The Dominican Republic held a presidential election on Sunday, 16 May 2004. The winning candidate was former president Leonel Fernández

Fernández ran on a ticket representing the Dominican Liberation Party. His running mate, and future vice president, was Rafael Alburquerque.

Results

(Figures with all polling stations accounted for.)

Candidates

• Hipólito Mejía, serving president (2000-2004), representing the Dominican Revolutionary Party (Partido Revolucionario Dominicano, PRD), seeking immediate re-election.
• Leonel Fernández, president from 1996-2000, representing the Dominican Liberation Party (Partido de la Liberación Dominicana, PLD), seeking a second (non-consecutive) term.
• Eduardo Estrella of the Social Christian Reformist Party (Partido Reformista Social Cristiano, PRSC), a former senator and advisor to ex-president Joaquín Balaguer.

Opinion polls in the run-up to election day showed Fernández with 54%, Mejía with 27%, and Estrella with 14%. In the previous weeks, however, Mejía had been gaining support while Fernández's numbers had been falling and, as a result, at one point it seemed possible that a second round run-off vote would have to be held between the two top candidates. Fernández's final result, in excess of 50%, meant that the second round was not necessary.

Overseas voting

The Dominican Republic introduced legislation in 1997 to enable Dominican citizens residing abroad to vote in presidential elections. This was the first time the provisions of that law were put into practice, with some 52,500 registered overseas voters eligible to vote at polling stations set up in several U.S. cities – notably, Miami and New York – and in Montréal, Caracas, Madrid, Barcelona, etc.

Electoral officials noted that 52,500 was only a fraction of the overseas voters actually eligible to vote (one million Dominicans are estimated to live in the United States alone), but that the take-up rate was hampered by a lack of information regarding the necessary formalities and by bureaucratic hurdles (particularly, the requirement that up-to-date national ID cards be presented).

See also

• Politics of the Dominican Republic
• List of political parties in the Dominican Republic

External link

• http://www.jce.do/Saladeprensa.asp Central Electoral Board Press Room