Panama's Electoral Tribunal launches tech strategy for 2029 elections

Panama's Electoral Tribunal (TE) has formally initiated the technological and digital security strategy for the 2029 general elections, part of its General Electoral Plan (Plagel). This initiative seeks to bolster the country's IT infrastructure, safeguard electoral data, and proactively identify and mitigate potential risks throughout the electoral process.

The launch meeting, led by the Plagel's Systematization and Computer Security Commissions, marks a continuation of ongoing work. These commissions have already held preliminary meetings and made progress on applications relevant to the electoral cycle. Their shared objective is to ensure the integrity of the elections by identifying vulnerabilities and addressing potential attacks before they occur.

Discussions during the launch focused on four main areas: logistics and the electoral roll, internal system development, security and audits, and future field simulations. These components encompass planning staff training, defining the electoral roll, determining polling station locations, verifying territorial boundaries, and managing the free candidacy system.

The TE's IT system faced 31.5 million cyberattacks on May 5, 2024, the day of the general elections. This number is significantly lower than the 90 million attacks recorded during the 2019 elections, indicating improved security measures. The strategy emphasizes building a robust, in-house technological infrastructure before integrating with external platforms to guarantee the confidentiality and protection of electoral data.

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The common purpose, according to a statement from the TE, is to protect the integrity of the electoral process, identify vulnerabilities in advance, and mitigate risks or possible attacks before they materialize.