Unlike other State institutions, ONPE has a quite specific mission: to organize and execute electoral processes. And in that, his only task, yesterday he had unacceptable negligence during the most important elections of every five years. According to its owner, Piero Corvetto, more than 52,000 voters in Lima (first he said there were more than 63,000) were unable to cast their vote because the ONPE failed to deliver electoral material at 187 polling stations (initially he indicated there were 211). In total, 13 stores could not operate in San Juan de Miraflores, Lurín and Pachacámac. In several other voting centers in the capital, the tables opened much later than the established hours due to the same logistical problem, which led the authorities to extend the deadlines for casting votes.
These mistakes are unforgivable. According to the ONPE, the cause of the delays was the non-compliance of the company Servicios Generales Galaga. The company had to transport the material on two schedules, but it only complied with the first. The company was evidently not in a position to fulfill the order. Just a week before the elections, Galaga asked through social networks for “suppliers for the contracting of 400 closed van-type units, intended for local distribution operations in Lima and Callao for an electoral project.” In addition, Galaga, with only 13 workers on the payroll, had already been sanctioned by the ONPE three times before – once in 2020 and twice in 2023 – precisely for non-compliance in the transportation of material.
The ONPE intends to transfer its responsibility to the contractor. It is unacceptable. The public institution must verify the suitability of the critical suppliers it contracts. You must ensure that the material arrives in good time. And you should have contingency plans in case something goes wrong. None of that was fulfilled. The incompetence was such that they could not even complete transfers on time within districts of the capital, the most accessible distribution area in the country. And clearly forgiving fines does not solve the problem, since the underlying issue is that the constitutional right to vote of more than 52,000 people was violated. It is worth mentioning that ONPE additionally gave false information when a few days ago it announced that it had already sent all the necessary material. Looking ahead to the second round, Corvetto should not continue to lead the organization. He has lost the trust of the citizens.
The National Elections Jury (JNE) had a correct reaction by ordering that the voting centers that did not open yesterday do so today, although it would have been better if that decision had been made before the exit poll was known. With extremely tight voting margins, small tenths can make all the difference. The 2021 second round, as remembered, was decided by a distance of fewer votes than can be cast today.
The damage that has been caused is irreparable, not only because of the distortion in the votes that will be cast today. The late opening of hundreds of polling stations possibly meant that thousands of people – who will not have the opportunity to go to the polls today – have lost their vote altogether. More importantly, confidence in the electoral system has been seriously weakened. In 2021, the country experienced elections in which suspicion of manipulation clouded the results for non-minor groups of the population. This time, the wound was self-inflicted by the laziness and incompetence of the institution that, once again, has been headed by Piero Corvetto.
