PDP announces special election to fill Dorado mayorship

Popular Democratic Party Secretary General Manuel Calderón Cerame (Facebook via Partido Popular Democrático)

By THE STAR STAFF

The Popular Democratic Party (PDP) has announced the beginning of the process to fill the vacant mayorship in Dorado, following the death of Mayor Carlos López Rivera from cancer on Oct. 17.

López Rivera had served as mayor for 38 years and had designated Aníbal José Torres as his successor, according to his brother, Pedro López Rivera.

PDP Secretary General Manuel Calderón Cerame, along with the party’s electoral commissioner, Ernesto González Rodríguez, made the announcement about the special election.

“After the Dorado Municipal Legislature formally notified us of the vacancy, we presented a work plan to the [party] president, and the governing board approved Resolution 16 to authorize a special election,” Calderón Cerame said. “This election will be held on Sunday, November 16, in accordance with the 30-day period stipulated by law.”

González Rodríguez said the PDP governing board has approved the regulations concerning the special election. The candidacy filing process will begin on Monday, Oct. 27 at 8 a.m. and will close on Wednesday, Oct. 29 at noon. Candidates must meet the requirements established for elective positions and must be affiliated with the PDP.

Former Sen. Cirilo Tirado Rivera has been appointed as the presidential delegate for the process.

Calderón Cerame noted that “[i]f only one candidate is nominated and meets the constitutional, legal, and PDP requirements, that candidate will be certified.” Otherwise, he said, a special election will be held if more than one candidate meets the requirements.