddy Ángel Castro
• Rosángela García – Substitute: Víctor Rafael Menieur
The CNM also decided, unanimously, that Ignacio Pascual Camacho Hidalgo will continue to preside over the Superior Electoral Tribunal during the period for which he was appointed.
Salcedo highlighted that among the titular judges there are two women, which, he stated, demonstrates the body’s commitment to the principle of parity established in article 39.5 of the Dominican Constitution.
The ratification of the new TSE plenary session is considered a key step to guarantee institutional stability and legal security in electoral matters, especially for the next political cycle.
Swearing-in and next steps
The designated magistrates were formally summoned for their swearing-in on Thursday, December 4 at 6:00 pm at the National Palace, as required by law.
In the coming days, the CNM will resume the selection process of the five judges who will complete the renewal of the Supreme Court of Justice.
Present at the meeting were:
• Luis Henry Molina, president of the Supreme Court of Justice
• Napoleón Estévez Lavandier, president of the Constitutional Court
• Ricardo de los Santos, president of the Senate
• Alfredo Pacheco, president of the Chamber of Deputies
• Nancy Salcedo Fernández, judge of the SCJ
• Omar Fernández, senator
• Tobías Crespo, deputy
The selection concludes a process in which 81 of the 83 candidates for the high courts were evaluated in four days that included interviews, review of merits and analysis of professional careers.
