The top two presidential candidates in Uruguay will participate in a run-off election as neither of them received over 50 per cent of the votes as required by Uruguayan electoral law.

Daniel Martinez from the ruling Broad Front received 38.6% of the votes while Luis Lacalle Pou of the centre-right National Party received a meagre 28.2%, according to preliminary results published by the country’s Electoral Court.

How the Uruguay Election works

In Uruguay, the President is elected using the two-round system where a run-off is held for the two most preferred candidates if none of the candidates receives up to 50% of the vote in the first round.

The 30 members of the Senate and 99 members of the Chamber of Representatives are elected/re-elected by proportional representation and the president and the vice-president are elected on one ballot for a five-year term by the people.

The vice president, who is the running mate of the president, becomes the leader (president) of the Senate, with his vote being the determining one in case of a tie. The elections are held using the double simultaneous vote method, where voters cast a single vote for the party of their choice for all three positions i.e. the Presidency, the Senate and the Chamber of Representatives.

Meet the Contenders

• Incumbent president, Tabare Vazquez who won the 2014 elections, has constitutionally expended his terms and was not able to contest in the first round of elections. The Broad Front nominated Daniel Martínez former Montevideo Mayor who has scored 38.6% of votes as its candidate. His campaign has been focused on reducing and tackling crime with a promise of providing more surveillance cameras and community policing to tackle crime
• Conservative Congress member, Luis Lacalle Pou, who represents the National Party received 28.2% of votes in this election and has focused his campaign on tackling the high costs of, living in Uruguay. The 46-year-old is the son of former Uruguayan President Luis Alberto Lacalle Herrera, who governed from 1990 to 1995.

Both contenders are heading to a run-off in November and will spend the next weeks trying to gain the support of those voters who cast their ballots for candidates who are not going to the second round.

Ernesto Talvi of the Colorado party who received 13 per cent of the vote and Guido Manini Rios of the new right-wing party Open Cabildo, who won 10 per cent, both said they would support Lacalle Pou in the second round. 

The Broad Front may face a tough challenge holding on to power as more parties may galvanize support for Luis.

Summarily, voters also angered by the state of the economy and the rate of crime which has increased due to unemployment.