President-elect Laura Fernández Delgado formally received her credentials from Costa Rica’s Supreme Electoral Tribunal on Tuesday morning, March 17, during a ceremony at the Francisco Sáenz Meza auditorium in the TSE building in San José. Francisco Ernesto Gamboa Soto and Douglas Soto Campos were also certified as first and second vice presidents-elect for the 2026-2030 term. Fernández is set to take office on May 8 as Costa Rica’s 50th president and the second woman to hold the country’s top executive office.
In her speech, Fernández put public security at the center of her incoming administration and delivered a blunt warning to organized crime and drug trafficking. She said she would not allow criminal groups to keep inflicting pain on Costa Rican families and called on the 57 incoming lawmakers to unite behind what she described as a national crusade against violence, impunity, and insecurity. Coverage of the ceremony also reported her direct message to criminal organizations: “Voy por ustedes” — “I’m coming for you.”
Fernández said our country needs faster and more effective justice and argued that judicial impunity should be treated as a national emergency. She also urged lawmakers to back legal reforms requested by the Judiciary, saying Costa Rica has an opportunity to recover the path to peace by confronting organized crime and drug trafficking head-on.
Her message lands at a time when insecurity has dominated public concern in Costa Rica for nearly three years. University of Costa Rica polling has identified insecurity and crime as our country’s top perceived problem since April 2023, a trend that has continued as violence remains near record levels.
The backdrop is stark. Costa Rica recorded 905 homicides in 2023, the deadliest year in its history, followed by 876 in 2024 and 873 in 2025, according to Judicial Branch figures. While the numbers eased slightly after the 2023 peak, the last three years remain the most violent stretch on record.
Fernández was officially declared president-elect by the TSE earlier this month after winning the February 1 election with 1,243,141 valid votes, or 48.53% of the valid ballots cast. Her certification this week turned that electoral result into a formal transition step as the incoming government prepares for the May handover.
