“Broad Front” leader Mujica appears to be the favorite

Uruguayans will elect their next president this Sunday in a hard fought run-off vote that pits ruling Broad Front coalition leader Jose “Pepe” Mujica against his conservative rival Luis Alberto Lacalle.

Mujica is polling at 48 to 50% of the vote, while Lacalle is polling between 40 to 42%.

Opinion polls show that Broad Front candidate Pepe Mujica is likely to become  Uruguay’s next president. Photo: MERCOPRESS

“Unless something really intense and weird happens in the last six days, Mujica is the next president”, said sociologist Ignacio Zuasnabar, of the Equipos Mori polling company. “Following the first round vote at the end of October, the percentages have remained virtually frozen and it seems unlikely they should change in the last week.”

The unchanged polling numbers suggests voter dissatisfaction with the two candidates.
“We estimate that anywhere from 6 to 8% of the voters are disenchanted both with Mujica and Lacalle, otherwise the projections should be more decisive,” said pollster Mario Doyenart. Still, he believes Mujica will win Sunday’s vote.

Mujica is a former guerrilla leader who has limited or tepid support from a significant percentage of the ruling Broad Front voters. They fear Mujica might entertain populist tendencies and are uncomfortable with his rather coarse language and manners. They would have preferred economist Danilo Astori, Mujica’s running mate, to have led the ticket.

The opposition National party also has its internal divisions. Many conservatives view former president Lacalle as arrogant and corruption-stained from his first administration (1990/1995). They consider vice-president hopeful Jorge Larrañaga to be a more accessible candidate, but he lost (unexpectedly) to Lacalle in a June primary.

Under Uruguayan law, all political activity and electoral propaganda is banned as of Friday, two days before the Sunday vote.

SOURCE: MERCOPRESS
By Santiago Times Staff ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it )