ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES ELECTORAL OBSERVATION MISSION NATIONAL ELECTIONS

February 4, 2018 (National Elections) April 1, 2018 (Presidential Election, Second Round)

FINAL REPORT

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CONTENTS

I. FINAL REPORT TO THE PERMANENT COUNCIL ...... 3 1. BACKGROUND ...... 3 2. NATIONAL ELECTIONS (February 4, 2018) ...... 4 2.1 Pre-electoral phase ...... 4 2.2 Election day ...... 5 2.3 Post-electoral phase ...... 7 3. PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, SECOND ROUND (April 1, 2018) ...... 9 3.1 Pre-electoral phase ...... 9 3.2 Election day ...... 11 3.3 Post-electoral phase ...... 11 4. FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...... 12 4.1 Public information programs ...... 12 4.2 Surveys ...... 12 4.3 Electoral organization and technology ...... 12 4.4 Party and campaign financing ...... 15 4.5 Political participation by women ...... 16 4.6 Electoral justice ...... 17 5. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...... 18

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I. FINAL REPORT TO THE PERMANENT COUNCIL1

1. BACKGROUND

On June 29, 2017, the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (OAS) received an invitation from the Supreme Electoral Court (TSE) of Costa Rica to deploy an Electoral Observation Mission (EOM/OAS) to observe its national elections on February 4, 2018. On July 7, 2017, the General Secretariat accepted the invitation and appointed former President of Colombia, Andrés Pastrana, as the Chief of Mission. Costa Rica’s citizens went to the polls on February 4 to elect a new President and Vice Presidents of the Republic and fifty-seven (57) deputies to sit in the Legislative Assembly.

In that election, 3,322,329 Costa Ricans were eligible to vote, of whom 31,864 were registered to vote abroad. Thirteen presidential candidates, representing the following political organizations, competed in the election: Citizens’ Action Party (PAC), National Restoration Party (PRN), National Liberation Party (PLN), Christian Social Unity Party (PUSC), National Integration Party (PIN), Christian Social Republican Party (PRSC), Broad Front (FA), Libertarian Movement (ML), Christian Democratic Alliance (ADC), Accessibility without Exclusion Party (PASE), Workers’ Party (PT), New Generation Party (PNG), and Costa Rican Renewal Party (PRC).

On Monday, February 5, 2018, the day following the election, the EOM/OAS presented a Preliminary Report containing its main observations and recommendations.

None of the candidates for President and Vice Presidents of the Republic won more than 40% of the valid votes in the national election of February 4. Accordingly, after the final count had concluded on February 15, 2018, the Supreme Electoral Court (TSE) ruled that a second-round election would be held between the two highest-scoring candidates on April 1, 2018:2 Fabricio Alvarado Muñoz of the National Restoration Party, who secured 24.99% of the first-round votes, and of the Citizens’ Action Party, who obtained 21.63%.

On February 15, 2018, the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States received the Supreme Electoral Court’s invitation to observe the second round of the presidential election on April 1, 2018. On February 20, the General Secretariat accepted the invitation and established a team to follow up on the work of the EOM/OAS, which was once again led by former Colombian President Andrés Pastrana.

Due to budgetary constraints, the OAS General Secretariat was unable to deploy an Electoral Observation Mission with the characteristics and scope that had initially been defined. For the election of February 4, the work of the mission’s 15 members focused on technical aspects relating

1 A summary of this report was read by the Chief of Mission, Andrés Pastrana, to the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States, at its meeting on February 6th , 2019. 2 Constitution of Costa Rica, Title X, Chapter I, Article 138. 3

to the election’s organization and use of technology, the political participation of women, and electoral justice, with a very restricted deployment of observers in the field. For the presidential second round, the GS/OAS was only able to deploy a follow-up team of four persons, led by President Pastrana.

In 1962, Costa Rica became the first OAS member state to receive an Electoral Observation Mission. The presidential second round of April 1, 2018, was the fifteenth election in the country to be observed by the OAS.

This document is the Final Report of the mission. It supplements the Preliminary Report presented following the national elections and the press release published after the presidential second round and provides greater detail on the various issues observed. It also expands on the recommendations formulated to assist Costa Rica in strengthening its electoral processes.

2. NATIONAL ELECTIONS (February 4, 2018)

The Mission deployed for the national elections of February 4, 2018, comprised 15 experts and observers representing 13 different nationalities, of whom 40% were women and 60% were men. The Mission’s observation consisted of a substantive analysis of the organization of the election and of the technology used, party and campaign financing, political participation by women, and electoral justice.

