Amid deepening distrust, Haiti’s electoral council stalls on referendum and election plans

PORT-AU-PRINCE — With just over seven months left before its self-imposed deadline to steer the country back onto the path of democracy through elections, Haiti’s Presidential Transitional Council (CPT) seems to be prioritizing plans to hold a national referendum on a new constitution. 

Although highly controversial—with a majority of Haitians viewing this move as unnecessary—the CPT considers the constitutional referendum a crucial step before the general elections can take place.

However, amid rising gang violence and logistical challenges, the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP), tasked to deliver this result, has shown little visible progress. No date has been set, and increasing public skepticism looms over the entire process.

Laurent Saint-Cyr is expected to assume leadership of the CPT in August, succeeding Fritz Alphonse Jean as the council’s final rotating president/coordinator. Under Saint-Cyr, the CPT is expected to fulfill three key goals: restoring public security, organizing a referendum and staging general elections before February 7, 2026.

On July 5, the CPT issued a decree officially charging the CEP with organizing the controversial referendum. That includes overseeing logistics, registering voters, staffing polling stations and managing the entire electoral process.

But critics say the timing is both unrealistic and dangerous. 

“The living and security conditions of the population must take precedence over organizing a constitutional vote,” said Clarens Renois, leader of the National Union for Integrity and Reconciliation (UNIR) political party. He added that the CPT lacks credibility and public trust—two critical components for a legitimate referendum.

“The CPT lacks the credibility needed to guarantee a transparent election, and the public’s lack of trust in this body could weaken the referendum’s legitimacy.”

In May, then-CPT president Leslie Voltaire had announced plans to hold elections before the end of 2025—precisely by November. But since then, worsening insecurity and persistent gaps in electoral preparations have stalled momentum. The referendum date must be published in Le Moniteur, the government’s official gazette, but as of this week, no such announcement has been made.

A stalled roadmap

With no functioning parliament to guide constitutional reform, the CPT’s decree delegates full authority to the CEP. Although the council was sworn in back in October 2024, its progress has been sporadic and poorly communicated. A governing board was formed in April, and the July 5 decree provides a clear roadmap for referendum implementation—but many of its provisions remain incomplete or unfulfilled.

The following are some key responsibilities that fall on the CEP, according to the  CPT’s referendum decree:

• Referendum Organization: Planning, polling station setup and supervision are underway in accessible departments only.
• Logistics & Administration: A proposed budget has been submitted but not yet released. Poll worker recruitment is partially complete and no training has been provided yet.
• Voter Registration:
  The national referendum register has not yet been created or published. Local voter lists are still pending.
• Campaign Oversight:
  No referendum campaign or code of ethics has been launched. Accreditation of observers and accessibility plans for vulnerable populations remain unaddressed.
• Ballot & Results Management:
  Procedures for tabulating results are outlined in the decree but can only begin once voting starts.
• Regulations & Legal Framework:
  Rules on irregularities and offenses have been defined, but public access to CEP protocols is limited.

CEP’s progress so far: patchy and opaque

The Haitian Times has contacted Patrick Saint-Hilaire and Jacques Desrosiers, respectively the CEP’s president and treasurer, for comment on the state of the process. Although messages were received, no response has been provided yet. At the CEP’s headquarters in Pétion-Ville, staff redirected inquiries and said, “Officials will contact you.”

To date, some limited actions have taken place:

• June 23–24: The CEP met with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to draft an electoral action plan. Topics included diaspora voting, civic education, logistics and security.
• April 15: The CEP activated an electoral security task force with representatives from the Haitian National Police (PNH), Armed Forces of Haiti (FAd’H) and the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS). However, no public updates have followed.
• March: Final recruitment lists were published for regional electoral offices, including the departmental and communal bureaus (BEDs and BECs) in part of the gang-infested West Department (West I and II). These staffers are yet to be sworn in.
• December 2024: CEP officials conducted evaluations in five departments to assess infrastructure, staffing and resource needs for electoral operations.

The CEP also submitted to Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils Aimé four key referendum documents: a draft calendar, proposed decree, draft budget and strategy for voter registration. Other than the referendum decree, those documents have not been officially released or made public.

Critical actions still pending as political climate undercuts legitimacy

Several elements critical to voter participation and legitimacy remain unfulfilled:

• No referendum register or voter list has been published.
• The CEP has not issued a code of ethics or public campaign guidelines.
• There is no clarity on how elections will be held in gang-controlled zones.
• Accreditation of observers and inclusion measures for vulnerable populations are absent.

Scheduled meeting held in Washington and Rome in December 2024 with international agencies, including the Venice Commission, the Organization of American States (OAS) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), produced no known outcomes. Discussions centered on financing and organizational support—but since USAID’s operations wound down after President Trump took office in January, follow-up has been nonexistent.

While the CPT maintains that constitutional reform is essential for stability, many Haitians remain skeptical that a fair vote is possible under the current climate of violence, displacement and institutional mistrust.

Considering all factors, the overall outlook remains uncertain.

As Haiti approaches the crucial CPT’s February 7, 2025, date, insecurity and institutional fragility remain the biggest obstacles to progress. Without transparency, coordination and community trust, experts argue the CEP will struggle to deliver a credible vote.

And with no clear plan for elections or a national referendum, many Haitians fear the CPT’s mandate will expire before any democratic transfer of power is achieved.

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