In interview with the crossfire program issued by GEN/Nación Media, Duarte recalled that throughout his electoral campaign, Paraguayan Cubas explained the course of action that can be observed today in the demonstrations that have been taking place and that have their followers as protagonists. “He has anticipated that this state of mobilization would occur in the event that his candidacy had not been chosen as the winner.”
cataloged “Payo” Cubas as a political actor proposes a “state of permanent mobilization” after his defeat in the electionsbetting directly on the ignorance of the results of the elections where Santiago Peña was the winner.
In the opinion of this sociologist, the objective of the National Crusade candidate is position itself as the main benchmark of the opposition in the face of the debacle of the Concertación and the collapse of the leadership of Efraín Alegrewho -he maintained- “did not know how to successfully carry out a coalition that brought together different political parties.
“I think you are fraud complaintsbeyond the seriousness with which they are formulated, They have a clear political objective: to try to occupy the vacant place left by the debacle of the Concertación before a scenario of very clear electoral victory of the Colorado Party”, he added.
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In turn, Caballero pointed out that the actual situation it is very tense and unfortunate, as expected “a more harmonious ending”. Likewise, he stated that the versions of alleged electoral fraud coming from the opposition they have not been duly supported and take away the seriousness of the accusation.
Regarding the request for opening of Envelope 4considers that now is not the time to bring up that issue because all phases of the electoral process have been completed. Despite this, he believes that it can be taken as a recommendation or suggestion for future electionsin order to eventually include the possibility of verifying the ballot papers.
“The behavior of the movement of Payo Cubas (National Crusade) was really very dangerous because it was a call to violence. Can you imagine what would have happened if that call had resulted in, for example, storming the Superior Court of Electoral Justice or stealing the materials? It would have been really very dangerous,” said Caballero.
He also stated that there “a great frustration misdirected” in various political actors after their electoral failures in the April 30 elections, being the most criticized Ephraim Alegre given that He has not even been accompanied by the board of directors of his party, in this case, the PLRA.
“The opposition has a lot to learn from the Colorado Party, not only from its victories but also from its attitude in the face of defeats. Since the beginning of the democratic period, it has suffered electoral defeats and the attitude it has always adopted was that of strict respect for the sovereign decision of the people and recognition of the electoral results without any discussion,” said Duarte.
About him social phenomenon behind Payo CubasDuarte believes that the question to be answered is the connection and harmony that his speech has with very broad sectorsespecially considering that he obtained practically 23% of the votes in the last elections on April 30.
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“There are unsatisfied demands beyond the achievements of the last 30 years. There are many sectors that today feel misunderstood or excluded of the achievements and benefits and that make the speech of Paraguayo Cubas challenges them in a very effective way”, he emphasized.
In his opinion, a challenge for the future government is attend, study and understand the social base of support for Payo Cubasin a way to implement well-targeted public policies that in some way prevent the conditions of a populist articulation of rupture.
“Payo is an unclassifiable person, he is a very eclectic person in his proposals”, Duarte mentioned when asked about his ideological position. For his part, Caballero maintains that Cubas has “a rather incoherent discourse” by certain oppositions that have been evidenced.
About him new post-electoral political scenarioDuarte talks about the importance of unity in the ranks of the ANR, especially in the National Congress, since it can go for different sides or in the same line. “It will depend a lot on the negotiation and articulation capacity of President Santiago Peña”, he added.
Likewise, he emphasized the consequences of the debacle of the National Concertation that today is experiencing “a crisis of great magnitude” for the advance of Paraguayo Cubas on public opinion due to its political leadership.
“The idea of making an alliance in 2028 would be debatable”, considers Caballero, taking into account the circumstances that arose in these elections. On victory of the Colorado Partyassured that it has several reasons, among them the structure and clientele of the ANRthe fact of not having been divided for the contest, in addition to have clearer electoral proposals and a candidate like Santiago Peña who attracted the electorate and generated confidence.
Why did the Colorado party win the general elections? We spoke with Esteban Caballero, a political scientist, to learn more about the political landscape.
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– GEN (@SomosGEN) May 15, 2023
