Agreement 29-2025

The National Electoral Council (CNE) and all its divisions shall be subject to the provisions of the Constitution of the Republic, the Electoral Law of Honduras, and this Regulation, to hear and resolve administrative electoral actions for electoral claims initiated at the request of an interested party, special verifications and recounts, actions for nullity of acts and tallies of the Vote Receiving Boards (JRV), and complaints against the actions of officers and employees of electoral bodies for violations committed in the application of the Electoral Law of Honduras.

The provision contained in the preceding article shall also apply to Political Parties, Alliances, Movements, candidates for elective office, and the general public, when they promote and submit to the knowledge and decision of the CNE, any administrative electoral action permitted by the Electoral Law of Honduras.

The CNE's competence in electoral matters is inalienable and shall be exercised in the manner attributed by law. However, when the Plenary of Councilors deems it necessary, it may delegate the exercise of some of the activities inherent to the procedure, reserving in all cases the final decision on the matter. Such delegation may only be made to officials or employees who are part of its organizational structure.

The act of delegation shall contain precise and specific mandatory instructions on procedural matters that are mandatory for compliance by the delegated official or employee.

In acts assigned by delegation, this circumstance shall always be expressed and they shall be understood as adopted by the delegating body.

The CNE shall develop its activity, in accordance with the normative hierarchy established in Article 5 of the Electoral Law of Honduras.

The actions of the CNE shall also be developed in accordance with the principles of procedural economy, promptness, and effectiveness, in order to achieve a timely and effective resolution of the corresponding administrative actions.

The divisions of the CNE shall collaborate with one another, carrying out with diligence and promptness the actions entrusted to them by the Plenary of Councilors.

The periods established in the Electoral Law of Honduras and in this Regulation are non-extendable and mandatory for compliance by the interested parties and by the CNE.

The periods shall begin to run as of the day following notification, and the last day of their expiration shall be available until twelve o'clock at night.

Once a period has elapsed, the procedure or remedy that has not been used shall be forfeited by operation of law and irrevocably lost, which shall be recorded on the record at the instance of the court.

Persons with legal capacity in accordance with the norms of Administrative Procedure may appear in the administrative electoral process. However, citizens who have reached the age of eighteen (18) years may appear in defense of their personal political rights.

The interested parties shall act through a representative, without prejudice to the exceptions provided in the Organic Law of the Bar Association of Honduras. The power of attorney may be granted in a public deed before a Notary Public, by a duly authenticated power of attorney letter, or in the same writing in which the action is initiated. In any case, the representative, from acceptance of the power of attorney, shall be bound to the principal in accordance with the provisions governing the mandate. The representative of the interested party shall be his or her legal representative for purposes of the actions regulated in this Regulation and shall represent him or her in the hearings corresponding to the review, recount, and nullity proceedings.

The personal appearance of individuals before the CNE shall be mandatory when required to do so, or when so provided for in a legal or regulatory provision.

The General Secretariat of the CNE shall maintain a physical and digital registry of all actions initiated ex officio or at the request of a party, for which purpose each file shall be assigned a consecutive number according to the order of receipt. Likewise, it shall maintain a record book for the transmission of files to the Electoral Justice Court (TJE).

Every applicant must attach a physical and digital copy of the written request and must attach the evidence that they deem necessary and pertinent to substantiate their claim. In the event that the applicant attaches original documents and requires their return, they must request their comparison and return in the same written statement. CHAPTER VII GENERAL RULES AND COMMENCEMENT OF PROCEDURE

In matters initiated ex officio or at the request of a party, the decisions of the Plenary of Advisors shall take the form of orders, writs, final or incidental resolutions as appropriate.

Resolutions shall be issued in compliance with the procedures provided for in the Electoral Law of Honduras and the present regulation and must be based on the facts and background of the concrete case.

Writs and orders of mere procedural matter do not require a statement of reasons; however, in exceptional cases they may be reasoned if necessary to establish and explain important aspects on which the decision is based.

