San José Mayor Johnny Araya tops presidential poll

The mayor of San José, Johnny Araya Monge, is the solid leader in next year’s presidential race, according to a survey by consulting firm CID-Gallup for the daily La República, released Thursday.

Araya, candidate for the ruling National Liberation Party (PLN), would have the support of 40 percent of respondents for upcoming 2014 elections, the number of voters required to win the presidency without a runoff vote, according to Costa Rica’s legislation.

All other candidates combined do not reach even half of Araya’s approval numbers.

None of Araya’s opponents, including Epsy Campbell from the Citizen Action Party (PAC), José María Villalta from the Broad Front (FA) and Rodolfo Hernandez from the Social Christian Unity Party (PUSC), managed to surpass 10 percent approval.

As for party preferences, PLN also leads the polls with 40 percent support, a clear advantage over opposition parties. PUSC received 8 percent support from respondents, PAC received 3 percent and the FA received just 1 percent.

However, the percentage of people who say they do not support any candidate remains high, with nearly a third (32 percent) of respondents saying they will not vote for any candidate in the next election.

The survey polled 834 people from April 3-5.