Former Uruguayan President Pepe Mujica Elected Senator

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Former Uruguayan President José Mujica, better known as Pepe Mujica, was elected senator. He had resigned from his position in the Senate last year when he argued that he “was tired of the long journey” and would leave “before he died of old age”.

On Sunday’s general elections in Uruguay, October 27th, citizens voted for president and vice president, deputies, and senators.

When Mujica decided to return to politics, he decided to run as a candidate of the Movimiento de Participación Popular (MPP), which is part of the Frente Ampla left-wing coalition. The party will run for president in a second round, with candidate Daniel Martinez at the helm.

After voting, Mujica said he must return to the streets to campaign for Martínez in the runoff election. The coalition joined by Mujica and Martínez has been in power for 15 years.

Daniel Martínez will face right-wing National Party candidate Luis Lacalle Pou. In the first round, Martínez won 38.6 percent of the vote, while Lacalle Pou won 28.2 percent.

Ernesto Talvi (Colorado Party) and Guido Maníni Ríos (Cabildo Abierto Party), the candidates who finished third and fourth in the polls, received 12.1 percent and 10.7 percent of the votes, respectively. Both announced that they would support Lacalle Pou in the second round.

Congress

Uruguay has 19 departments. Sunday’s vote evidenced the polarization in the country. The Frente Ampla (Broad Front), a left-wing coalition, won the majority in 9 departments, while the National Party, a right-wing party, also won in 9. The Colorado Party won the majority in one department.

With this split, no party will get a parliamentary majority in the next government and they will be forced to negotiate the approval of laws. All 30 seats in the Senate, and 99 in the Chamber of Deputies, were contested this past Sunday.

The Frente Ampla elected 13 senators and 41 deputies. The National Party elected 10 senators and 31 deputies. The Colorado Party won four seats in the Senate and 13 in the Chamber. The Cabildo Abierto party, founded this year, won three seats in the Senate and 11 in the Chamber of Deputies. The Partido Independiente (Independent Party) and the Partido de la Gente (People’s Party) each won one seat in the Chamber.

Source: Carta Capital