There is a significant disagreement between Haiti’s Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) and the government over the cost of upcoming elections. Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé described the proposed $250 million electoral budget as “unacceptable and absurd.”
In an interview given in Washington, the Prime Minister stated that neither the government nor international donors consider such a budget reasonable for a country of around 12 million people. He noted that previous elections cost approximately $60 million.
Haiti currently has no electoral calendar, no official decree, and is facing a severe security crisis, significantly reducing the likelihood of holding elections in the near term. The country has been in transition since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021.
Fils-Aimé announced the creation of a committee composed of government officials and international partners to propose a more realistic budget.
He also stressed that security must come before elections, warning that organizing a vote without ensuring safe conditions would be irresponsible: “Elections, yes—but security first.”
Meanwhile, sources within the CEP defended the budget, arguing that comparisons with the 2016 elections are misleading, as those were partial elections supported by international logistics and occurred under different economic conditions.
The CEP is expected to submit a draft electoral decree aligned with the National Pact for Stability, which would allow progress toward establishing an electoral calendar.
In addition, the Prime Minister announced that members of the Haitian diaspora will be able to vote in upcoming elections through a pilot program in countries such as the United States, Canada, and France.
