PANAMA · POLITICS
Key Facts
- What President José Raúl Mulino vetoed in part the bill that redraws Panama’s electoral districts for the 2029 election.
- Why He says several Chiriquí province districts were grouped by legislators, not by technical and population criteria.
- Stakes The 2029 vote fills all 71 seats of Panama’s National Assembly, its legislature, which passed the bill 43 to 21.
- Next The bill returns unsigned to the Assembly, which must examine his objections.
- Power Index Panama ranks 11th of 14 in The Rio Times Latin America Power Index, with 33.3 points (November 2026 edition).
Panama’s president has sent the new map for the 2029 election back to the legislature, saying one province’s districts were grouped by lawmakers’ choice, not by technical criteria.
Panama’s President José Raúl Mulino has vetoed in part the bill that redraws the districts used to elect Panama’s 71-seat National Assembly in 2029, and returned it without his signature. He announced the decision on Thursday 12 November 2026 in a letter to the Assembly’s president, Shirley Castañeda.
The Presidency said several districts in Chiriquí, a province on the Costa Rican border, were grouped by legislative decision rather than by technical, objective and demographic criteria as the constitution requires. For US readers, the map shapes who sits in the legislature that passes Panama’s budget and national laws in the 2029 term.
What Mulino Objected To
Mulino vetoed the bill as inexequible, the Spanish legal term for a measure that cannot be carried out because it conflicts with the constitution. His stated objection concerns the Chiriquí districts in bill No. 700 of 2026.
Reports of the Presidency’s statement mention only Chiriquí. Unchallenged changes include the split of a district in Bocas del Toro province, where the current district 1-1 (a numbered code for province and district) becomes two, with the town of Changuinola forming the new 1-1.
How the Assembly Got Here
The Assembly approved the bill in third debate, its final vote, on Thursday 24 September 2026 by 43 votes to 21, with no abstentions. The Electoral Tribunal, Panama’s independent election authority, had drafted the new map.
During debate, deputy Ariana Coba proposed an amendment to Article 2 that kept Chiriquí’s six existing districts instead of adding the seventh the Tribunal wanted. As a result, the Tribunal’s plan to split the district of Bugaba and Tierras Altas in two will not apply.
The total stays at 71 deputies. Only the way they are grouped into districts changes.
In Plain English
Electoral district (circuito) is an area that elects a set number of deputies to the National Assembly.
Partial veto means the president returns a bill to the legislature, objecting to part of it.
Electoral Tribunal is Panama’s independent body that runs elections and drafted the map.
What It Means for You
The map changes how the Assembly’s 71 seats are grouped into districts, and the Assembly votes on the budget and other national laws. Until the districts are settled, parties and candidates have no final map, though the vote is still more than two years away.
Our earlier report on the Tribunal’s position is in Panama Electoral Tribunal Rejects Election Law Changes, and more is on our Panama news page.
What Is Not Known
It is not known when the Assembly will take up the objections or whether it will accept them. Nothing public says whether the Electoral Tribunal will redraw Chiriquí or how long the process could take.
It is also unclear whether the unchallenged parts of the map take effect before the Chiriquí question is settled. Nothing public says.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Mulino veto in Panama’s electoral map?
He vetoed in part bill No. 700 of 2026, saying several Chiriquí districts were grouped for legislative rather than technical reasons. The bill goes back to the Assembly unsigned.
When is Panama’s next general election?
The map is for the 2029 general election, which will choose the 71 members of the National Assembly.
Sources: Presidency of Panama, statement and letter to the National Assembly president, 12 November 2026; National Assembly of Panama, bill No. 700 of 2026; Electoral Tribunal of Panama.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated AI newsroom. Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief. The Rio Times also runs Ask Rio Times, which answers from 100,000+ of our own articles, the daily Latin America Power Map, and prediction-market odds on elections and markets.. How we use AI · Report an error