Deputy José Rodríguez (ANR, HC) declared on Monday, May 18, that, having been an employee of the Superior Electoral Justice Tribunal (TSJE) for many years, he fully trusts the institution's internal controls. He also downplayed complaints from dissident Colorados about the alleged exclusion from the audit process of voting machines supplied by the Comitia-MSA consortium, which had previously been disqualified in an earlier bidding process for serious non-compliance.
“Each party and political movement must have its trusted people working in the IT area. So far, there has been no concrete complaint, so we fully trust the Electoral Justice and this electoral process,” Rodríguez said.
However, the deputy was reminded that dissident movements such as Colorado Añeteté and Causa Republicana filed a complaint alleging they were marginalized in the ballot box audit. Rodríguez replied: “I do not believe that participation was not allowed, because the president of the TSJE, Jorge Bogarín, was there saying that everyone was invited. There is an electoral schedule and it is being followed.” The parliamentarian even suggested that the dissidents might have been “irresponsible” for not completing the accreditation procedures on time.
Rodríguez's position contrasts with that of the president of the Colorado Party's Electoral Party Tribunal (TEP), Santiago Brizuela, who on the same date acknowledged the criticisms had merit and asked the TSJE to seek mechanisms to carry out the audits and dispel the doubts.