Governor Bertone alleges ballot theft in Tierra del Fuego

Governor of Tierra del Fuego province in Argentina's far south, Rosana Bertone, on Sunday denounced the alleged "systematic" removal of ballots during the province's Election Day, which happened as the country grappled with an historic nationwide blackout.

Bertone lodged a complaint with the provincial electoral court over the alleged "systematic removal of ballots".

The governor is seeking reelection as part of the Unidad Fuegina (Tierra del Fuego United) ticket aligned nationally with former president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.

"We have already made presentations to the electoral court", she told reporters.

Without naming names, Bertone alleged people had "removed complete biles of ballots" from voting booths and urged that the practice "end" immediately.

"We hope that the electoral authorities can guarantee that are our ballots will be there" to count when the election concluded later Sunday evening, she added.

Bertone also alleged the opposition in Tierra del Fuego had violated electoral laws by handing out how-to-vote cards to sixth graders and sending out messages on mobile messaging services.

Public schools act as voting centres across Argentina.

-TIMES/PERFIL