Uruguay Update: Over 40% of Citizens Have Already Cast Their Vote
Broad Front presidential candidate Yamandu Orsi casts his vote, Oct. 27, 2024. X/ @nmas
October 27, 2024 Hour: 1:12 pm
‘Parties should have minimum levels of agreement on issues such as child poverty, education, and security,’ FA candidate Orsi said.
By midday on Sunday, 40.6 percent of eligible Uruguayan voters had already cast their ballots in the presidential and parliamentary elections.
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According to data from the Electoral Court, this turnout shows a clear increase compared to the primaries held in June, when only 12 percent of voters had turned out between 8:00 a.m. and noon local time.
The main difference between the two primaries is that voting was not mandatory in the previous primaries, while it is in these elections, where those who do not vote will be fined.
Around 2.7 million citizens are called to vote this Sunday in elections to choose the president and parliamentarians for the 2025-2030 term. If none of the 11 candidates surpasses 50 percent of the vote, a runoff will be held on November 24 between the two leading candidates. Voters will also weigh in on two referendums: one to reform the social security system and another to allow nighttime searches.
In the morning, Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou and former presidents Jose Mujica (2010-2015) and Julio Maria Sanguinetti (1985-1990 and 1995-2000) cast their votes. Presidential candidates Yamandu Orsi (Broad Front), Alvaro Delgado (National Party), Pablo Mieres (Independent Party), and Guido Manini (Open Cabildo) also voted.
After casting his vote at a school in Canelones, Orsi remarked that his country is privileged due to its institutional strength and the resilience of its democracy.
“I am from the neighborhood, I am from this city, and I feel increasingly proud to be Uruguayan,” the leftist presidential candidate said, highlighting the need to establish dialogue among parties to create State policies even before the new government takes office on March 1, 2025.
“Political parties should have minimum levels of agreement on issues such as child poverty, education, and security,” said Orsi, a 57-year-old history teacher.
teleSUR/ JF Sources: EFE – Xinhua