2.1 Pre-electoral phase

The Electoral Observation Mission began its work on the ground on January 25, with the arrival of the core group specialists in San José. In order to ensure a clear understanding of the technical aspects of the election, and gather the views of the different players involved, the Mission met with government authorities, the plenary of the Supreme Electoral Court, directors and officials of the Court’s technical areas, representatives of civil society, academics, former Presidents of the Republic, members of the diplomatic community, and political parties and candidates. Of the contenders in the election, the Mission met with the National Restoration Party (PRN), the Citizens’ Action Party (PAC), the National Liberation Party (PLN), the Christian Social Unity Party (PUSC), the Broad Front (FA), the National Integration Party (PIN), and the Progressive Liberal Party.

Upon his arrival in San José, the Chief of Mission, former Colombian President Andrés Pastrana, signed the Agreement between the Supreme Electoral Court of the Republic of Costa Rica and the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States regarding the observation procedure for the presidential and legislative elections of February 4, 2018, with Luis Antonio Sobrado, Presiding Magistrate of the TSE.

Prior to election day, the Mission observed the high level of competition between the candidates and the positive organization of numerous debates in different media outlets. Those occasions enabled the electorate to learn about the candidates’ proposals and to take better informed and more carefully considered decisions about their electoral preferences. However, the EOM noted that 4

political parties which did not perform well in the opinion polls encountered difficulties in participating, since public opinion surveys were used to determine which parties were to be invited to the debates.

The Mission notes with concern the importance given to opinion polls, which in Costa Rica also influence political parties’ access to election funding. Both across the region and in the specific case of Costa Rica, OAS Missions have observed that opinion polls can sometimes be unreliable and imprecise, and are used for political ends, despite not being an effective tool for predicting results.

The Mission regretted the heightened aggression in campaign rhetoric following the publication of the advisory opinion of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights on gender identity and equality and nondiscrimination toward same-sex relationships. This topic dominated and polarized the political debate, eclipsing all discussion of the parties’ manifestos as a whole.

In this electoral process, social networks became an important platform for information sharing. They allowed the TSE to inform the public about the electoral process, allowed political parties to disseminate their proposals, and allowed the electorate to learn about their different political options. In addition, the equal access to the networks enjoyed by all the candidates leveled out competition between the contending parties. On occasions, however, social networks were used to launch attacks and spread false information. Social networks, used responsibly, can bolster equity and transparency in an electoral competition.

2.2 Election day

On the day of the election, the Mission visited 210 polling stations (JRVs) in San José, Alajuela, Cartago, and Heredia. Members of the Mission were present from the opening of the polling stations until the final count and transmission of results, and observed overseas voting at the Costa Rican consulate in Washington D.C., United States. Election day was a celebration of democracy, marked by respectful coexistence and a spirit of collaboration between the different players in spite of their ideological and programmatic differences.

The EOM noted that the polling stations opened punctually at 6:00 a.m. and were equipped with all the materials needed for the vote to take place. OAS observers reported that a considerable number of alternates were required to work at the polling stations , since the party representatives who were to serve as polling station staff members did not turn up. The TSE had foreseen problems in this regard and, as a result, had adopted contingency measures by assigning additional electoral auxiliaries to enable all the polling stations to open.

The Mission wishes to highlight the initiatives taken at Model Voting Centers to facilitate voting by older people and persons with disabilities, who were provided with wheelchairs, Braille ballots, magnifying glasses to help them read their ballot papers, pencil holders to make marking ballots easier, and other forms of assistance. The observers also saw students and volunteers from the Costa Rican Guides and Scouts Association helping citizens locate and reach their polling stations.

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The EOM also applauds the continuation of good practices implemented by the TSE in previous elections to ensure the right of political participation, such as the distribution on election day itself of voters’ cards processed within the deadlines set by law, the setting up of special polling stations in retirement homes, prisons, and mental-health centers, and the distribution of information on voting procedures in the five indigenous languages.

The OAS observers noted that the voting screens used were designed to ensure secrecy but also to allow JRV members and party monitors to see if voters were taking photographs of their ballot papers: a practice that is illegal in Costa Rica and punishable by the cancellation of a person’s vote. This screen design helps prevent and combat vote buying.

The OAS observers highlighted the professionalism with which the electoral officials led the voting process and they noted that the JRV members were familiar with the duties required of them. The Mission applauds the work of the Institute for Democracy Training and Studies (IFED) in training election workers and their efforts to provide political parties with permanent training.

