Leading mayors of Paraguay re-elected after violent campaign The results quickly became known as the introduction of electronic voting

The mayors of the main cities of Paraguay were re-elected A. in the municipal election held this Sunday Unusual wave of violence against candidates and local supporters. The mayors and councilors of 261 cities were elected by more than 4.6 million citizens. Participation averaged 60 percent, And due results were known a few hours after the tables were closed Implementation of electronic voting system.

The results of the election are seen as the beginning of the strategies of the political establishment to form lists and alliances for the 2023 presidential and assembly elections. The ruling Colorado party retained the quarterly master Ascension With success Oscar “Nenego” RodriguezWho fought for re-election, But he lost to Ciudad del Este, The second city in the country, where he presented Ulysses Quintana, Was a candidate Prisoner in drug trafficking case.

Results in major cities

In the Paraguayan capital, Colorado Rodriguez won with 47.50 percent of the vote, According to the website of the High Court Election Commission (TSJE) Preliminary Election Results (TREP) Exchange. Behind Rodriguez, Eduardo Nagayama is 42.11 percent from the coalition led by the real extremist Liberal Party (PLRA, the main opposition party), and Johanna Ortega, 4.68 percent from the Asuncion Somos Todos.

Ortega The court compelled the decision Asuncion officials were forced to show how a millionaire was used to attend the epidemic. There were high-priced purchases, acquisitions from companies close to the authorities, and highly questionable maneuvers, for which the press gave the best view.

At Ciudad del Este, Brazil border and country business center, Independent candidate Miguel Prieto retained the seat with 61.85 percent of the vote. Second place went to Colorado Ulysses Quintana, 27.15 percent. Preto took over as mayor in 2019 in early elections called after the dismissal of Mayor Sandra McLeod from the Colorado party, which has been investigated for several corruption cases. At the same time Quintana was convicted of drug trafficking and imprisoned.

In the meantime Rogue Kodai from the PLRA was recognized as President Franco with 51.05 percent of the vote.. They were also re-elected Alcides Riveros from PLRA in Fernando de la Mora with 60.52 percent of the vote; Jose Carlos Azevedo, from PLRA, to Pedro Juan Caballero, with 55.03 percent, and Luis Yd, from the coalition of local parties in Encarnacion with 56.69 percent of the vote.

According to the newspaper, “this day took place amid reports of election crimes such as vote-buying and campaigning at polling stations.” ABC color, Said Three prisoners in different cities For attempting to vote with someone else’s identity documents. There was a novelty in the elections: Introduction to the voting machine. According to TSJE data, 15,139 of the 1,135 polling stations where 11,913 tables were set up were established.

President Mario Apto Benitez At a school in Asuncion, seven minutes before the official start of voting, he was the first citizen to vote. Restraining himself from urging citizens to “go out and vote,” the leader left the site without giving a statement to reporters. Then and with advanced research he promised: “From tomorrow We will work with all elected mayors and always think about the progress of our Paraguay“.

Increase in violence

The extraordinary violence that occurred during the campaign was a matter of great concern to the authorities. Recorded numerous deaths and attacks on local paramilitaries and caravans. In Idagiri municipality, On September 22, councilor candidate Carlos Aguilera was assassinated, In conflict between factions of different powers.

On the night of September 30, two more councilors were killed by gunmen. Arrived on motorcycles, shot and escaped: Nestor Echeveria in Pedro Juan Caballero and Bartholomew Moral in Gauteng in Nueva Germany. Last Wednesday, unidentified individuals shot dead a truck carrying Hernandez mayoral candidate Emiliano Nelson Cano Osuna., With his son.

Hayley Carolina Acevedo, 21, daughter of the governor of Amabe, was killed in Saturday’s attack. It also happened in Pedro Juan Caballero, in which four people died. The chain of assassinations pushed Interior Minister Arnoldo Cucio to meet with TSJE members to agree to strengthened security measures in cities rocked by waves of violence.

Efron AlegreThe head of the PLRA read out a statement over the weekend in which he asked the country’s president, Mario Apto Benades, and his predecessor, Horacio Cortes, a member of the Colorado party, to remove the interior minister. Unrestrained and uncontrolled wave of killings and violence for which the Colorado government is fully responsible. “, Points out the text.