Tabare Vazquez easily won Uruguay’s presidential election Sunday after campaigning to support implementation of a plan to establish a government-run marijuana marketplace. This will be the second presidential term for Vazquez, 74. He previously was president from 2005 until 2010. He is a member of a leftist party currently running the government.
Sunday’s was a runoff election between Vazquez and Lacalle Pon, who represented a center-right coalition. Vazquez prevailed with 53 percent of the vote to Pon’s 40 percent. Pon had called for overturning the implementation plan for establishing the marketplace, which remains a controversial issue among many citizens.
While the victory by Vazquez assures the plan will proceed, there is still much uncertainty about how the plan will be put in place.