Election day proceeded without problems and the citizens of Costa Rica were able to cast their ballots freely and in secrecy. At the close of voting, the Mission observed the process whereby the preliminary results were transmitted, collated, and published. At 6:00 p.m. on election day, with the party monitors and members of the EOM/OAS in attendance, the databases on the computer center’s server were set to zero. The process of transmitting results from the 2,150 polling places then began. The transmitted results, in either digital or verbal format, were received at the data- processing center in San José, where they were transcribed, tabulated, and published. The transmission of results unfolded without problems and without delay and, in fact, took less time than had been planned. Less than six hours after voting closed, 89.10% of all the Voting Closure and Result Certificates had been received.

The Mission acknowledges the TSE’s efforts to modernize the results transmission process with the introduction of smartphones to collect the results from 1,934 polling stations and transmit, by means of a mobile application, the data directly to the TSE’s database. In addition, it applauds the fact that the electoral authority uploaded, to its web page, images of the results certificates: both those delivered by mobile telephones and those that were scanned as the results arrived at the TSE’s headquarters. Although there were delays in publishing the images, the EOM/OAS applauds this practice, which contributed to the transparency of the process.

On election night, the Mission attended the formal sitting at which the provisional results were transmitted. At 8:00 p.m., the TSE published the first preliminary results in the elections for President and Vice Presidents of the Republic and for the Legislative Assembly, with updates approximately every 30 minutes. By midnight, the people of Costa Rica had access to the provisional electoral results from more than 89% of the JRVs.

The Mission notes the TSE’s efforts to transmit and publish the preliminary results as promptly as possible, which generated trust among the public. In addition, it recognizes the democratic spirit

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and maturity with which the candidates acknowledged the results at the end of the electoral process and their commitment toward working together.

2.3 Post-electoral phase

At 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday February 6, the final vote count began at the TSE’s offices, with live coverage on the YouTube channel TSECostaRica.3 Electoral law states that the final count of presidential ballots must conclude within 30 days following the election, and within 60 days for the election of members of the Legislative Assembly. On February 15, 2018, the Supreme Electoral Court concluded the final scrutiny of results from the 6,612 polling stations that were established for the election.

The count was carried out by five working panels set up at TSE headquarters and it involved the examination and validation of the electoral documentation contained in the packages received from the 6,612 JRVs. The magistrates of the TSE, with the support of officials from the electoral authority and with the participation of accredited party monitors, reviewed the result certificates to corroborate the figures sent from the JRVs by means of the data transmission system. Partial or total manual recounts are only performed in the following cases:

(a) When admissible appeals and/or applications for annulment are lodged at a JRV and the TSE believes they need to be resolved. (b) When a polling station committee’s results are notoriously inconsistent. (c) When, the following, at the very least, were not present for the preliminary vote count at the JRV: three of the members of the JRV or at least two JRV members and an electoral auxiliary, as indicated on the tally sheet. (d) When the tally sheet was lost, was not used, or contains such comments as warrant a recount. (e) When there is a narrow difference between presidential candidates: a difference of 2% or less between the results for first and second place and/or between the results for second and third place, in the event that a second round vote is needed.

According to the data given to the Mission by the TSE, the votes of 76% of the JRVs had to be recounted in the first presidential round and 96% had to be recounted in the second round. For the legislative election, the votes from 71% of the JRVs were recounted.

Number of JRVs where the TSE performed recounts, 2018 National Elections. Source: TSE Election Number of JRVs with recounts Number of JRVs without recounts First round, President and Vice 5,001 76% 1,611 24% Presidents of the Republic Deputies4 4,657 71% 1,885 29%

3 Supreme Electoral Court, YouTube channel #TSECostaRica, transmission of final count of the first and second presidential rounds. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/user/TSECostaRica/videos. 4 For the 2018 national elections, a total of 6,612 polling stations were installed, including 70 JRVs set up in foreign countries at which votes could only be cast for President and Vice Presidents of the 7

Second round, President and Vice 6,332 96% 280 4% Presidents of the Republic

For the elections of both February 4 and April 1, most of the recounts were caused by the absence of JRV members during the preliminary count.

Number of JRVs where the TSE carried out recounts, in compliance with Article 36.c of the Rules of Procedure for Voting in the National Election of February 4, 2018. Source: TSE Election Number of JRVs recounted under Art. 36.c First round, President and Vice Presidents of the Republic 4,715 Deputies 4,657 Second round, President and Vice Presidents of the Republic 6,236

Once the final scrutiny had been completed, the TSE announced the official results on February 15. The results of the presidential election are presented below.

