Former Minister of Labor and Social Security, Carlos Alvarado and – no relation – Evangelical singer, Fabricio Alvarado are tied in the race to be Costa Rica’s next president.
According to a poll released Tuesday, 41% plan to vote for Carlos, while 39% would vote for Fabricio, in the second round voting that will take place on Sunday, April 1.
The Universidad de Costa Rica (UCR) – University of Costa Rica – took in the response of 1,000 people interviewed by telephone between February 27 and 28. The poll has a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.
Fabricio’s lead appeared to have shrunk in the last few weeks, according to other polls. The 43-year-old head of the Partido Restauracion Nacional (PRN) came out front in the February 4 voting, his position denouncing the court ruling same-sex couple marriage days ahead of the election put him in the spotlight with voters. But not enough to obtain the required 40% of the popular vote.
Fabricio’s rise in popularity was helped by his fierce opposition to gay marriage and the decline in the country’s two-party system that governed for decades.
The UCR poll also showed that 20% of voters are still undecided.
