The 'fake' record of the municipality that voted the fastest on 23-J: two crimes in 26 seconds
Villarroya (La Rioja) was the first municipality to close the polls on the day of 23-J. On this occasion, moreover, breaking his own record, since the seven registered voters voted in 26 seconds, three less than the time they marked in the municipal and regional elections held in May. A circumstance that, as the mayor, Salvador Pérez (PP) recalls, “happened by chance” and is already a tradition. However, the rush sometimes plays a trick.
At eight in the morning last Sunday, the polling station was ready, and some citizens were already waiting to exercise their right to vote.. The first three voters did it without problems. However, the fourth voter, Jesús Garrido, starred in an anecdote on the day. Running and due to an oversight, he inserted two envelopes into the same ballot box: the one he had prepared and the one used in polling stations to cover the slot. Before casting his vote, he pushed the envelope that covered the ballot box with his hand.. When table members handed it back, neighbor inserted it by mistake.
🎥🎥 And once again, they have succeeded! Villarroya again breaks his own record in voting and closing polls, with a total of 26 seconds. That's how it was and that's how they celebrated it. pic.twitter.com/52KcuOgo82
– EuropaPress La Rioja (@EPLaRioja) July 23, 2023
The neighbors knew that they had improved their best mark, but the crime committed could have consequences. Despite this, the room applauded and one of the people present commented “26 seconds and casting a vote”. The Provincial Electoral Board of La Rioja (JER), asked by this newspaper, did not want to specify whether or not this irregularity could lead to the annulment of the result.. On Friday, once they open the minutes, they will make a decision.
A neighbor showed an ID that was not hers
The municipality of La Rioja has captured the attention of thousands of users of social networks. In addition to the neighbor's error, some accounts have detected that another person would have allegedly delivered an Identity Document that did not correspond to the president of the table, which could imply a crime of forgery. The JER consulted by this means has not assessed this event either.
The mayor of the municipality, Salvador Pérez Abad, admits the two incidents but stresses, according to VerificaRTVE, that they have had no consequences on the result of the vote. “It is seen that she handed over a card that is not hers”, she acknowledged, before pointing out that the neighbor is known by the rest of the citizens of the municipality: “We all know each other”, she pointed out. The mayor of Villarroya says that “it was a mistake that she made, not out of malice or anything”, and adds: “We didn't realize it”. The first mayor considers that “it may be that he made a mistake when taking the card”.
The City Council denies it
The Villarroya City Council, in a document to which El Confidencial has had exclusive access, denies that the DNI belonged to another person, despite the fact that the mayor acknowledges otherwise. “All the DNIS of the residents that comprise the municipality's census are valid and were presented correctly (…) The electoral process was carried out in accordance with current legislation,” adds the official statement of the consistory. Regarding the fact that the neighbor put two ballots in the same ballot box, he explains that, warned by a television camera, they found that “indeed” one more envelope than expected had been deposited.
“Four envelopes contain valid votes, three are white and the eighth envelope is empty, marked on the back (…) in a strong sepia color (…) so it is perfectly recognizable,” adds the explanation of the riojano town hall. The envelope, they add, was considered “invalid” and was noted in the minutes. The “corresponding documentation” has been deposited “by the Justice of the Peace in the Provincial Electoral Board that (…) will ultimately decide if the decision was correct”.