Every administrative action for electoral claims must be presented in writing to the CNE, which must contain the following:

• 1)

  A summary that clearly indicates the specific action in question;

• 2)

  The indication of the body to which it is directed, that is, to the CNE;

• 3)

  The name, surnames, marital status, profession or occupation, address, telephone number and email of the applicant and their legal representative;

• 4)

  The facts on which it is based and the legal precepts violated;

• 5)

  The clear indication of what is requested; and, 6. Place, date and signature of the applicant, or the impression of the index finger of the right hand when they are unable to sign.

With the initial written statement, the interested party must present the corresponding evidence, and must also appoint a legal representative; without prejudice to the Council being able to conduct ex officio such investigations as it deems appropriate.

Once a procedure has been registered, the request shall be assigned to a legal officer who shall be responsible for the review and analysis of the written statement presented together with the attached documentation, and must prepare the corresponding report.

Requests for recount and nullity actions filed in the same written statement shall not be admissible. CHAPTER VIII ACTION FOR REVIEW AND SPECIAL RECOUNTS

The CNE must take cognizance ex officio or at the request of a party, and shall authorize reviews and special recounts in the following cases:

• 1)

  If there is no coincidence between the figures of the number of votes cast and the number of votes recorded in the minutes of the Vote Receiving Board (JRV) that is requested;

• 2)

  If an error has been committed in the accounting of votes or marks assigned to each Political Party, Alliance, or Movement as appropriate;

• 3)

  If the number of citizens who voted and signed the voting record is greater than or less than that recorded in the minutes.

The CNE may, without prejudice to the foregoing, when it deems it appropriate, prior to issuing the final declaration of primary elections, verify in the concrete case the scrutinies conducted by other electoral bodies.

The deadline for requesting the review and special recount shall be ten (10) calendar days counted from the day following the day on which the primary elections are conducted.

The Special Verification and Recount Boards (JEVR) are a temporary body constituted specifically to take cognizance and conduct the special scrutiny in review and special recount procedures, whose members shall be appointed by the CNE and shall be composed in the same manner as the JRV.

The members of the JEVR shall be designated by the internal movements of the Political Parties that participate in the primary elections, and must be composed of one regular member and their respective alternate. The members of the JEVR must meet the same requirements required to be a member of the JRV. The Electoral Directorate of the CNE shall be responsible for conducting the coordination for the formation of the JEVR.

When the action for review or recount is initiated at the request of a party, the CNE may only admit it when there is rational indication of the error or abuse committed based on the evidence presented.

In the event that inconsistencies are found between the number of votes reflected in the CNE's system for transmission and dissemination of results with those in the original closing minutes transmitted from the JRV, rectifications may be made in the system for transmission and dissemination of results in order to record the correct information, by means of a reasoned resolution.

Taking into consideration the report prepared by the Legal Officer in accordance with Article 22, the CNE shall issue a resolution declaring whether or not the partial or total recount requested by the petitioner is permissible.

For procedural economy, in the event that the request for review and special recount is resolved as permissible, the respective hearing shall be scheduled to conduct them. Such hearing must be held within three (3) calendar days following notification, for which purpose the Electoral Director shall organize the composition of the JEVR in accordance with this Regulation. Of such hearing and of all proceedings conducted by the JEVR, the corresponding minutes must be drawn up by the General Secretariat of the CNE, with the support of the notarial assistants present.

As established in Article 296 of the Electoral Law of Honduras, if the JEVR finds that the results issued by the JRV are correct and accurate, the original closure act shall be deemed valid, transcribing its results to a new special act that must indicate that the results of the review and special recount are identical to those of the original closure act and including the signatures of the JEVR that validated the results. If inaccurate data is found, the special act shall reflect the correct results and shall substitute the one drawn up by the respective JRV. CHAPTER IX ACTION FOR NULLITY OF ACTS AND SCRUTINIES OF VOTING RECEIVING BOARDS

The CNE has competence to hear and decide on Administrative Nullity Actions in the following cases: 1. Against acts executed by the JRV; and, 2. Against scrutinies conducted by the JRV.

