Close Race in Costa Rica

The presidential election in Costa Rica last Sunday, February 5th, is too close to call at this point. The latest tally shows former president and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Oscar Arias, with 40.5% of the vote, and his opponent, Otton Solis, with 40.2% of the vote. This election reminds me of the 2000 U.S. presidential election, and we all know how that turned out. It would be strange to watch Costa Rica go through a string of recounts and court battles. But hopefully the country will remain peaceful and accept the final results. The nation as been plagued by scandal in recent years, so even though the new leader won't have a strong mandate to govern, at least he can try and bring the country together.

Also, the results will have big ramifications for the rest of the region as Costa Rica is the only nation that has not ratified the trade agreement known as CAFTA. This treaty is a free trade agreement between the United States and Central America. Mr. Arias has said that he supports the trade agreement, and Mr. Solis supports the plan on the condition that it gets amended.

Mr. Arias is a member of the more established National Liberation Party and Mr. Solis is a member of the Citizen's Action Party, which encourages citizen participation and involvement in politics, something I like very much. The final results of the election will not be known until next week, so stay tuned.