{"id":113698,"date":"2026-02-02T11:52:03","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T11:52:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=113698"},"modified":"2026-02-02T11:52:03","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T11:52:03","slug":"right-wing-populist-laura-fernandez-claims-victory-in-costa-ricas-elections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=113698","title":{"rendered":"Right-wing populist Laura Fern\u00e1ndez claims victory in Costa Rica\u2019s elections"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>5 Minute, 46 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>
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Conservative populist Laura Fern\u00e1ndez claimed victory in Costa Rica\u2019s presidential race, with early results also pointing to her ruling party securing a majority in an election overshadowed by crime and political apathy.<\/p>\n

Amid persisting violence from criminal groups in a country long considered\u00a0a peaceful tourist hub, polling\u00a0reveals\u00a0that Costa Ricans are most concerned about security this year. Voters are also distressed by the decline in their quality of life, as well as the country\u2019s muddled political landscape \u2013 a fact indicated by the twenty candidates for president alone.<\/p>\n

With more than 80% of the polling stations counted, Fern\u00e1ndez had secured 48.94% of the votes \u2013\u2013 enough to avoid a runoff in the race for the presidency.<\/p>\n

Fern\u00e1ndez was handpicked by President Rodrigo Chaves to run as his successor and has pledged to continue with his tough on crime policies.<\/p>\n

\u201cCosta Rica has voted for the continuity of change, a change that seeks to restore and improve institutions and return them to the sovereign people in order to create greater well-being and prosperity,\u201d Fern\u00e1ndez told supporters after the preliminary results were announced.<\/p>\n

Her closest rival \u00c1lvaro Ramos, a centrist economist representing Costa Rica\u2019s oldest political party, conceded late on Sunday, saying his party would \u201csupport her when her decisions are for the good of the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Costa Rica, a candidate must obtain at least 40% of the vote to win the presidency in the first round. If no one reaches that threshold, the top two head to a runoff.<\/p>\n

The early results projected Fernandez\u2019s Sovereign People\u2019s Party would also claim a majority of 30 seats in the 57-seat Congress, up from its current eight seats.<\/p>\n

Security in a country without an army<\/h2>\n

Costa Rica\u2019s struggle with criminal violence in recent years is a cruel irony. The country has long been a model for peace. It was the\u00a0first nation to abolish its armed forces, a point of national pride in a region marked by political turmoil.<\/p>\n

Yet government figures show that the last three years have been some of the most violent in recent Costa Rican history, with 905 homicides in 2023, an all-time record. The government attributes much of the violence to drug trafficking. In January, the US Treasury\u00a0alleged\u00a0that the country has become a \u201ckey global cocaine transshipment point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Costa Rica is not alone in this trend, of course: crime-related fears drove thousands of Latin Americans to the polls in recent months, from Ecuador to Chile to Honduras. The region\u2019s struggle against crime is overshadowed by one government in particular: El Salvador and its self-described \u201cdictator\u201d\u00a0Nayib Bukele.<\/p>\n

Bukele brought murder rates in El Salvador to historic lows through a gargantuan imprisonment campaign and police crackdown, but faces numerous allegations of human rights violations, especially regarding his notorious\u00a0Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT).<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, he remains extremely popular in Latin America. He\u2019s also sought to promote his brand of iron-fist rule in Costa Rica, where the government\u00a0broke ground on a CECOT-style prison\u00a0last month with Bukele\u2019s blessing.<\/p>\n

\u201cNayib Bukele\u2019s presence is important, legitimate, and honors us,\u201d declared the retiring incumbent President Rodrigo Chaves at the groundbreaking ceremony.<\/p>\n

Jos\u00e9 Andr\u00e9s D\u00edaz Gonz\u00e1lez, political scientist at Costa Rica\u2019s National University in Heredia, told CNN that the security crisis is part and parcel with a decline in the country\u2019s social services.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe foundations of the social pact are being weakened,\u201d D\u00edaz said. \u201cHealth, with the accelerated deterioration of the Costa Rican Social Security Fund; education, as an engine of social mobility; and security, with the increase in homicides and the loss of the feeling of security in homes.\u201d<\/p>\n

