No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeTopicsPoliticsJohnny Araya lost the vote in San José municipality, where he was...

Johnny Araya lost the vote in San José municipality, where he was mayor for 21 years

National Liberation Party (PLN) candidate Johnny Araya still can win Costa Rica’s presidency. His campaign will have two months to swing the tide in his favor before the April 6 runoff against rival Luis Guillermo Solís. But right now it’s hard to figure out which was more incredible: Solís’ unbelievable comeback or Araya’s fall.

Six months ago, the PLN candidate seemed to have this election wrapped up before several missteps caused that lead to unravel. On Election Day, Araya lost the San José canton, even though he was mayor of the district for 21 years.

The Citizen Action Party’s Solís won San José with 35.3 percent of the vote, with 83 percent of precincts reporting. Araya picked up 29.5 percent. It’s not a huge surprise that Solís took Araya’s home turf. The majority of Solís’ support came from the urban Central Valley, which includes San José. But Araya’s poor performance underscores how badly the PLN misrepresented their candidate’s popularity. Despite polls indicating a runoff would be necessary to win the presidency, Araya continued talking like he’d win in the first round, saying before Sunday’s vote he hoped to capture 1 million votes.

When the results came in, it must’ve felt like a gut punch for the 56-yar-old former mayor. When it became clear a runoff was necessary, the PLN’s campaign manager tried to spin the news by saying Araya still was the leading vote-getter. But soon even that small truth evaporated. Early Monday morning, Solís led with 30.9 percent of the vote to 29.6 percent of the vote.

Araya was not the only leading presidential hopeful to underperform in a district he had ties to. Broad Front Party candidate José María Villalta, considered Araya’s most formidable foe entering Election Day, lost his hometown of Montes de Oca in eastern San José. He finished third in voting, in a district that Solís won with 46 percent.

While Solís won the Central Valley, Araya dominated the coasts. The split between rural and urban areas of the country will have to change for Araya – suddenly the underdog – to rally against Solís. With Villalta backers almost certainly converging around Solís for the runoff, PLN campaign managers must know they face a daunting challenge. The most recent poll looking at a potential runoff, supports this.

Ironically, Solís supporters who were often dismayed – it appears justifiably so – with their candidates low poll numbers (a Tico Times projection based on official poll averages showed Solís in fourth place) are hoping the most recent UCR poll proves correct. That poll foresees a Solís victory by almost 20 percentage points.

But a lot can change in two months, or less. Assuredly Solís, who polled no better than third days before the election, already knows that well.

Trending Now

Costa Rica Surpasses 500 Homicides as Gang Violence Escalates

Costa Rica has officially surpassed 500 homicides so far this year, according to figures released Monday by the Judicial Investigation Agency (OIJ). As of...

Costa Rica Seeks New Air Routes Amid Decline in European Tourism

Costa Rica is working to increase the number of international flights entering the country, as it faces a concerning drop in tourist arrivals.  The...

Honduras Reinstates Mask Mandate Amid Rise in Respiratory Illnesses

Honduran health officials have reinstated a nationwide mask mandate following a spike in respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19, flu, and a fast-spreading Omicron subvariant known...

Costa Rica Launches Traceability System to Tackle Illegal Logging

Costa Rica is advancing with the creation of a National Forest Traceability System, a key tool to guarantee the legality and sustainability of timber...

El Salvador Retries Environmentalists Over 1989 Wartime Killing

A new trial against five Salvadoran environmentalists, accused of murdering a woman in 1989 during the civil war, will take place on Tuesday, announced...

Keylor Navas Joins Pumas After Controversial Exit from Newell’s

Costa Rican goalkeeper Keylor Navas is officially the newest player for Pumas UNAM, but his move from Argentina’s Newell’s Old Boys has been anything...
spot_img
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica