Colombia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday postponed the election of a new national prosecutor general for an eighth time, after none of the candidates gained enough votes to win the post, reports El Heraldo.
The saga of the election of a new prosecutor general has been ongoing for months, with the court unable to reach the necessary consensus. Margarita Cabello Blanco remains the favorite candidate, again winning thirteen votes.
A candidate must win sixteen votes in order to be elected prosecutor general. After six hours of deliberation, the court again failed to reach this consensus.
Gabriela Carina Knaul de Albuquerque e Silva, the UN special rapporteur on judicial independence, expressed concern about the election, saying in a draft report that if prolonged, the delay could “compromise the credibility of the entire justice system” of Colombia.
The next vote is scheduled for Thursday.
The court also failed to elect a replacement for magistrate Isaura Vargas. Nor did it elect a new court president as required.
Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has said that the ongoing delays in electing the new prosecutor general threaten the country’s democratic institutions and the rule of law