Runoff likely as Costa Ricans choose among 25 presidential candidates
Costa Ricans go to the polls Sunday to choose their country's next president, but the day's voting is unlikely to produce a clear winner, Reuters reports.
If no candidate wins more than 40 percent of the vote, the top two will advance to a runoff election to be held in April. Twenty-five candidates are seeking the presidency, and none of them are polling anywhere near 40 percent.
Per Reuters, centrist former President José Maria Figueres, who was in office from 1994 to 1998, leads in the polls with about 17 percent of the vote, while center-right candidate Lineth Saborío, who served as vice president from 2002 to 2006, is polling in second place at around 13 percent.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The candidate for the governing center-left Citizen Action party, which has been in power for two terms, is polling at 0.3 percent, and incumbent President Carlos Alvarado Quesada is constitutionally barred from serving a second consecutive term.
According to Al Jazeera, polls show that approximately one-third of Costa Rica's 3.5 million voters remain undecided.
All 57 seats in the country's unicameral National Assembly are also up for election.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.
-
Trump says 25% tariffs on Canada, Mexico start Feb. 1
Speed Read The tariffs imposed on America's neighbors could drive up US prices and invite retaliation
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump blames diversity, Democrats for DC air tragedy
Speed Read The president suggested that efforts to recruit more diverse air traffic controllers contributed to the deadly air crash
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
White House withdraws Trump's spending freeze
Speed Read President Donald Trump's budget office has rescinded a directive that froze trillions of dollars in federal aid and sowed bipartisan chaos
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
OpenAI announces ChatGPT Gov for government use
Speed Read The artificial intelligence research company has launched a new version of its chatbot tailored for the US government
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Caroline Kennedy urges Senate to reject RFK Jr.
Speed Read Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s cousin said he should not become President Donald Trump's health secretary, calling his medical views 'dangerous'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
GOP senator reneged on voting against Hegseth
Speed Read North Carolina senator Thom Tillis provided the deciding vote to confirm Pete Hegseth as defense secretary
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump sparks chaos with spending, aid freezes
Speed Read A sudden freeze on federal grants and loans by President Donald Trump's administration has created widespread confusion
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump feuds with Colombia on deportee flights
Speed Read Colombia has backed off from a trade war with the U.S., reaching an agreement on accepting deported migrants following tariff threats from President Donald Trump
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published