At Stake in this Election:  

• The Costa Rican Presidency.

• Elections for the Legislative Assembly are occurring concurrently.  

Government Structure: 

• Chief of State: President Rodrigo CHAVES ROBLES (since 08 May 2022) 

• Head of Government: President Rodrigo CHAVES ROBLES (since 08 May 2022) 

• Assembly: unicameral Legislative Assembly (Asamblea Legislativa) with 57 seats  

Electoral System: 

• The President is elected via plurality vote in up to two rounds. If no candidate receives over 40% in the first round, a second round is held. They are elected to serve a 4-year term. While previous Presidents can stand for reelection, they may not do so within 8 years of holding the position.  

• All 57 members of the Legislative Assembly are elected via proportional representation in multimember districts. All members are elected to a non-consecutively renewable 4-year term.  

Last Election: 

In the last election in 2022, Rodrigo CHAVES ROBLES won in the second round with 52.84% of the vote. Voter turnout was 55%.  

Key Deadlines: 

• Candidate filing deadline: 17 Oct 2025 

• Voter registration deadline: 30 Sept 2025 

Main Candidates in this Election: 

• Alvaro Roberto Ramos CHAVES 

• • Party: National Liberation Party 

• Luz Mary Alpizar LOAIZA 

• • Party: Social Democratic Progress Party 

• Juan Carlos Hidalgo BOGANTES 

• • Party: Social Christian Unity Party 

• Gerardo Fabricio Alvarado MUÑOZ 

• • Party: New Republic Party 

• Eliecer Feinzaig MINTZ 

• • Party: Liberal Progressive Party 

• Andres Ariel Robles BARRANTES 

• • Party: Broad Front 

Note: 20 candidates have registered for this election. Those listed here belong to parties which won seats in the last Legislative Assembly election.  

Country Context: 

• Population: 5,129,910 (2024 est.) 

• Registered Voters: 3,731,788 (2026) 

• V-Dem Electoral Democracy Index Score: 0.86 (2025) 

• V-Dem Regimes of the World Classification: Liberal Democracy (2025) 

• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 0.833, Very High, Rank 62 (2023) 

Gender Data: 

• Female Population: 2,595,182 (2024 est.) 

• CEDAW Status: Signed 17 Jul 1980, Ratified 4 Apr 1986 

• Gender Quota:  Yes, party lists must be evenly split between men and women.  

• Female Candidates in this election: Yes 

• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 28 out of 57 (49.1%) in the Legislative Assembly 

• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: 10.9 (2023) 

Disability Data: 

• CRPD Status: Signed 30 Mar 2007, Ratified 1 Oct 2008 

• Projected population with a disability: 820,786 (2024 est.) 

IFES Resources: 

• ElectionJudgments: Yes, 1 judgement