Honduras deploys 8,000 troops to ensure peaceful elections

January 13, 2005

Honduran armed forces spokesman Rafael Moreno Coello announced the deployment of 8,000 troops to ensure the peace in the upcoming internal party elections on Feb. 20. The elections will decide who will be nominated as presidential candidates in the two major political parties, the Liberal Party and the National Party. Anyone with the right to vote in Honduras can vote in either election. The Honduran constitution defines the elections, which the Supreme Electoral Tribunal administers.

The troops, who come from all three wings of the Honduran armed forces, are responsible for electoral materials, such as ballot boxes, before, during, and after the election. They will be deployed in all regions of the country. The operation will cost 14 million Lempiras (US$750,000).