El Salvador, Costa Rica vote for new leadership amid political stagnation
A worker from the Electoral Supreme Tribune (TSE) prepares a polling station for the presidential election in San Salvador, El Salvador, Saturday, Feb. 1, 2014. El Salvador will hold its presidential election on Sunday. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)Voters are casting ballots in presidential elections in two Central American countries Sunday.
In El Salvador, Vice President Salvador Sanchez Ceren is struggling to keep the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front in power after only one term. The party is facing criticism that it has done little about the sluggish economy and rampant gang violence.
Norman Quijano, the ARENA candidate, is trailing closely behind Sanchez Ceren. The 67-year-old Quijano has been the mayor of San Salvador.
The two are likely to meet in a runoff, as a third candidate is far behind in public opinion polls to replace President Mauricio Funes. El Salvador elects a president for a single five-year term.
In Costa Rica, Johnny Araya, the ruling National Liberation Party\’s candidate, has sought to distance himself from the corruption allegations of President Laura Chinchilla\’s government.
Araya\’s main contender is Jose Maria Villalta, a congressman with the Broad Front Party.
Analysts say a runoff between the two is likely in Costa Rica, where a president is elected for a single four-year term.
Source: VOA and agencies
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