Martinellis wife named Arias running mate

THE NAMING of Marta Linares de Martinelli, wife of President Ricardo Martinelli as the running mate, of CD presidential candidate José Domingo Arias, came as no surprise to political observers.

The announcement of the first lady's candidacy was made through the social network Twitter, a favorite tool of the president.

 Six weeks ago Linares said she had not considered being nominated. "I'd like to continue to help the people, but I am still analyzing accepting the vice presidential nomination," she said at the time.
She had been named as a possible candidate for months. But her nomination has raised concerns about her eligibility due to restrictions on presidential re-election.
"In principle, there are interpretative theories on the subject of kinship, about whether the spouse is or is not a relative, and there should be discussion about it," said Tribunal Electoral (TE) Judge Erasmo Pinilla.
When asked how he felt about the nomination, Pinilla said that Marta Linares is not a relative of the president, and that the Constitution only prohibits blood relatives of presidents from running. But he said, that it is open to many interpretations.
Martinelli said that he would always support Linares in her political aspirations.
There are now four female VP candidates. The Panameñista candidate is Isabel Saint Malo, while the FAD candidate is Maribel Gordón.
Independent presidential candidate Esteban Rodríguez has nominated Sarai Blaisdell to be his running mate.