Final results, presidential election of February 4, 2018 Source: TSE Candidate Party Percentage of votes received Fabricio Alvarado Muñoz National Restoration 24.99% Carlos Alvarado Quezada Citizens’ Action 21.63% Antonio Álvarez Desanti National Liberation 18.63% Rodolfo Piza Rocafort Christian Social Unity 15.99% Juan Diego Castro Fernández National Integration 9.54% Rodolfo Hernández Gómez Christian Social Republican 4.94% Otto Guevara Guth Libertarian Movement 1.02% Edgardo Araya Broad Front 0.78% Sergio Mena Díaz New Generation 0.76% Mario Redondo Poveda Christian Democratic Alliance 0.59% Stephanie Campos Arrieta Costa Rican Renewal 0.57% Óscar Andrés López Arias Accessibility without Exclusion 0.35% John Vega Masís Workers’ Party 0.20%

Since none of the candidates obtained the 40% needed to be elected President of the Republic in the first round,5 on February 15, 2018, the TSE formally announced that a second electoral round would be held on April 1.6 The electoral authority noted that it would be impossible to change the date for the second round even though it clashed with the Holy Week holidays. The second round was fought between Fabricio Alvarado Muñoz of the National Restoration Party, who had received 24.99% of the first-round votes, and Carlos Alvarado Quezada from the governing Citizens’ Action Party, who had secured 21.63%. Neither of the two traditional parties—the National Liberal Party and the Christian Social Unity Party—managed to make it into the second round, thus putting an end to the dominance of those two parties in Costa Rica.

Republic. This explains the difference seen between the total number of recounted and non- recounted votes for the election of Legislative Assembly deputies. 5 Article 138 of the Constitution and Article 201 of the Electoral Code. 6 Supreme Electoral Court, Resolution No. 970-E11-2018 of February 15, 2018. 8

In the legislative election, on February 27, 2018, the TSE announced the names of the 57 deputies who were to sit in the Legislative Assembly for the constitutional period from May 1, 2018, to April 31, 2022.7 The Assembly will be made up of seven party blocs. Of the 57 seats, 26 (45.6%) were won by women. This figure represents a major step forward in the political inclusion of women and marks an historical milestone in Costa Rica, where the percentage of women in the National Assembly had never before surpassed 40%.

Final results, legislative election of February 4, 2018. Source: TSE Party Seats in the Legislative Assembly National Liberation 17 National Restoration 14 Citizens’ Action 10 Christian Social Unity 9 National Integration 4 Christian Social Republican 2 Broad Front 1

Following a long period during which Costa Rican politics were dominated by two parties, the emergence of new political forces and the results they obtained augur the start of a new multiparty reality. The reconfiguration of the Legislative Assembly will necessitate the forging of agreements between the different parties to bring about the reforms required.

3. PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, SECOND ROUND (April 1, 2018)

On February 15, the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States received the invitation of the Supreme Electoral Court to observe the second round of the presidential election on April 1, 2018, in which the new President and Vice Presidents of the Republic were to be elected. On February 20, 2018, the General Secretariat accepted the invitation and appointed a team to follow up on the work of the EOM/OAS deployed for the national elections, to be led once again by former President of Colombia Andrés Pastrana.

Despite the efforts made by the Department of Electoral Cooperation and Observation to secure funds for the Mission, the lack of funding prevented the OAS from deploying the minimum number of personnel needed to effectively implement its electoral observation methods. The Organization therefore sent a delegation of four experts to Costa Rica, who followed up on the observation work carried out in February.

3.1 Pre-electoral phase

On March 28, with the arrival of the Chief of Mission, the team charged with following up on the work of the EOM/OAS deployed in February began its activities in the country in preparation for the second presidential round on April 1. The Mission met with the magistrates of the Supreme Electoral

7 Supreme Electoral Court, Press Release #503, February 27, 2018. Available at: http://www.tse.go.cr/comunicado503.htm. 9

Court and officers from its technical areas, representatives of civil society, academics, former Presidents of the Republic, and with the candidates contending for the presidency—Carlos Alvarado and Fabricio Alvarado—and their campaign teams.

At its meetings with the electoral authority, the Mission was provided with information on the progress made in organizing the April 1 election. According to the TSE Magistrates, the second presidential round would follow the same rules as the February election, with the same registered voters—both within Costa Rica and abroad—eligible to vote. With a few exceptions,8 the second round was to use the same polling stations, polling station committees, and consulates as the February election.

The Mission applauded the rule adopted by the TSE to accredit new party monitors, who play a key role in the oversight of elections, while at the same time maintaining the accreditation of those people who performed that function on February 4.

The Mission also appreciated the steps taken on March 31 and April 1 to streamline traffic bringing Holy Week vacationers back so they could exercise their right to vote in a timely and correct fashion.

