40. On April 4, 2011, the Supreme Electoral Council dismissed the appeal that had been filed. Regarding this, it argued that: Considering that it is known that the present Supreme Electoral Council, on the nineteenth of October in the year two thousand nine at seven o’clock in the evening, by virtue of the powers granted to it by the Constitution and the Law on Elections, resolved to ensure compliance with the judgment of the Supreme Court of Justice described in the preamble clauses, it hereby decides, in each and every part, to declare the erga omnes nonapplicability of the constitutional provision appearing in Article 147 of the Constitution with reference to subparagraphs (a) and (b). Therefore (…) On the basis of judgment number six, at six o’clock in the evening of the thirtieth of September in the year two thousand ten, issued by the plenary of the Supreme Court of Justice, it is hereby ruled that, First: The legal challenges filed by the legal representatives of the political organizations Independent Liberal Party Alliance and the Nicaraguan Liberal Alliance Party are inadmissible, insofar as the decisions and rulings issued by the supreme court of justice of the Republic of Nicaragua are binding and irrevocable. Second: As a result, the citizen José Ortega Saavedra’s candidacy to the presidency of the republic on behalf of the political organization of the Sandinista National Liberation Front Alliance is hereby duly filed and registered, because he is a citizen eligible to exercise political, constitutional, and electoral rights in order to participate in the election to be held on the sixth of November in the year two thousand eleven. Third: Likewise, writs filed past the time-limits are deemed to not have been submitted, for which purpose the Secretariat of Proceedings is authorized to send the correspondence referring to the subject. Fourth: The present ruling deals with an electoral matter and is not subject to any appeal and comes into force as of the present date without detriment to its subsequent publication. 22 41. As argued by the petitioner, against this ruling there was no remedy that would be deemed admissible, in view of paragraph 15 of Article 173 of the Constitution, which provides that “the rulings of the Supreme Electoral Council shall not be subject to any appeal, whether ordinary or extraordinary.” 23 42. On April 5, 2011, the Supreme Electoral Council published the final list of candidates running for president and vice-president of the Republic in which candidates from five political organizations appeared, including that of President José Daniel Ortega Saavedra on behalf of the Sandinista National Liberation Front Alliance and the alleged victim on behalf of the Independent Liberal Party Alliance. 24 43. On November 6, 2011, the presidential elections were held in Nicaragua as a result of which President Ortega was reelected with 62.64% of the ballots, with the alleged victim ranking second. As a result of this ranking, the alleged victim, pursuant to Nicaraguan law, was appointed congressperson of the Republic of Nicaragua. 25 D. Report on irregularities in the 2011 elections 44. Various bodies involved in observing Nicaragua’s election in 2011 called attention to structural problems in the electoral process. In particular, the European Union deemed the process as lacking neutrality and transparency, since it was managed by an “insufficiently independent and unbiased electoral council that did not comply with its duties regarding transparency and collaboration with all parties involved.” 26 45. Regarding this, the European Union’s Election Observation Mission stated: Annex 2. Resolution of the Supreme Electoral Council of Nicaragua of April 4, 2011. Annex 2 to the brief submitted by the petitioner on April 5, 2011. 23 Brief of observations submitted by the petitioner on March 20, 2018. 24 Annex 3. Certification of the Supreme Electoral Council of April 5, 2011. Annex to the brief of observations submitted by the state on November 8, 2017. 25 Annex 4. Certification of November 15, 2011. Annex to the brief of observations submitted by the state on November 7, 2017. 26 IACHR, Interdisciplinary Group of Independent Experts (GIEI). Nicaragua: Report on the Violence Events between April 18 and May 30, 2018. V. Background and context, pp. 44-45. 22