Lima, Peru…..The National Democratic Institute (NDI)/Carter Center observer delegation today expressed "admiration" for the conduct of Peru's national elections on Sunday, saying Peruvians had "demonstrated a solid commitment to truly democratic elections."
"Governmental and electoral officials, candidates and political movements, Peruvian nonpartisan election monitors and the voters themselves deserve praise for their concerted efforts to achieve genuine democratic elections," the group said in a written preliminary statement following the April 8 vote.
The statement was presented by former Guatemalan President Ramiro de Leon Carpio, who co-led the 35-person delegation with former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, Peter McPherson, president of Michigan State University and Eni Faleomavaega, member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
The delegation also made several recommendations for improving the electoral process for the run-off election expected in May, and called on Peruvians to participate fully in the elections process. The delegation urged the candidates to focus on an issue-oriented campaign and to refrain from personal attacks against each other.
Noting that voting did not begin on time at many polling sites, the group suggested that further training be offered for polling officials and their substitutes and that they arrive earlier at the stations.
The group said it would continue to follow the current vote tabulation as well as the electoral process leading to the run-off election for president. It also announced that it would send a delegation of observers to the May election.
NDI and The Carter Center have jointly monitored Peru's election process since November 1999. They had declined to observe the 2000 run-off election, which they concluded was fraudulent.
Prior to the 2001 elections, the group conducted an extensive assessment of the pre-election campaign environment and found that they met international standards.
The full text of the delegation's statement is available on the NDI web site at www.ndi.org and the Carter Center site at www.cartercenter.org
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