Evangelical opponent of gay marriage wins first round of Costa Rica presidential vote, faces run-off
‘Costa Rica has sent a message to traditional parties – never again will they meddle with the family’
Conservative evangelical Christian singer Fabricio Alvarado Munoz will face a centre-left ruling party candidate in a run-off for Costa Rica’s presidency in April, after winning a first round on Sunday by sharply opposing gay marriage.
The 43-year-old Alvarado Munoz, the lone elected lawmaker for the evangelical National Restoration Party, shot to prominence as a candidate after denouncing a court ruling calling on Costa Rica to give civil marriage rights to same-sex couples.
“We propose the sovereignty of the family as the fundamental basis of society,” Alvarado Munoz told supporters blowing plastic horns after the results were announced.
“Costa Rica has sent a message to traditional parties – never again will they meddle with the family.”
The election could also be a taste of things to come in Latin America, where non-traditional candidates and outsiders are likely to make waves as around two-thirds of the region’s population chooses new governments this year.
Despite a history of progressive social policies, most Costa Ricans identify themselves as conservative, and evangelical Christianity has emerged as a religious and political force in recent years, reflecting similar changes across Latin America.
With results in from more than 80 per cent of ballot boxes, Alvarado Munoz had 24.8 per cent of the vote, while Alvarado Quesada had 21.6 per cent. The two men are not related.
Alvarado Munoz called last month’s ruling by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights a violation of Costa Rica’s sovereignty and an affront to traditional values. He has threatened to pull Costa Rica out of the court, which is based in the capital, San Jose.
The coffee exporting country famed for its environmental stewardship has long offered a moderate two-party system and more stability than other countries in politically volatile Central America.
The shift in support towards issue-based politics and relative outsiders has been a shock for some of Costa Rica’s 3.3 million voters.
“I’ve been surprised by the growth of minority parties,” said voter Olman Gomez, 49, a computer network engineer. “It feels like you’re living in another country in terms of politics.”
A former labour minister under President Luis Guillermo Solis, British-educated Alvarado Quesada, 38, said on Sunday that he wanted to give Costa Rica the best education system in Latin America and reiterated his support for civil rights.
“The Costa Rica of the 21st century requires a government that knows how to move forward with vigour, love, happiness (and) the agenda of equality,” Quesada told jubilant supporters against a backdrop of loud rock music.
