First Round: Election In Costa Rica Underscores Political Decay In Latin America

Costa Rica went to the polls last week, in an election that resulted in outsider Evangelical candidate Fabricio Alvarado taking up 24.9% of votes. This was after he had gained broad support for opposing the Inter-American Court of Human Rights' order that Costa Rica should recognize the right to marriage of same-sex couples.

The election shed light on the high levels of discontent that have grown in Costa Rica over the years. Unpopular economic reforms in the 1990s paired with growing corruption and lack of differentiation between traditional parties are some of the culprits, political scientist Lucas Perelló explained before the vote. But these symptoms seem part of a broader disease troubling Latin America and the world over. 

Costa Rica will go to a runoff taking place on April 1. Many expect the lack of proposals on economic and security issues on Fabricio Alvarado's platform will give the upper hand to his opponent, ruling party candidate Carlos Alvarado (no relation to Fabricio).

But as Bello says in The Economist, the first round in Costa Rica's electoral contest points to a broader trend in the region's politics: where political systems have failed to adjust to changing circumstances because of opposition from entrenched stakeholders. It's what political scientist Francis Fukuyama calls "political decay". 

Throughout the region, Evangelical Protestants are a rising force, as cultural wars take center stage in policy debates and democratic institutions are facing direct authoritarian challenges in a few countries. But political fragmentation and entrenched incumbents are also quite common features, not only in Costa Rica and Central America, but in other democracies like Colombia and Chile.