D\u00edaz pointed out that Costa Rica faces the same\u00a0demographic cliff\u00a0as many other countries: the population is\u00a0getting older, threatening further strain on a safety net already coming apart at the seams.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are in a demographic transition that implies that fewer people will have to produce more,\u201d D\u00edaz explained. \u201cIn 15 or 20 years, the pension system will be under greater pressure, there will be fewer contributors, less tax revenues and greater demands for care for the elderly population.\u201d<\/p>\n

Economic growth \u2013 but not for everyone<\/h2>\n

According to a 2025 report from the State of the Nation Program (PEN), a local think tank, Costa Rica experienced an economic rebound in 2024 and the first half of 2025.<\/p>\n

The country became the first in Central America to join the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in 2021, and that organization\u2019s latest reports on Costa Rica also paint a rosy initial picture: an \u201cimproved\u201d fiscal situation with declining unemployment, declining debt and tech products making up a growing share of the country\u2019s exports.<\/p>\n

Among peer nations, OECD reported, Costa Rica\u2019s growth has been \u201cmore resilient and stronger.\u201d<\/p>\n

The upward-trending numbers, however, only show half of the story, according to PEN political scientist Leonardo Merino.<\/p>\n

\u201cCosta Rica has economic growth that is disengaged from people\u2019s well-being,\u201d Merino told CNN. He explained that much of the growth is concentrated in so-called \u201cfree trade zones,\u201d which offer significant tax breaks and customs exemptions for investors.<\/p>\n

\u201cFree trade zones are the main engine of growth, but they account for only 12% of employment and around 15% of production,\u201d said Merino. \u201cThe domestic market economy, where the majority of the population is, is growing little and has been abandoned.\u201d<\/p>\n

OECD concurred with that assessment, too, writing that \u201cinnovation outcomes are weak\u201d outside of free trade zones.<\/p>\n

An apathetic public<\/h2>\n

This wear and tear is also reflected in a marked political apathy among everyday Costa Ricans. According to Merino, three decades ago nearly every person in Costa Rica was affiliated with a political party. Today, barely a fifth of the country identifies with a party.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a worrying trend,\u201d Merino said. \u201cFewer and fewer people are voting, young people are participating less and now even older adults are staying away from the polls.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2022, Costa Rica registered the\u00a0lowest voter turnout\u00a0in its recent history, with two out of five eligible voters staying home on election day.<\/p>\n

Both D\u00edaz and Merino agree that the Costa Rican social pact \u2014 built over more than a century \u2014 is at stake. Environmental concerns have\u00a0held a central place\u00a0in Costa Rica\u2019s identity for years, much like its lack of a standing army, and the country has set ambitious\u00a0sustainability goals.<\/p>\n

But the two political scientists say that even that is changing. The idea of a \u201cgreen Costa Rica\u201d coexists today with proposals for ending a two-decade-old ban on\u00a0fossil fuel exploration\u00a0and exploiting natural resources such as precious metals, gas and oil.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not just a choice. If something is not done, the deterioration can continue,\u201d said D\u00edaz, \u201cand so far no political party has considered this issue with the seriousness it requires.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Right-wingSan Jos\u00e9, Costa Rica\u00a0\u2014\u00a0Conservative populist Laura Fern\u00e1ndez claimed victory in Costa Rica\u2019s presidential race, with early results also pointing to her ruling party securing a majority in an election overshadowed by crime and political apathy<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16281,1910,117,10,9,16282],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-113698","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-costa-rica","category-international","category-news","category-politics","category-popular","category-right-wing-populist"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113698","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=113698"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113698\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=113698"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=113698"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=113698"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}