VOTING SIMULATION: YANKEES NO, RED SOX SI

C O N F I D E N T I A L CARACAS 002312

SIPDIS


NSC FOR CBARTON
USCINCSO ALSO FOR POLAD
STATE PASS USAID FOR DCHA/OTI

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/20/2014
TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM VE
SUBJECT: VOTING SIMULATION: YANKEES NO, RED SOX SI

Classified By: Abelardo A. Arias, Acting Deputy
Chief of Mission, for Reason 1.4 (d).

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Summary
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1. (C) The National Electoral Council (CNE) successfully
conducted a voting simulation on July 18 to prepare for the
August 15 presidential recall referendum. SBC, the
consortium operating the new voting system, reported a 99.2
percent success rate with the 5,200 machines distributed
throughout Venezuela. The voting simulation created live
contingency planning session for SBC and served as a public
information campaign for the new voting machines. CNE, GoV,
and opposition leaders were satisfied with the results. The
fingerprinting machines, however, have not been delivered and
could become a technical and political issue on August 15.
End summary.

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Voting Centers
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2. (C) Poloff observed six voting centers throughout Caracas
on July 18 with Gustavo Ruiz, Coordinadora Democratica (CD)
representative to the National Electoral Council (CNE). All
sites were open to the public on July 18 to encourage voters
to become acquainted with the new machines and ask questions
about the voting process. Poloff observed low participation
in five of the six sites, however, CNE and political party
officials did not consider voter turnout to be a major issue.
Many of the sites did not have the requisite five election
workers. Many centers poloff visited had only one or two
voting center leaders, and some had none.


3. (C) Smartmatic or CANTV (part of the SBC consortium)
representatives were present at half of the sites poloff
visited during the voting simulation. These representatives
set up the voting machine and assisted with technical
difficulties. From an operational and technical perspective,
all sites appeared to be working well. On August 15, there
will be an SBC representative at every voting center to
assist with technical and/or operational problems.

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Voting Process
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4. (C) One election worker explained to poloff the voting
process for the August 15 presidential recall referendum from
a CNE-provided guide. At the center's entrance, voting
center members will have the Electoral Registry (REP) list of
eligible voters for that particular center. If the person is
not on the list, they cannot enter the center. Once
registration is confirmed, the voter's fingerprints are taken
to assure that they have not voted at another center. After
the voter's registration and fingerprints are confirmed, they
proceed to a table to present their cedula and dip their
pinky in an ink jar and then move to the voting booth. After
the vote is registered, the machine prints out a small piece
of paper, to be folded by the person and placed in a box as
the voter leaves. Regarding security, poloff observed two to
five National Guard troops at every center.


5. (C) In the voting simulation organizers guided voters
through the entire process, explained how the new voting
machines worked, and allowed the voters to use them. Poloff
observed no problems with the operation of the voting
machines. Voters appeared to have sufficient time, the
machine was easy to operate, and printed verification slip
worked well. The simulation question, "Which of the
following baseball teams do you prefer?" offered two options,
Caracas (on the left, "No" side) and Magallanes (on the
right, "Yes" side). This question was not without
controversy. Caracas is considered the Venezuelan version of
the New York Yankees and the team of the upper-class,
opposition-aligned voters, while the Magallanes are the
Boston Red Sox of the Venezuelan baseball world (and Chavez'

team).


6. (C) On July 19, CNE directors reiterated their decision to
not release the simulation results to avoid political spin.
Pro-government newspaper Diario Vea, however, printed a
front-page story on July 20 claiming that 400,000 people
voted in the simulation and that the Magallanes received 60
percent of the vote compared to 40 percent by Caracas.
Diario Vea claimed that the Magallanes vote was associated
with the "No" vote and it was one more time that the
opposition had been dealt a blow. The Diario Vea report is
unsubstantiated and inaccurate because the "Caracas" option
was in the same spot as the "No" and the "Magallanes" vote
was in the "Si" spot.

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Public Information Campaign
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7. (C) Beyond reviewing technical issues, the voting
simulation served as a public information campaign to allow
voters to ask questions about the voting process, use the
machines, and dispel rumors about the process. The CNE
provided each center with a guide about the machines and the
voting process. Representatives, either from the voting
center or the SBC consortium, explained the process to voters
who visited the sites. Voters were able to use the machines
and familiarize themselves with the actual process. Voters
also asked questions to the SBC and voting center
representatives. Voters repeatedly asked about the secrecy
of the vote, which prompted CNE President Francisco
Carresquero to tell reporters, "There is no way to know how a
citizen voted. The vote is absolutely secret."


8. (C) GoV and opposition media and leaders expressed their
approval of the voting simulation. In addition, both sides
have begun public information campaigns for the August 15
vote. GoV-supported newspaper Diario Vea printed an article
on July 19 explaining the voting process. Venezolano de
Television, the state television channel, is running CNE
commercials that explain how to use the machine and reaffirm
the secrecy and reliability of the voting machines. Felipe
Mujica, Movimiento al Socialismo (MAS) President and
Coordinadora Democratica representative to the CNE, asserted
that the simulation will dispel rumors about the technical
aspects of the referendum. The Coordinadora delivered a
detailed report to the CNE July 20 with its evaluation of the
simulation, highlighting areas for improvement.

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Possible Problems
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9. (C) Possible problems still remain for the technical and
operational aspects of August 15 presidential recall
referendum. SBC reported that 99.2 percent of the voting
machines functioned without problem. Of the 47 faulty
machines, SBC asserted that most problems were due to the
operator, not the machine. The voting simulation, however,
did not include the use of the fingerprinting machines.
Mujica told Charge July 20 that it appeared unlikely that the
CNE could implement the untested fingerprint system.
Opposition leaders expressed some minor concerns about the
technical difficulties of the July 18 simulation, but their
principal concern are the delays caused by the fingerprinting
machines. Also, the Electoral Registry (REP) lists were not
yet available to the voting centers.

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Comment
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10. (C) The July 18 voting simulation served its principal
purpose: it helped identify faults and failures and helped
many become familiar with the system. All have initially
expressed satisfaction with the results. Nonetheless,
questions remain. The addition of the fingerprinting
machines and the update of the REP lists could create lengthy
delays on August 15. The real purpose of the fingerprint

machines may be to insinuate that the government will be able
to know how the people voted.
McFarland


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2004CARACA02312 - CONFIDENTIAL