Costa Ricans to get 1st woman president
Written by on February 7th, 2010 in Latest News.
Costa Rica’s National Liberation Party presidential candidate Laura Chinchilla waves to supporters after voting at a polling station in Sunday’s election. (Esteban Felix/Associated Press)
Costa Rica’s ruling party candidate appeared headed for a clear victory Sunday as the central American nation’s first woman president.
Laura Chinchilla, who served as vice-president under current President Oscar Arias, was winning 47 per cent of the vote with 44 per cent of the ballots counted, Reuters reported.
Chinchilla, running for the National Liberation Party, was trailed by rivals Otton Solis of the Citizens Action Party and Otto Guevara of the Libertarian Movement Party.
Solis, who barely lost the presidential election to Arias in 2006, conceded defeat shortly after the results started coming in.
The winner of Sunday’s election needs to get at least 40 per cent of the vote to avoid a run-off in April.
Chinchilla, a 50-year-ancient social conservative who opposes abortion and gay marriage, has pledged to continue Arias’ moderate free-market policies.
She seemed to appeal both to Costa Ricans seeking a fresh face in politics and those reluctant to risk the unknown.
“All of this has been worth it. We are going to win, and in the first round,” Chinchilla said earlier in the day.
Chinchilla’s win would continue a recent trend in many Latin American countries: Nicaragua, Panama, Chile and Argentina have all elected women as presidents.
With files from The Associated Press
