Danilo Medina resigns

[NewsWhore]

In a move that caught most political observers by surprise, Danilo Medina, one of President Leonel Fernandez's closest advisors, resigned his post as Presidential Minister (secretario de la presidencia) yesterday. Speaking at a press conference at the Hotel Embajador, Medina told reporters that he was resigning his post - that combines attributes of the chief of staff post in the US White House with some of those of a prime minister in Europe- "in order to serve the country from within the PLD." Medina said that he had fulfilled his promise to serve for two years. Immediately, the rumor mill began generating ideas about the significance of the timing of Medina's resignation. According to Diario Libre, it is a given that Medina will seek the party's nomination for the 2008 Presidential elections, and now needs to distance himself from the Presidential Palace. President Fernandez announced through his spokesperson that the post of Presidential Minister would remain unfilled for the time being. Diario Libre asked political scientist Cesar Perez and sociologist Ramon Tejada Holguin about the resignation of such a key person in the government's team. According to them, this could bring about serious tensions within the party, especially if a fight between Fernandez and Medina is in the offing. It is yet to be seen whether President Fernandez will seek re-election in 2008. If he decides not to run, others that could seek the PLD nomination are Santiago senator Francisco Dominguez Brito, former Santo Domingo senator Jose Tomas Perez, and former Vice President Jaime David Fernandez. Observers say that primarily for his lack of charisma, Danilo Medina failed to win the presidency when he ran for President in 2000. At the time, President Fernandez was banned from re-election, which is not the case today, as he benefited from a constitutional change pushed through Congress by his predecessor, who sought to be re-elected but failed in 2004.

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