Published on Sunday, February 1, 2026
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

Costa Rica’s presidential election concluded Sunday with a first-round victory for ruling party candidate Laura Fernández-Delgado (39), who was elected the country’s 50th president for the 2026–2030 term.

Fernández will officially take office on May 8, 2026, when she is sworn in and begins her four-year term, which runs through May 8, 2030.

She is set to become the second woman president in Costa Rica’s history. The country’s first female president was Laura Chinchilla, who served from 2010 to 2014.

Fernández won 48% of the vote, avoiding a runoff, according to preliminary results from the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE). By 11 p.m. on election night, with 88% of ballots counted, she had secured 49% of the vote.

Álvaro Ramos of the National Liberation Party, or PLN, finished second with 32% support. The PLN is a center-left democratic party.

The outcome confirms the majority public support for political continuity under President Rodrigo Chaves-Robles.

 

In a brief video call posted on Fernández’s social media accounts, Chaves congratulated the president-elect, saying, “The people of Costa Rica have spoken in democracy and peace and have decided to give you the seat I occupy today.”

Fernández thanked voters for their support and said she would assume office “with profound respect.” She added that Costa Ricans "had once again demonstrated the strength of their democracy and pledged to continue expanding freedom in the country."

She is the candidate of the Sovereign People’s Party, known by its Spanish acronym PPSO, a center-right party founded in 2025 that supports continuing the policies of the Chaves administration.

Fernández previously served as minister of National Planning and Economic Policy from 2022 to 2025 and as minister of the Presidency from 2024 to 2025. Both positions were appointments made by Chaves.

By securing more than half of the valid votes, Fernández avoided a second-round runoff and ensured her arrival at the Presidential House without the need for post-election alliances.

More than 3.7 million registered voters were eligible to cast ballots Sunday to elect the country’s next president.

Costa Rica has one of the longest continuous presidential democracies in the Western Hemisphere, with more than 75 years of uninterrupted, free and transparent elections since the 1948 civil war.

The country is a democratic republic with a strong system of constitutional checks and balances. Executive authority is vested in the president, who serves alongside two vice presidents and a 15-member Cabinet. The president and the 57 members of the Legislative Assembly are elected to four-year terms.

The electoral process is overseen by the independent Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), which consists of three principal magistrates and six alternates appointed by the Supreme Court of Justice.

TSE reported that the election proceeded normally and without major incidents.

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