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Preliminary Report of the OAS Electoral Observation Mission in Colombia

The full Preliminary Report is available here.

The Electoral Observation Mission of the Organization of American States (OAS/EOM) congratulates the people of Colombia following the territorial elections held on Sunday, October 29. The Mission, headed by Soledad García Muñoz, highlights the work of the authorities and officials of the various electoral institutions that made it possible to organize elections in a challenging climatic, geographic, and public order context. It also applauds the civic commitment of those who came to vote to elect their authorities and representatives.

The Mission stresses that in most of the country the elections took place normally, despite the incidents reported before, during, and after Election Day. The Mission condemns the violent incidents that took place in Gamarra (Cesar), which resulted in the death of a female official of the Registrar's Office. Likewise, it regrets the suspension of the elections in Ricaurte (Nariño) and Santiago (Putumayo), where there were public order problems, as well as the isolated disturbances that occurred at the end of the election. At the same time, the OAS/EOM recognizes the prompt and effective coordination of the electoral authorities and security forces in responding to the challenges that arose in connection with this election.

The Mission, which arrived in the country in stages beginning on October 20, was made up of 25 specialists with 14 different nationalities. The Mission was deployed in the capital district of Bogotá and in 10 departments of the country: Atlántico, Antioquia, Cauca, Córdoba, Cundinamarca, Magdalena, Nariño, Norte de Santander, Santander, and Valle del Cauca, to observe the preparations for and conduct of the election. In addition to observing the general conduct of the process, the Mission monitored key aspects of said process, such as electoral organization, electoral technology, electoral justice, political financing, political participation of women, political participation of indigenous and Afro-descendant people, and electoral violence. The Mission’s specialists also followed up on the recommendations issued by past OAS Missions.

To gather information on the electoral process, the OAS Mission members met with leaders and representatives of political organizations, electoral and governmental authorities, candidates, members of academia, civil society organizations, and national electoral observers to learn about the different perspectives on the election. Based on these meetings, analysis of legislation and other documents, and direct observation, the Mission was able to carry out a comprehensive analysis of the electoral process and monitor the organization of the elections.

PRE-ELECTORAL PHASE

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The full Preliminary Report is available here.

Reference: S-014/23