[REVISION HISTORY]

Dominican Republic JCE scrutiny over spending and polls

Updated 13 times since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

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2026-10-21 11:26 UTC → 2026-10-21 15:12 UTC · added ~~removed~~

The Dominican Republic’s Central Electoral Board (JCE) continues to face scrutiny over its international spending and regulatory decisions. Between January 2025 and July 2026, the JCE spent approximately US$529,438 on 71 official missions, with five titular members accounting for 96.9% of these costs. Critics, including Nirka de la Rosa, have challenged the US$800 daily per diem rate, noting it exceeds the monthly minimum wage in Spain. Specifically, magistrates Hirayda Marcelle Fernández Guzmán and Samir Rafael Chami Isa each received US$12,000 in per diems for a 15-day cybersecurity mission in Spain. Regarding electoral regulations, the JCE provisionally suspended an article of Resolution 14-2026 that prohibited publishing opinion polls outside of official periods, following a challenge by Justicia Sin Fronteras. The board described this as a “provisional, temporal and exceptional” measure pending judicial review. Additionally, the political party Opción Democrática has proposed restructuring electoral districts to address the upcoming reduction of the Chamber of Deputies in 2028. To address administrative needs, the JCE has significantly expanded its identity card (cédula) renewal efforts. Following the inauguration of a high-tech biometric service center at the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo (UASD), the JCE launched mobile operations in late 2026 to reach remote communities and the diaspora. ~~In September 2026, these mobile units focused on the southern region, recording over 17,000 applications, and expanded to Atlantic City, New Jersey, to serve the local Dominican community.~~ By mid-October 2026, the JCE reached a milestone, announcing that Eduard Mercedes Rosario became the fourth million citizen to receive the new identity card. In ~~addition~~ an effort to ~~document issuance,~~ further support the diaspora, the JCE ~~launched~~ announced on October 20, 2026, that it will update procedures at its overseas offices starting November 2. The board will eliminate the ~~‘Mi identidad y nuestra democracia’ civic education program, led by Hirayda Marcelle Fernández Guzmán,~~ mandatory appointment system in 18 international locations, moving to ~~conduct workshops for first-time voters.~~ a first-come, first-served model. In 23 other high-demand locations—including New York, New Jersey, Miami, Madrid, and Milan—a hybrid model will be implemented, allowing citizens to choose between scheduled appointments or walk-in service.

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