Elections in Paraguay.

• Position: OAS Electoral Observation Mission attends Paraguay's election

THE PRESENCE of the OAS Electoral Observation Mission, headed by Secretary General Ambassador Joao Clemente Baena Soares, during the electoral process in Paraguay contributed, without doubt, to the solidification of the democratic path that the Paraguayan people have chosen.

Ninety observers from countries throughout the Hemisphere performed a variety of tasks before and during the elections which took place on May 9. The observers were deployed from offices in Asuncion, Caacupe, Concepcion, Coronel Oviedo, Ciudad del Este, Encarnacion, San Juan Bautista and Villarrica. Observers will remain in Paraguay until Congress officially announces the newly elected candidates. But the OAS Secretary General made it clear that it was not the objective of the Mission to proclaim winners in the election.

Ambassador Baena Soares explained that the OAS, as it has done in other observer missions, produced a projection of the results (using a representative sample of voting tables) that will serve as one of the elements in the Secretary General's final report to the Permanent Council on the conduct of the election. He also reported that the projection reached by the OAS specialized team coincided with the trends that were identified by the Central Electoral Board.

Baena Soares reaffirmed the opinion he expressed on election night that the massive popular participation of Paraguayan citizens in the elections demonstrates their civic conscience and democratic outlook. He went on to say that in the great majority of the locations observed, the important procedures and...