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The safeguarding and protection of the voter’s vote will be fundamental for the next simultaneous internal party elections on December 18; this, given the myth and fear created about supposed controls and even coercion that some political groups are taking towards voters.

Source: The Nation

In a special note, the newspaper La Nación/Nación Media indicates how to ensure your vote and what to do if a second person violates your secret.

The electoral judge of the capital Fabiana Marin He spoke about the electoral offenses and the actions that can be taken in the event that the citizen feels violated in his constitutional right to vote, and to guarantee this right. The judge pointed out that a fundamental aspect occurs in the control of the citizen who goes to the polling places, in addition to the polling station authorities and other control actors so that the entire voting process can be carried out without incident.

In the case of the voting bulletins, the electoral judge urged all citizens, once they have completed the voting process, to verify that the bulletin be folded in two partswith this it is avoided that other people can observe the direction of the vote.

“He has to leave the dark room with the bulletin folded in two and he hands it over to the table president, who is the last one to sign the bulletin, that bulletin has to be closed and before introducing the bulletin, he inks his finger, inserts the bulletin and You have to look to see if the word ‘voted’ was placed next to your name. There he complies with the entire voting process,” he explained.

In addition, the voter must check that no polling station member can open the bulletin and, in the event that they do, they must make the complaint in it. “It is not correct for anyone, except the voter, to look and review the option, because there the secrecy of the vote is being violated, any voter can make his claim, his complaint, if any person, whoever he is, tells him or demands that he show, or is violating the guarantee that he must have that your vote is secret. The voter always has control of the situation, he has control and the right, he must fold the ballot, that is very important, ”he clarified.

Another aspect that falls within the prohibitions established by the Electoral Code, considered electoral offenses, is entering the dark room with cameras or any type of electronic device to take photographs or recordings, including cell phones. In this case, Marín mentioned that this control will be in charge of the polling station members, this to avoid being taken the image of the voter’s sense of vote.

“This law is already a bit old, you cannot enter with no video camera, the idea is that the secrecy of the vote cannot be violated in any way and, of course, the polling station members are the highest authorities of the polling places and of each polling station, and they are the ones who administer according to their healthy case-by-case trial on the entry of cell phones or any instrument that may violate the secrecy of the vote. It all depends on the criteria of the board members,” said the judge.

Equally, the entry of two people into the darkroom is prohibited; In this regard, Marín clarified that the accompaniment of the voter by a trusted person can only be given in exceptional cases such as physical difficulties. “The law states that a trusted person can accompany the voter if he is prevented by some physical defect from markingthe law refers to the ballot, now it is with a touch screen, if due to some physical defect it is impossible to do so, You can make use of a person you trust or also in the next step of the voting procedure itself, which is to fold the ballot paper and put it in the ballot box”, he stated.

In the case of the elderly who request help to vote, the judge indicated that for these cases each particular case must also be taken into account by the polling station members. Although it is true that there is not a physical defect per se, ostensible, there is some difficulty, depending on each voter, for example, to walk; In any case, there is always an accessible table, there is also voting at home and the idea is that that person accompanies the family member to the dark room.