The problem is not choosing a candidate today or tomorrow

The Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) has begun to show clear signs of recovery. According to the survey published by RC Noticias and Quantum Analytics in May 2025, the PLD reaches 24.7% in party sympathy, surpassing the Fuerza del Pueblo (18%) and positioning itself as the second force in the country, behind the ruling PRM (42.6%). Similarly, the social and political opinion study published in April 2025 by VRA places the PLD with 18.3%, also above the Fuerza del Pueblo (16.7%) and only behind the PRM (36.9%). In both studies, the PLD reaffirms itself as a relevant political brand, with competitive potential. However, this recovery of the party does not directly translate into the positioning of its main figures. There is an evident lag between the growth of the PLD brand and the projection of those who aspire to represent it. This indicates that the party's problem does not lie solely in choosing a candidate today or tomorrow, but in how its leadership connects with the current electorate.

It's not a matter of the calendar. It's about understanding that we are in a new era of political communication, where traditional ways of campaigning and building leadership are falling behind. As sociologist Byung-Chul Han points out in Infocracy (2022):

“Power is no longer imposed through repression, but through the seduction of data and the saturation of information. Those who cannot communicate have no power, even if they are right.”

In this new scenario, leadership is built more on continuous presence and emotional narrative than on structure or trajectory. The electorate, especially the young, does not respond to the symbols of the past, but to the emotions of the present. It wants closeness, authenticity, clarity, and adaptability. This demands more than a figure with credentials: it demands a figure who understands the codes of the 21st century. Omar Fernández's example is paradigmatic. In less than six months, he managed to displace his father as the most attractive figure of the Fuerza del Pueblo, without being an official candidate and without having a party machinery. He did it with a modern, constant, and emotional strategy, understanding that leadership today is not imposed, it is built day by day on networks, in narratives, in real interaction. It is the type of phenomenon that Han describes as "the change from argumentative reason to the logic of the like".

The PLD, although it has history, structure, and experience, cannot afford to repeat formulas from the past. The new generations, who make up the majority of the active electorate, are mobilized by causes, by direct speeches, by visible and coherent leadership on digital platforms. 25.7% of Dominicans, according to the VRA survey, today say they do not sympathize with any party. That segment is available to whoever manages to connect emotionally. But it will not wait forever.

It's not about finding a name that "fits at the moment." It's about constructing a narrative that excites, a figure that projects the future and not just the past. A candidacy that understands that "whoever does not adapt to the logic of the infocracy disappears from the public attention radar." The PLD has something to compete with. But the problem is not choosing a candidate today or tomorrow. The real challenge is that whoever is chosen is not a reflection of yesterday, but a bridge to the present and the future.