The Costa Rica News (TCRN) – Two of the major presidential candidates of Costa Rica, Johnny Araya, of the National Liberation Party (PLN), and Luis Guillermo Solis of the Citizen Action Party, have closed their massive campaign events a week before the elections of February 2.
On Sunday, the candidate of the ruling PLN party participated in an event called “Family Sunday” at Paseo Colón, one of the main avenues in San Jose, where concerts were performed, along with and artistic, sporting and recreational activities.
Hundreds of supporters of Araya, dressed in white and green flags and clothes, the colors of the PLN, attended the event to support their candidate while chanting his name.
The politician and former mayor of San Jose made a walk around the place and climbed a stage to greet fans and ensure a win for the elections in the first round, contrary to what most of the surveys report.
The candidate received support from fighter Bryan “Tiquito” Vazquez, who gave him a set of honorary boxing gloves.
Araya told reporters that this election is at a “crossroads” for the political deal has “other ways than extremist solutions that threaten to polarize society.”
“Really we want an adjustment to boost the development model for a more supportive country, to produce more, to circulate better,” he said.
Meanwhile, the candidate of the Citizen Action Party (PAC), Luis Guillermo Solís, conducted a walk through the city of Heredia with supporters and their pets as a way to support animal protection policies he proposed during his candidacy.
“We are growing, we will win. The time to change is now, because Costa Rica is not played out,” said Solis before a crowd of supporters during a rally in Heredia, about 15 miles north of San Jose.
Hundreds of supporters of the PAC participated in the activity with flags while dressed in the red and yellow colors of the flag of the center-left party.
The candidate for the PAC said it has “the best team” to rule based on “combating poverty and inequality, and the struggle for transparency to place ethics at the heart of politics.”
In addition, he promised to “rebuild social security” and “fight and defeat corruption and impunity.”
With these events Solis and Araya closed their massive campaign activities, as did the leftist Broad Front candidate, José María Villalta, a favorite in the polls.
Villalta attended a cultural festival in Central Park of San Jose, where at the end he gave a speech in which he called for voters to not give him a third consecutive term to PLN.
Tonight at 19:00 local time (0100 GMT Tuesday), the last debate between the presidential candidates, organized by Channel 6 local television will be aired.
For the elections of February 2, nearly 3.1 million citizens are called to the polls to elect the president and 57 members of the Legislative Assembly for the period 2014-2018.
Surveys show Araya is one of the favorites to win, then Villalta, followed by Otto Guevara of the Libertarian Movement and Luis Guillermo Solís, but none reaches 40% of support needed to succeed in the first round.
In total in Costa Rica there are 13 presidential candidates participating in the elections. (ACAN-EFE)
The Costa Rica News (TCRN)
San Jose Costa Rica