“I will be the president who calls again and again for national dialogue to find the best solutions, of course by following our vision, but also by listening very carefully to what others tell us,” reacted during a speech to his supporters of the elected president, a former history professor from the left-wing Frente Amplio coalition.
Alvaro Delgado, a former veterinarian from the same right-wing National Party as outgoing President Luis Lacalle Pou, conceded defeat on Sunday evening. “Today, the Uruguayan people have chosen (the one) who will occupy the presidency of the Republic,” he declared, saying “greet” Yamandu Orsi in the name of “all the actors of the (governmental) coalition” which supported him.
Congratulated by Lula
Yamandu Orsi finished well in the lead in the first round on October 27 with 43.9% of the votes, ahead of Alvaro Delgado (26.8%) who, however, had the reservoir of votes of Andres Ojeda, of the Colorado party (center right), came in third position (16%).
Yamandu Orsi’s victory, however, does not augur any sign of a change of direction, the elected president having promised, when he was still a candidate, “a sure change which will not be radical”. During the campaign, MM. Orsi and Delgado insisted on reviving growth and reducing the budget deficit. They pledged not to increase the tax burden and promised to fight against increasing crime linked to drug trafficking.
Yamandu Orsi wants to develop exchanges on a regional scale, while Alvaro Delgado leaned towards multilateral agreements.
“I would like to congratulate (…) the elected president Yamandu Orsi, the Frente Amplio and my friend Pepe Mujica for their victory in today’s elections,” reacted on X the president of neighboring Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. “This is a victory for all of Latin America and the Caribbean.”
If Uruguay has a high per capita income, as well as lower levels of poverty and inequality compared to the rest of South America, employment and security have been placed at the center of the concerns of 3.4 million inhabitants of the country with 12 million head of cattle.
Promise of an “orderly” transition
The left relied on its tutelary figure, José “Pepe” Mujica, the former president (2010-2015) and ex-guerrilla tortured and imprisoned under the dictatorship (1973-1985), to return to power after the Tabaré Vazquez years ( 2005-2010, then 2015-2020) which put an end to the hegemony of the right and center right. Despite his 89 years, his fight against cancer and difficulty getting around, José “Pepe” Mujica increased his appearances and meetings to attract the vote of young and undecided people who seemed to hold the key to the vote.
Outgoing President Luis Lacalle Pou, in power since 2020, was unable to run again despite a popularity rating of 50%, because the Constitution prohibits running for a second consecutive term. He promised an “orderly” transition in the most stable country in Latin America, with parties with a long history, clear identities despite their unions in coalitions and whose membership is transmitted even within families. .
Concurrent general elections in the first round saw the Frente Amplio win 16 of the 30 seats in the Senate and 48 of the 99 seats in the Chamber of Deputies.