In accordance with Article 297 of the Electoral Law of Honduras, an administrative action for nullity may proceed against acts executed by the JRV for the following causes:

• 1)

  Installation of the JRV in a place other than the one pre-established or authorized by the CNE;

• 2)

  Installation of the JRV without the quorum required by Law;

• 3)

  Having improperly prevented voters from exercising the right to vote;

• 4)

  Violation of voting secrecy;

• 5)

  Allowing citizens not qualified to exercise suffrage in that JRV or, being qualified, exercising it without the documentation required by Law;

• 6)

  Using documents, materials and equipment not authorized by the CNE; and, 7. For violation of the security measures of the materials of the electoral processes.

In accordance with Article 298 of the Electoral Law of Honduras, an administrative action for nullity may proceed against the scrutinies conducted by the JRV for the following causes:

• 1)

  That the scrutiny was conducted in a location different from that determined by the CNE for the JRV;

• 2)

  Falsifying or altering the closure act containing the results of the scrutiny conducted by the JRV;

• 3)

  Using documents, materials and equipment not authorized by the CNE; and, 4. For violation of the security measures of the materials of the electoral processes.

Administrative actions and complaints brought before the CNE that are not based on the grounds established in Articles 297, 298 and 299 of the Electoral Law of Honduras must be declared inadmissible on the face of it and without further recourse.

No political party, movement, candidate, alliance, or citizen may promote administrative actions invoking in their favor grounds for nullity based on facts or circumstances that they themselves fraudulently caused, in which case they shall also be declared inadmissible on the face of it without further recourse. CHAPTER X PROCESSING OF ADMINISTRATIVE NULLITY ACTIONS

Taking into consideration the report prepared by the Legal Officer in accordance with Article 22, administrative nullity actions regulated in the Electoral Law of Honduras must be admitted only when the grounds established in the referred Law are present, and if the facts set forth therein are substantiated, and the legitimate interest of the petitioner must also be demonstrated.

In the order of admission, a hearing must be scheduled to be held within three (3) calendar days following notification of its admission. The hearing shall take place on the date, day and time set, with the attendance of the legal representatives of the parties. In case the duly accredited legal representative does not appear, it shall be recorded in the minutes.

Once the hearing is declared open, the General Secretariat by means of the designated officer shall make known the purpose thereof. If the Legal Representative of the petitioner appears, they shall be granted the floor so that they may state whether or not they ratify the content of their request and may propose the evidence on which they base their claim. In the event that the Legal Representative of the petitioner does not appear at the hearing, the evidence presented together with the request must be evaluated, without prejudice to the CNE's authority to order of its own motion and at any time, the conduct of such evidence as it deems pertinent for the most correct resolution of the matter.

A record of everything that occurred at the hearing shall be made in the minutes that shall be drawn up for such purpose, without prejudice to its digital backup for which purpose any magnetic device shall be used.

Before concluding the hearing, the CNE through its officials or employees who have participated therein may request such clarifications as it deems pertinent and shall subsequently declare the hearing closed, with the signature of the interested parties who have appeared and the officials who have participated.

At all times during the hearing, those present must maintain respectful conduct toward each other and toward the officials and auxiliary employees who conduct the hearings. All participants in the proceedings shall adjust their conduct to truthfulness, probity, loyalty and good faith procedural conduct.

Once the hearing is concluded, the CNE shall have a period of five (5) calendar days to issue the corresponding resolution.

The administrative nullities decreed by the CNE shall only affect the voting or election for which the administrative nullity action was specifically invoked.

The period to file the administrative nullity action shall be five (5) calendar days following the day on which the elections were held. CHAPTER XI EVIDENTIARY MEANS

Only those documents designated in the Electoral Law of Honduras and those documents that have probative force in accordance with electoral procedural legislation shall be admitted as evidence in administrative electoral dispute actions.

The burden of proof in electoral matters rests with the party that initiates the action, without prejudice to the CNE's authority to order ex officio and at any time the production of such evidence as it deems relevant for the most accurate resolution of the matter.

The CNE shall freely appraise and consider as a whole the result of the evidence, in accordance with the rules of sound judgment, logic, and the maxims of experience.