The electoral campaigns carried out between the first and second rounds covered various topics of national interest, as had been recommended by the EOM/OAS deployed for the February national elections. The Mission applauds the organization of several debates between the candidates and their transmission by different media outlets, which allowed the electorate to remain informed about the candidates’ positions on the various issues at play. However, some political actors informed the Mission of concerns regarding the tone of the discussions, which was more aggressive than in previous elections. Again, social networks were used to make offensive statements and even to convey threats.

The Mission was aware of the public accusations voiced regarding the use of religion in the electoral campaign and complaints received by the Supreme Electoral Court on the subject. In the pre- electoral phase, the TSE had to point out on several occasions that Costa Rica’s Constitution and Electoral Code prohibit the use of elements of religion as tools in political propaganda. On March 26, after receiving 86 complaints about a meeting of the National Restoration Party with hundreds of evangelical pastors from all seven provinces, the TSE issued a precautionary measure against the party calling for it to refrain from using religion to attract votes and requesting private contributions.9

In addition, in January 2018 the TSE received two complaints alleging political campaigning on the part of the President of Costa Rica, . The first was lodged by Mario Redondo, an Assembly deputy and the presidential candidate of the Christian Democratic Alliance (ADC), and the

8 At a meeting with the TSE’s magistrates and directors, the Mission was informed of the relocation of twelve (12) polling stations for the vote on April 1, 2018. According to the TSE, the changes were on account of building repairs and restrictions on access, and the stations had been moved no more than 200 meters. 9 Supreme Electoral Court, precautionary measure of March 26, 2018. Available at: Press Release #514, http://www.tse.go.cr/comunicado514.htm. 10

second was filed by members of the National Liberation Party (PLN). The complaints referred to working visits by the President, in which he inaugurated government projects. The TSE dismissed the complaints on the ground that Article 142 of the Electoral Code only prohibits propaganda referring to public works but not inaugurations or working visits.

3.2 Election day

On election day, the Mission’s follow-up team visited polling stations in San José to observe how the vote proceeded. The Mission noted that, as occurred in the first round, electoral alternates were essential in making up the polling station staff, since many of the individuals appointed by the parties to serve as members did not report for duty.

Voting was more streamlined than in the February 4 election on account of the nature of the process, with votes only being cast for presidential tickets. The Mission saw that the JRV members understood the procedure and had been trained and, at the polling stations it visited, it noted the presence of TSE officials who were willing to assist the work of the polling station staff and the operation of the election.

Throughout the day there was intense traffic coming into San José, as voters returned to vote after their Holy Week vacations.

After the polling stations had closed, the Mission attended the formal sitting for the transmission of the provisional results. At 8:05 p.m., the TSE began to announce the preliminary results of the second presidential round with 90.62% of the results certificates processed. The speed with which the preliminary results were transmitted and published provided the public with certainty and tranquility, as exact, official information was made available two hours after the polling stations had closed.

3.3 Post-electoral phase

On Tuesday April 2, the TSE began the final scrutiny of results from the second presidential round’s 6,612 polling stations. As in February, the count was broadcast live and uninterrupted on the TSE’s official YouTube channel.

According to the final results of the April 1 vote, Carlos Alvarado, the candidate of the Citizens’ Action Party (PAC), won the election with 1,322,908 votes (60.59%). The candidate of the National Restoration Party (PRN), Fabricio Alvarado, obtained 860,388 votes (39.41%). A total of 2,207,556 electors went to the polls, casting a total of 2,183,296 valid votes and 24,260 disqualified and blank votes. Turnout was higher than in the February election, with 66.45% of the eligible electorate participating. This reversed the trend toward greater abstentionism historically seen in Costa Rica’s second rounds: participation was almost 10 percentage points higher than in the second round of the 2014 presidential election.

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4. FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The OAS Electoral Observation Mission deployed in the country conducted a comprehensive analysis of key aspects of the electoral process, including electoral organization and technology, campaign finance, political participation by women, and electoral justice. In order to support Costa Rica’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its electoral system, the Mission offers a series of observations and recommendations.

4.1 Public information programs

The Mission highlights the TSE’s commitment toward transparency and toward innovative initiatives to provide the public, through different channels and technological applications, with information on the electoral process. In addition to the free public information services available through 800ELECTOR text messages and calls to 1020, the ConécTSE radio program, and the citizen advice booths placed in busy commercial areas, in this election #VotanteInformadoCR, a new application for smartphones, was launched. This tool enabled voters to obtain information about the candidates and identify their polling stations, and it could also be used to lodge complaints and display the election results.

4.2 Surveys

The Mission notes with concern the importance assigned to opinion polling in Costa Rica, where it is used to decide which parties are invited to participate in debates. The candidates who ultimately went through to the second round were not invited to the first debates, held less than 15 days before the election, because they received little support in the earliest polling surveys.

