Costa Rica holds presidential elections
Voters in Costa Rica could be called to cast their ballots again in an April run-off Voters in Costa Rica are going to the polls to choose a successor to President Laura Chinchilla.
The governing party's Johnny Araya, a former mayor of San Jose, is expected to face strong opposition from left-wing candidate Jose Maria Villalta.
Centre-left politician Luis Guillermo Solis is also seen as a contender.
With many voters undecided, pollsters are predicting a tight race. If no candidate wins outright, there will be a run-off on 6 April.
Mr Araya, who served as the capital's mayor for more than 20 years, has promised to reduce poverty and attempted to distance himself from the scandal-hit government of President Chinchilla.
Sunday MassAnalysts said that Mr Villalta could become the first left-wing president in Costa Rican history. He was the only one of the main candidates not to attend a Sunday Mass.
"I don't usually go to church. It would be hypocritical of me to go now, just because we are holding elections," Mr Villalta told reporters.
His opponents accuse him of being a "communist" and planning to legalise abortion.
Another leading contender, right-wing candidate Otto Guevara, promised to rebuild the "social fabric" and lower electricity prices.
Laura Chinchilla became the first female president of Costa Rica in 2010.
But with unemployment rising and the government involved in a string of corruption allegations, the president saw her popularity fade.
Correspondents say her successor will have to tackle not only the country's economic woes but a deeply divided Congress.
Voters are electing both a new president and members of Congress.
No comments:
Post a Comment