(Bloomberg) -- The Dominican Republic postponed a May presidential election until July 5 due to the coronavirus pandemic, the electoral authority said in a resolution on the authority’s website.
A first round of voting for president and Congress had been scheduled to take place on May 17. Opposition candidate Luis Abinader has been leading polls ahead of the vote with ruling party candidate Gonzalo Castillo in second. President Danilo Medina, serving his second consecutive term, is not eligible for re-election due to term limits.
If no candidate wins more than 50% of the vote, a runoff will be held on July 26, according to the resolution. The winner will be sworn in on August
The Dominican Republic has 3,167 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and 177 dead.
