MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay — The presidential candidate of the conservative coalition that has governed Uruguay for the past five years conceded defeat Sunday after a close runoff, as the South American nation joined others in the world to rebuke the incumbent party in a historic year. elections.
Even as vote counting continued, Álvaro Delgado, the center-right government candidate, told supporters at his campaign headquarters in the capital Montevideo that “we can congratulate the winner with sadness but without guilt », referring to his left-wing challenger. Yamadu Orsi.
Fireworks erupted on the stage where Orsi, 57, a former working-class history teacher and twice mayor of Uruguay’s center-left coalition known as the Broad Front, claimed responsibility victory as crowds flocked to greet him.
“The land of liberty, equality and fraternity has triumphed once again,” he said, promising to unite the nation of 3.4 million after such a close vote.
“Let’s understand that there is another part of our country that has different feelings today,” he said. “These people will also have to contribute to building a better country. We need it too. »
With more than 91% of votes counted, Orsi received 49.56% support, compared to 46.17% for Delgado in an election in which almost 90% of voters turned out, according to preliminary data released by the Electoral tribunal. The rest consisted of blank votes or non-voters.
Although they failed to attract apathetic young voters and generate extraordinary indecision, Uruguay’s lackluster election campaigns avoided the anti-establishment fury that propelled foreign populists to power elsewhere in the world, such as in the United States and neighboring Argentina.
Delgado’s concession makes Orsi Uruguay’s new leader and marks the end of a short term for the center-right party in Uruguay. The election of President Luis Lacalle Pou in 2019 interrupted 15 consecutive years of Broad Front rule.
“I called Yamandú Orsi to congratulate him as the elected president of our country,” Lacalle Pou wrote on the social media platform deemed appropriate.”
Orsi’s victory is the latest sign that simmering discontent with post-pandemic economic malaise favors anti-incumbent candidates. In the many elections that have taken place in 2024, voters frustrated with the status quo have punished ruling parties, from the United States and Britain to South Korea and Japan.
But unlike elsewhere in the world, Orsi is a moderate who plans no radical changes and agrees with his opponent on key issues like fighting child poverty and cracking down on organized crime.
Despite his promise to lead a “new left” in Uruguay, his program resembles the mix of pro-market policies and social programs that characterized the Broad Front’s mandate from 2005 to 2020. The coalition of left and center parties The left presided over a period of pioneering economic growth and social reforms that were widely praised internationally.
Behind the legalization of abortion, same-sex marriage and the sale of marijuana in Uruguay was former President José “Pepe” Mujica, a former Marxist guerrilla who became a global icon and mentor to Orsi.
Mujica, now 89 and recovering from esophageal cancer, showed up at his local polling station before voting even began, praising Orsi’s humility and the famous stability of Uruguay.
“It’s not a small thing,” he said of “Uruguayan citizenship that respects formal institutions.”
Orsi proposes tax incentives to attract investment and social security reforms that would lower the retirement age, but do not meet the radical reform desired by Uruguayan unions that was not adopted in October, Uruguayans rejecting generous pensions in favor of budgetary constraints.
“He is my candidate, not only for my sake but also for that of my children,” Yeny Varone, a nurse at a polling station, said of Orsi. “In the future, they will benefit from better working conditions, better health and better salaries. »
Delgado, 55, a rural veterinarian with a long career in the National Party, recently served as secretary to Lacalle Pou’s presidency and campaigned under the slogan “re-elect a good government.”
With inflation slowing and the economy expected to grow about 3.2% this year, according to the International Monetary Fund, Delgado has promised to continue his predecessor’s business-friendly policies. Lacalle Pou, who constitutionally cannot run for a second consecutive term, enjoys high approval ratings.
But official results released Sunday showed that growing complaints in Uruguay over years of sluggish economic growth, stagnant wages and the government’s struggle to stem a surge in violent crime helped tip the election against Delgado’s party .
In the weeks following the October 27 general election – in which neither leading candidate achieved an absolute majority – most polls had shown a virtual tie between Delgado and Orsi.
Turnout on Sunday stood at 89.4% in the country where voting is compulsory, with more than 2.7 million citizens registered.
In his victory speech, Orsi adopted a conciliatory tone.
“I will be the president who calls again and again for national dialogue, who builds a more integrated society and country,” he said, adding that he would get to work “starting tomorrow.”
Associated Press writer Isabel DeBre in Villa Tunari, Bolivia, contributed to this report.
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