Opinion polls also influence campaign finance, in that banks open credit lines for parties in accordance with their polling figures and offer disbursements according to how they evolve.

Both across the region and in the specific case of Costa Rica, OAS Missions have observed that opinion polls are on occasion imprecise and are used for political ends, even though they are not an effective tool for predicting results. The Mission recommends an examination and discussion of the role played by surveys of this kind within the country’s electoral system.

4.3 Electoral organization and technology

The Mission notes the robustness of the Costa Rican electoral system, whose good practices could be used as a reference point for other countries in the region, and it recognizes the work of the Supreme Electoral Court and the interinstitutional efforts that enabled a quality, reliable, and transparent electoral process to take place. At the same time, the Mission applauds the TSE’s efforts to implement measures for modernizing the electoral process and in presenting legislative initiatives on electoral matters to the Legislative Assembly in pursuit of constant improvements to Costa Rican democracy.

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4.3.1 Composition of Polling Station Committees

Costa Rica’s polling station committees (JRVs) comprise at least three people, along with their alternates, who are nominated by the political parties with registered candidacies that are duly accredited with the TSE. Article 41 of the Electoral Code requires parties to present their nominations for committee members two months prior to the election and, if the proposed members have not been sworn in one month before election day, their appointments are repealed, in accordance with Article 42 of the Electoral Code.

The Mission saw that political parties—particularly the smaller and newer ones—were unable to mobilize enough members or supporters willing to serve on an ad-honorem basis as JRV members. To comply with the rules, on occasions some put forward the names of people whom they had neither consulted nor notified and so, in spite of being on the lists submitted to the TSE, those nominees did not attend training or report for duty on election day.

According to figures from the electoral authority, parties nominated 31,719 individuals to serve as JRV members for the national elections and the presidential second round, but only 12,710 of them received training and were sworn in. Upon learning that there were insufficient persons to cover the 6,542 JRVs set up across the country, the TSE recruited, trained, and swore in backup electoral alternates who could, if necessary, assume the functions of JRV members. For the February 4 elections, the TSE recruited 643 backup electoral alternates, reaching a total of 13,044 electoral alternates for the election. For the second presidential round, an additional 959 backup electoral alternates were added to that number.

On the day of the election, around 22% of the staff of the polling stations were composed of electoral alternates who, given the absence of the party-nominated members, had to serve in that role to allow all the polling stations to open and guarantee the Costa Rican electorate’s right to vote.

It should be noted that in addition to forcing the TSE to implement a contingency plan to ensure that voting could take place, the shortage of JRV members also placed an administrative burden on the electoral authority by necessitating recounts of the results from a significant proportion of polling stations. That was on account of Article 36 of the Rules of Procedure for Voting, which provides that “when fewer than three members of the JRV or fewer than two members of the JRV accompanied by an electoral alternate were present during the preliminary count, the votes from that Committee shall be recounted.” According to the information provided to the Mission by the TSE, the votes from 4,715 JRVs, representing 71% of all voting centers, had to be recounted in the first round of presidential elections and 6,236 JRVs, representing 94% of all voting centers, in the second round.

Although the Mission acknowledges the contingency measures adopted by the TSE to address this problem, Costa Rica must take determined steps to resolve it. This is a challenge that has been highlighted by OAS Electoral Observation Missions to the country over the past several years. Accordingly, the EOM/OAS recommends that the party-based model for staffing JRVs be reviewed. Given the inability of the political parties to register and mobilize sufficient numbers of polling station staff, the Mission suggests considering adding a representative of the TSE to polling station

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staff, so that the involvement of electoral officials is the rule, instead of being an exceptional contingency measure.

4.3.2 Overseas voting

Costa Rica allowed overseas voting for the first time in the 2014 general elections. For the 2018 elections, a total of 31,864 citizens (16,528 men and 15,336 women; 0.96% of the registered electorate) were able to vote abroad. They were able to cast their ballots at 52 consulates in 42 different countries. The countries with the largest number of registered Costa Rican voters were the United States (22,384), Canada (996), Mexico (883), Spain (789), and Panama (733).

According to the TSE’s official figures, the turnout of voters abroad was 13.91% in the national elections of February 4, and 15.12% in the second presidential round on April 1.

The Mission applauds Costa Rica for enabling overseas voting and thereby allowing Costa Rican citizens to vote regardless of their places of residence; in anticipation of future elections, however, efforts must be made to increase turnout rates. The Mission suggests implementing outreach campaigns to help promote overseas voting and raise awareness about electoral participation.

