At stake in this election:

• The Presidency of Costa Rica, as well as the 1^st and 2^nd Vice President positions[i]*

*Note: this election is a run-off election that follows the primary election held on February 6^th, 2022. More information about that election can be found here.

Description of government structure[ii]:

• Chief of State: President Carlos ALVARADO Quesada (since 8 May 2018)*
• Assembly: The unicameral Legislative Assembly (Asamblea Legislativa).

*Note: The President is both the chief of state and head of government. There is also a First Vice President and Second Vice President elected on the same ballot as the president.

Description of electoral system[iii]:

• The president and vice presidents are directly on the same ballot by modified majority popular vote (40% threshold) for a 4-year term.
• The Legislative Assembly has 57 seats and is directly elected in multi-seat constituencies corresponding to the country’s 7 provinces. Members serve 4-year terms.

Last Election[iv]:

• The last presidential election was a primary held on February 6^th, 2022. Jose Maria Figueres won 27.26% of the vote and Rodrigo Chavez Robles won 16.70% of the vote,

Main Candidates in this election*:

• National Liberation Party (PLN) / Partido Liberación Nacional
  • President: Jose Maria FIGUERES
  • First Vice President: Alvaro Ramirez BOGANTES
  • Second Vice President: Laura Arguedas MEJIA
• Social Democratic Progress Party (PPSD) / Partido Progreso Social Democrático
  • President: Rodrigo Chaves ROBLES
  • First Vice President: Stephan Brunner NEIBIG
  • Second Vice President: Mary Munive ANGERMULLER

Population and number of registered voters:

• Population: 5,151,140 (July 2021 est.)[v]
• Registered Voters: 3,322,329 (2018 est.)[vi]

Gender Data:

• Female Population: Not available
• Is Costa Rica a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (signed 17 July 1980)[vii]
• Has Costa Rica ratified CEDAW: Yes (ratified 4 April 1986)[viii]
• Gender Quota: Yes, both legislated and voluntary quotas. (Costa Rican election law requires that ‘all delegations, electoral lists and other entities’ must be composed of 50% of each gender.)[ix]
• Female candidates in this election: No
• Number of female legislators: 26 out of 57[x]
• Human Development Index Position: 0.810 (ranked 62)[xi]
• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: Low (28%)[xii]

Disability Data:

• Is Costa Rica a signatory to CRPD: Yes (signed 30 March 2007)[xiii]
• Has Costa Rica ratified CRPD: Yes (ratified 1 October 2008)[xiv]
• Population with a disability: 722,122 (2022 est.)[xv]