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OAS Mission Congratulated Citizens of Costa Rica for a Successful Election Day

The follow-up team of the Electoral Observation Mission of the Organization of American States (EOM/OAS) in Costa Rica, led by former Colombian President Andrés Pastrana, congratulated President-elect Carlos Alvarado for his victory in the elections on April 1, and the people of Costa Rica for their civic spirit demonstrated during the election day.

Likewise, the Mission appreciated the early recognition of the electoral results by the candidate Fabricio Alvarado and highlighted the display of political maturity from both contenders once the preliminary results of the second presidential round were announced.

The EOM emphasized that the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE) demonstrated, once again, its high technical abilities in successfully organizing this process. It also invited the institution to share and promote its advances in techniques and democratic culture with the rest of the countries of the region.

During its visit in the country, the OAS team met with the magistrates of the TSE, the two candidates in contention, civil society representatives and academics to hear their perspectives on the second-round run-off. On the day of the election, the team visited various polling stations in San José to observe the development of the voting process.

In the campaign carried out between the first and the second rounds, the EOM/OAS observed that different topics of national interest were covered, as recommended by the Mission deployed for the general elections in February. However, various political actors expressed their concerns about the tone of the debates and discussions, which were more aggressive than in previous elections. Special relevance was given to the use of social media for offensive demonstrations and even to send threats.

Public opinion studies showed once again that they are not necessarily an accurate tool for predicting electoral results. This is particularly important in Costa Rica given that survey figures influence both the financing of the campaigns and the participation of the candidates in the debates. The Mission recommends the analysis and discussion of the role that this type of studies have in the country's electoral system.

On the day of the election, the polling stations opened on time and had all the essential materials. As for the integration of the polling booths, the electoral assistants were fundamental since many of the persons designated by the political parties to act as polling station members did not show up. Once the electoral process is over, the Mission recommends that the party composition model of the polling stations be reviewed, in order to reflect the new reality of the national electoral and political system.

The EOM also acknowledged that the efforts of the TSE to modernize the process for the transmission of results meant that at 8:05 PM the president of the institution could give the provisional results reflecting 90.62% of the vote. This gave certainty and tranquility to the citizens who had accurate and official information just two hours after the polling stations closed.

For the elections held on February 4, the OAS deployed an Electoral Observation Mission comprised of 15 experts and observers from 13 nationalities, which conducted a substantive analysis of electoral organization and technology, campaign financing, women's political participation and electoral justice. After the elections, the Mission presented its preliminary observations and recommendations, which will be included in a final report that will be presented to the Permanent Council of the OAS in Washington after the conclusion of the electoral process.

The OAS Mission is grateful for the financial contributions from the governments of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, South Korea, Spain, the United States, France and Peru, which made it possible to deploy the Mission and the follow-up team.

Reference: E-019/18