4.3.3 Transmission and publication of results

In Costa Rica, the Preliminary Electoral Results Transmission system (TREP) uses three different mechanisms to transmit results from the 2,150 voting centers to the data-processing center: a web system, a mobile application, and a call center. Although the most common method is still to report results via telephone to a call center (used by 3,673 JRVs), the introduction of technology into the process has enabled the transmission of results using portable computers (1,005 JRVs) and smartphones (1,934 JRVs). In addition to the transmission of numerical results, the use of smartphones also allows a photograph of the JRV’s results certificate to be sent directly to the TSE.

According to an evaluation carried out by the electoral authority, of the 1,934 results certificates returned using mobile devices, 1,463 images for the presidential election and 1,410 for the legislative election were transmitted and processed. The Mission suggests continued development and improvement of this transmission method, which contributes to the effectiveness of this stage of the electoral process.

To facilitate information access, the TSE uploaded the images of the results certificates—both those taken with mobile phones and those scanned upon arrival at the TSE’s headquarters—to its web page. Although delays in publishing the images were observed, the Mission applauds this practice, which increases the transparency of the process.

The EOM/OAS recommends reviewing the design and presentation of the preliminary results, both on the TSE website and in the #VotanteInformadoCR app, so that the public can see the data flow at the individual polling-station level. In addition, it could be useful to display, on a single website, the results tally and the image of the vote certificate from the corresponding JRV.

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4.4 Party and campaign financing

Costa Rica’s campaign finance system is mixed, in that it allows public and private political funding. The Legislative Assembly ordered the use of 0.11% of GDP as state funding for the 2018 general election and the 2020 municipal elections. According to resolution No. 0959-E10-2017, the amount of the state contribution for the presidential election was 25,029,906,960 colons (US$44,052,636).

Public funding is awarded after the election as reimbursements for expenses incurred, for which parties are required to present the TSE with invoices reflecting their spending. Parties must obtain at least 4% of the total valid vote to receive a state contribution. The electoral rules allow parties to receive up to 15% of the state contribution ahead of time, providing they present adequate liquid guarantees and have published their annual financial statements.

For the 2018 elections, only 4 of 13 parties secured such advance payments, for which only 12.5% of the available total amount was paid out. This highlights the difficulties faced by political groups in presenting the liquid guarantees that the rules require for public resources to be made available. The Mission suggests increasing the flexibility of the advance-payment mechanisms and considering disbursement methods that are in line with the parties’ actual capacities.

The Mission noted that the difficulties encountered by political groups in accessing advance payments of the state’s contributions forces them to make use of private resources to fund their campaigns. The sources of funding most commonly used by parties are certificates ceding their rights to the state contribution and trusts. The certificates are presented as guarantees for lines of credit with banks. To determine the value of the certificates, parties estimate the size of the state contribution to which they will be entitled according to the votes they believe they will obtain. When the election results are published, the amounts of public funding due to each party are calculated and the certificates can be exchanged for cash at the National Treasury.10

Trust contracts are one of the mechanisms used to grant loans. The bank sets up a line of credit for the parties according to the results of opinion polls and makes disbursements in accordance with how the polls evolve11. For the first round of elections, Banco BCT accounted for around 95% of all financial transactions with political parties. Once the electoral process was concluded, the TSE informed that lines of credit were established by two private banks, BCT and Promérica, with approximately 76% and 24% of transactions, respectively. It should be noted that the bank disburses funds on the basis of opinion polls because the number of votes each party receives determines what percentage of the state contribution they are to receive.

In addition to heightening the inequality in the competition, the system’s dependence on private funding drastically increases the parties’ finance costs and, on occasion, forces them into debt to

10 Electoral Code, Articles 115-119. 11 The cost of the polling is to be met by the debtor and, in the event that other parties receive funding from Banco BCT S.A., that cost may, at the bank’s discretion, be prorated between them in accordance with the amount of funding received by each. Opinion polls have different prices, ranging from US$3,000 to US$15,000. 15

meet the interest payments, commissions, and professional fees incurred by making use of bank loans.

The EOM applauds the introduction of proposals in the Legislative Assembly for discussing the challenges posed by the current system for party and campaign finance in Costa Rica and it urges the stakeholders involved to resume their deliberations toward jointly designing a model that will allow political parties timely and adequate access to campaign funds. To showcase and debate their ideas, parties could make use of the Council of Political Parties, created in 2017 as a forum for permanent dialogue between the TSE and party groups in pursuit of the continuous improvement of electoral processes.

