Uruguay election: Former history teacher Yamandú Orsi wins

A left-wing former history teacher, Yamandú Orsi, has won the presidential election in Uruguay.

Orsi beat Álvaro Delgado, the candidate for the governing conservative coalition, by more than three percentage points in Sunday’s run-off.

Delgado conceded defeat and congratulated Orsi and his Broad Front coalition, which will now return to power after five years of conservative rule.

The Broad Front governed Uruguay for 15 years from 2005 to 2020 before being beaten by outgoing President Luis Lacalle Pou – who under Uruguay’s constitution was barred from standing for a second consecutive term in this election.

Orsi, 57, is seen as a protege of former President José Mujica, who won the hearts of many in Uruguay through his modest lifestyle, prompting many to label him “the world’s poorest president”.

Orsi himself comes from a humble background, having grown up in rural Uruguay in a house without electricity.

While working as a school history teacher, he became active in local politics, eventually becoming mayor of Canelones, Uruguay’s second-most populous department.

During Orsi’s time at the helm in Canelones, tech giant Google announced it would build a huge data centre in the department.

Orsi struck a business-friendly note in his campaign, saying that he planned to avoid raising taxes that could scare off investors.

Addressing his supporters on Sunday evening, he stressed he wanted to be a president for all 3.4 million Uruguayans, saying he would “call for a national dialogue again and again” and that he would listen to those who had voted for his rival.

“I’m going to be the president who builds a more integrated country, where we set aside our differences and nobody is left behind, neither economically, socially or politically.”

Outgoing President Luis Lacalle Pou said he would work with Orsi to ensure a smooth transition ahead of the swearing-in of the new president on 1 March next year.

Orsi’s Broad Front also won a majority in the Uruguyan Senate, but his coalition did not clinch a majority in the Chamber of Representatives.

Uruguay’s election – which pitted two moderates against each other – has bucked the trend seen in other countries in the Western Hemisphere, such as Argentina, Brazil and the US, where deep divisions came to the fore.