The draft of administrative actions for electoral disputes shall have the support of the different departments and divisions of the CNE, so that they may provide electoral documents, data, opinions, reports, or any other information deemed relevant for the processing of the different requests filed. CHAPTER XII WITHDRAWAL

At any time during the procedure, the interested party may withdraw from the action. The withdrawal shall be formulated in writing and without further proceedings, the filing shall be ordered closed. When the withdrawal concerns an appeal, the appealed resolution shall be deemed final. CHAPTER XIII RESTRICTION ON THE DECLARATION OF ADMINISTRATIVE NULLITY

In cases where the voting results or the number of voters who could not exercise the right to vote do not affect the validity of the voting held in the rest of the municipality, department, or Republic, and consequently do not have a decisive impact on the difference for the award of any candidacy or elective office, in accordance with what is established in article 303 of the Electoral Law of Honduras, the administrative nullity of the voting or counting cannot be declared, at the level of the Polling Station or Polling Stations (JRV), Municipality, or Department. CHAPTER XIV REPOSITION OF THE ELECTION

When the CNE declares the administrative nullity to be warranted, it shall order the repositioning of the election in the Polling Station of the Municipality or Department within ten (10) business days following the notification of the resolution in which such nullity was declared warranted, as established in article 304 of the Electoral Law of Honduras. CHAPTER XV RESOLUTIONS

The resolutions of the CNE in which private parties intervene become effective when they are final, and they shall be understood to be final when the legal period for filing the applicable remedy passes without having done so, or when having appealed timely, the second instance resolution has been confirmed and returned by the TJE.

Motivation is mandatory in interlocutory and final resolutions, as well as the applicable legal grounds. CHAPTER XVI NOTIFICATIONS

Motions, orders, and resolutions shall be notified personally or by telephone, electronic mail, or secondarily by notice board.

Defective notifications shall take effect from the date on which express manifestation is made in such sense by the notified party or the applicable remedy is filed. CHAPTER XVII OF REMEDIES

Against resolutions issued by the CNE in which administrative nullity actions established in the Electoral Law of Honduras are resolved, the remedy of appeal before the TJE is available, within the period of three (3) business days following notification, in accordance with

of the Organic and Electoral Procedural Law.

Against actions taken by the JEVR, a motion for reconsideration may be filed before the CNE, which must be filed on the next business day following the special review and recount indicated in the resolution of the Plenary of Counselors; and an appeal may be filed before the TJE, within three (3) business days following notification of the ruling that denies the motion for reconsideration.

No remedy is available against procedural orders of mere formality, except when they prevent the continuation of the proceedings or cause lack of due process.

The appeal shall be filed directly before the TJE, which must require the CNE to submit, within a period of forty-eight (48) hours, the totality of the proceedings conducted at that instance, under penalty that failure to remit the records gives rise to the imposition of the compulsory enforcement measures established in this Law. CHAPTER XVIII SUPPLEMENTARY APPLICATION

For the resolution of matters not provided for in this Regulation, the general principles of administrative procedure, the Administrative Procedure Act, the Electoral Organic and Procedural Law, and the rules of the Civil Procedural Code shall be applied supplementarily, provided they are not incompatible with the provisions established in the Electoral Law of Honduras.

This Regulation shall enter into force immediately and shall be transcribed and communicated to the Political Parties, National Electoral Commissions and must be published on the CNE website and in the Official Journal "La Gaceta". Given in the city of Tegucigalpa, municipality of the Central District, in the Session Hall of the National Electoral Council, on the seventh (07) day of the month of March of two thousand twenty-five (2025). SIGNATURE AND SEAL; ABG. COSSETTE ALEJANDRA LÓPEZ-OSORIO AGUILAR, COUNSELOR PRESIDENT; DRA. ANA PAOLA HALL GARCÍA, COUNSELOR SECRETARY; LIC. MARLON DAVID OCHOA MARTÍNEZ, COUNSELOR MEMBER; ABG. TELMA CRISTINA MARTÍNEZ, GENERAL SECRETARY". For publication in the Official Journal La Gaceta. For the pertinent legal purposes, this Certification is issued in the city of Tegucigalpa, municipality of the Central District, on the eighth (08) day of the month of March of two thousand twenty-five (2025). ABG. TELMA CRISTINA MARTÍNEZ GENERAL SECRETARY Certification 866-2025, Acta 09-2025, ten (10) pages