Strengthening and facilitating access to direct public funding during campaigning is important so that political parties can be provided with public resources before the election and thus reduce their dependence on the private sector. In addition, the Mission reiterates the recommendation made by previous missions to Costa Rica regarding the implementation of free campaign advertising in the media. Such a measure would guarantee all political parties the opportunity to present their proposals and would consequently contribute to equity in the electoral competition. Furthermore, facilities for campaign advertising could help improve parties’ finances, given that media spots account for a major part of their spending during electoral campaigns.

4.5 Political participation by women

The Electoral Code adopted in 2009 replaced Costa Rica’s existing gender quotas—in place since the 1990s—with mechanisms for parity and alternation that were implemented for the first time in the 2014 general election. In spite of that regulatory step forward, the fact that most party lists (78%) were headed by men meant that, in 2014, the percentage of women elected fell to 33.6% from its 2010 level of 38.6%.

In response, and in line with the recommendation made in the report of the 2014 EOM/OAS, the TSE adopted a resolution in May 2016 requiring the principle of parity enshrined in the Code to be extended to the first names on at least three of the seven lists that parties present.

This election was the first national vote to apply the principle of horizontal parity in party lists. The data obtained by the Mission reveal growth in women’s participation, in terms of both the first names on the party lists for the legislative election—from 22% in 2014 to 43.39% in this electoral process—and the number of female deputies ultimately elected, which rose to 26, equal to 45.61% of the total seats. This is a historical landmark: never before has the percentage of women in the Costa Rican Assembly surpassed 40%. These results reflect the efforts made by Costa Rica’s institutions to improve women’s access to representative roles and the effectiveness of the successive regulatory changes that the country has adopted.

In spite of those achievements, certain obstacles still prevent true equality. The proof of this can be seen in the strikingly low level of participation by women in the presidential elections, in which affirmative action measures do not apply, with only one female candidate contending for the

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presidency. The absence of venues for the training of women candidates and the lack of commitment of certain actors toward the spirit of the parity rules are among the additional factors that threaten progress toward equality.

In spite of the existence of the rule requiring parity in training and the efforts made by the National Women’s Institute (INAMU) and other public institutions, the Mission noted that the opportunities available for training women leaders are insufficient. The state contributions earmarked for training funds are very low and tend to accumulate without being used. Figures from the TSE indicate that as of December 2017, the balance of the training reserve funds totaled 780 million colons. These funds are underused because, according to the current funding system, groups wishing to conduct training activities must spend their own resources until they can be reimbursed.

The EOM/OAS reiterates its recommendation that advance funding mechanisms be introduced for parity training, in order to provide the parties with stable resources for carrying out those activities. Also, in order to transform parties’ internal culture, it recommends strengthening the gender content of those training opportunities.

On the other hand, although the TSE did not receive any complaints, various civil society organizations informed the Mission of their concern regarding the upswing in all forms of discrimination and violence against women. Pressure and smear campaigns, harassment, threats made over social networks, and sexist media coverage prevent women from participating in politics on an equal footing. Parity in democracy cannot be achieved solely by adopting electoral quotas or electoral parity: instead, it requires eliminating discrimination against women in all walks of political life.

4.6 Electoral justice

The Mission noted that Costa Rica’s Supreme Electoral Court enjoys an excellent reputation among academics, civil society, political parties, and public officials in other branches of government. The good practices that have helped build these high levels of trust in the leading electoral authority include its interpretations and advisory opinions, which have general binding effects and avoid unnecessary conflicts. Evidence of this can be seen in the low level of litigation that has characterized Costa Rican democracy since 2006. Each year around 200 challenges are filed, which the Court resolves in an average of only 25 days. The TSE’s autonomy and independence as one of the branches of state power has also strengthened trust in the institution.

The robust system for filing challenges is notable as another of the strengths of the Costa Rican electoral justice system. The structure of appeals, actions, complaints, and suits provided for in the Electoral Code serves to safeguard key issues within Costa Rican democracy. The possibility of requesting vote recounts during both the preliminary and final scrutiny and of recounting all the votes cast in the presidential election are essential mechanisms for investing the results of an election with transparency. This system of challenge methods is supplemented by auxiliary mechanisms for lodging complaints, such as the 800-elector telephone line and the mobile application #VotanteInformadoCR.

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5. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The Mission thanks the Government of Costa Rica for its invitation to observe these elections, and the electoral authorities for their openness and cooperation, which enabled the delegation to collect the information needed to discharge its duties. It would also like to thank the Costa Rican people for their hospitality and all the actors involved in the process for the assistance they gave to the Mission’s members.

Finally, the EOM also notes its gratitude for the financial contributions from the Governments of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, France, Korea, Peru, Spain, and the United States, which enabled it to deploy the Mission and the follow-up team.

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