The left-wing opposition candidate for the Uruguayan presidential elections, Yamandú Orsi, won the second electoral round this Sunday, November 24, a victory that marks the return to power of the left of the emblematic former president José Mujica.
“I will be the president who calls again and again for national dialogue to find the best solutions, following our vision, of course, but also listening very carefully to what others tell us,” he reacted during a speech to his elected supporters. president, a former history professor of the leftist Frente Amplio coalition.
Álvaro Delgado, a former vet for the same right-wing National Party as outgoing president Luis Lacalle Pou, admitted defeat in the evening. “Today the Uruguayan people have chosen who will occupy the presidency of the Republic,” he declared, saying he would “greet” Yamandú Orsi on behalf of “all the actors in the (governmental) coalition” that supported him.
Yamandú Orsi finished with a good advantage in the first round on October 27 with 43.9% of the votes, ahead of Álvaro Delgado (26.8%) who, however, had the reserve of votes from Andrés Ojeda, of the Colorado Party (center right). , came in third position (16%).
Yamandu Orsi’s victory, however, does not portend any sign of a change of course, since the president-elect had promised, when he was still a candidate, “a sure change that will not be radical.”
“A victory for all of Latin America”
During the campaign, both candidates insisted on reviving growth and reducing the budget deficit. They pledged not to increase the tax burden and promised to fight against the increase in crime linked to drug trafficking. Yamandu Orsi wants to develop exchanges on a regional scale, while Álvaro Delgado leaned towards multilateral agreements.
“I want to congratulate (…) the elected president Yamandú Orsi, the Frente Amplio and my friend Pepe Mujica for their victory in today’s elections,” reacted in X the president of neighboring Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. “This is a victory for all of Latin America and the Caribbean,” he said.
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 the 3.4 million inhabitants of the region. country with 12 million heads of family. cattle.
Majority in the Senate for the Frente Amplio
The left relied on its guardian figure, José “Pepe” Mujica, the former president (2010-2015) and former guerrilla tortured and imprisoned under the dictatorship (1973-1985), to return to power after the years of Tabaré Vázquez (2005-2010). , then 2015-2020) that put an end to the hegemony of the right and the center right.
Despite his 89 years, his fight against cancer and his difficulties moving, José Mujica increased his appearances and meetings to attract the vote of young and undecided people who seemed to have the key to the election.
Outgoing president Luis Lacalle Pou, in power since 2020, could not run again despite having 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.
In the simultaneous general elections in the first round, the Frente Amplio won 16 of the 30 seats in the Senate and 48 of the 99 seats in the Chamber of Deputies.
Source: BFM TV
