The public endorsement of former President Mario Abdo Benítez for the Colorado Party candidate Camilo Pérez in Asunción, formalizing the party alliance, has generated both internal celebration and strong criticism from party factions, such as from Senator Yamil Esgaib, who called him a "traitor."
Colorado Añetete
Pytagua coverage mentioning Colorado Añetete.
After a six-month absence, Senator Carlos Núñez returned to the Honor Colorado movement, a decision made following a meeting with the president of the ANR and leader of the movement, Horacio Cartes.
Gustavo Ovelar, pre-candidate for mayor of Ciudad del Este for the Colorado Añetete movement, accused the government of using Itaipú Binacional funds to finance attacks on opponents. The accusation was made during a rally with the support of presidential pre-candidate Arnoldo Wiens, on the eve of the municipal internal elections.
Dissident Colorado presidential candidate Arnoldo Wiens accused the government of using public funds from binational companies to hire trolls and digital farms to attack critical voices. The statement was made during a rally in Piribebuy, where he also criticized the submission of the judiciary and the Public Ministry to political power.
The Cartist majority in Paraguay's Chamber of Deputies rejected yet another request for information on the allocation of teaching positions in the Ministry of Education and Sciences (MEC), amid accusations of political favoritism. Deputy Johanna Ortega called Minister Luis Fernando Ramírez 'useless, a puppet' and a defender of politicians.
The attorney for the Colorado Añetete movement, Cecilia Pérez, stated that the supposed audit of the voting machines was actually just a technical presentation, and that the Cartismo faction itself acknowledges flaws by supporting new audits.
Deputies from the Colorado Party, both from the dissident faction and the government base, reject the suspension of the internal elections scheduled for June 7. While they support a new audit of the voting machines, provided it is conducted by the Electoral Justice, they criticize calls for postponement and accuse the opposition of trying to disrupt the process.
Deputy José Rodríguez (ANR, HC) stated he fully trusts the Superior Electoral Justice Tribunal (TSJE) and denied that dissident Colorados were prevented from auditing the voting machines, despite the Colorado Party's own Electoral Party Tribunal (TEP) having acknowledged the issue and requested measures to resolve the doubts.
Deputy Luis “Tiki” González Vaesken, of the dissident Colorado movement Añeteté, defended the need to strengthen oversight systems at polling stations for the upcoming elections, amid doubts about the reliability of voting machines supplied by the Comitia-MSA Consortium, which had previously been disqualified in an earlier tender.
Amid complaints from pre-candidates for councilor about alleged parallel cash funds at Mercado 4 and the Asunción Bus Station, the market director, Alejandro Buzó, classified the accusations as 'urban legends' and stated that revenue collection is completely transparent. He challenged the whistleblowers to present concrete evidence.
The pre-presidential candidate of the Colorado Añetete movement, Arnoldo Wiens, ended his campaign in Villarrica with harsh criticism of leaders and public employees who, according to him, remain 'bolted' to their positions to defend private interests. Wiens also questioned the resistance of IPS board members to reforms proposed by the institution's new president, Isaías Fretes, and highlighted the rising cost of living affecting the population.
Pre-candidates for councilor of the Municipal Board of Asunción denounce the existence of an irregular collection system in municipal markets and the Bus Station, which allegedly diverts funds for electoral campaigns. Ever Escalante, from the Colorado Añetete movement, claims that only in Market 4 around 100 million guaranis would be collected per day.
The chief of staff of the ANR, Eduardo González, stated that Senator Lilian Samaniego requested the postponement of the Colorado Party's internal elections, but she denies the accusation and demands an audit of the voting machines. The TEP guarantees that the audit will be carried out without altering the calendar.
Presidential pre-candidate Arnoldo Wiens, from the Colorado Añetete movement, attacked sectors of cartismo during a rally in Villarrica, accusing them of remaining "bolted to power" and using public office for personal gain. He also questioned the government's economic management and recalled the narrative of the "true colorados," amid the internal dispute of the ANR.