By The Star Staff
The electoral team of the New Progressive Party (NPP) is preparing itself to recuse voters as established in the Electoral Code to ensure the purity of the voting process.
As part of that process, NPP officials will work to identify voters who do not reside at the addresses registered with the State Elections Commission (SEC) so that the right to vote is guaranteed to eligible voters for each district and municipality.
NPP Electoral Commissioner Vanessa Santo Domingo Cruz made the announcement over the weekend after offering training to electoral officials.
“Our electoral team will be carrying out specific work to identify any person whose addresses are not compatible with the reality stated in the records, to avoid any violation of the law, for voting in a jurisdiction to which they do not belong,” Santo Domingo said.
As part of that process, the official clarified that voters who have recently moved or are unaware of the residence transfer process may also be oriented.
“This is an aspect of primary relevance, which our president Pedro Pierluisi has insistently raised,” the electoral commissioner added. “Each new voter or those who return to the electoral registry can be properly oriented so that nothing hinders them from exercising their right in their town of residence. We thereby strengthen our democracy and guarantee that the broad will of the people is expressed at the polls.”
The period for recusal of registered voters begins on Jan 15 and extends until April 30, 2024.
The SEC Challenge Procedure and the Electoral Code establish that political parties or any voter may start a process to recuse voters. The recusal must be sworn in before any member of the corresponding local commission, notary public, clerk of the Court, or other official authorized by law to take oaths in Puerto Rico.