Laura Fernández, a 39-year-old political scientist and right-wing populist [7], will be Costa Rica's next president. Fernández secured nearly 50% [8] of the vote in last week's election, becoming the first candidate in more than [9] a decade to clear the threshold needed to win outright in the first round. She did so by promising to respond forcefully to the country's exaggerated [10] yet real insecurity crisis [11] linked to the drug trade [12]—the overwhelming concern [13] for most voters. On the campaign trail, Fernández drew openly [14] from the playbook of Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, whose brutal anti-gang crackdown [15] has inspired [16] conservatives across the region [17]. She called for a "state of exception [18]" to combat crime, promised to complete the construction [19] of a massive Bukele-inspired [20] prison, and spoke with [21] Bukele before any other foreign leader after her win. Her party, the ruling Sovereign People's Party, won a majority [23]of congressional seats but fell short of [24] the supermajority necessary to guarantee the constitutional or judicial reforms she promised [25] on the campaign trail [26]. (NACLA Update [27])
