Car horns tooted, flags waved and drums beat into the early hours of yesterday morning in Montevideo as tens of thousands of Uruguayans took to the streets to celebrate the historic victory of Dr Tabare Vazquez in the first round of presidential elections.
Dr Vazquez (59), candidate for the left-wing Frente Amplio, or Broad Front coalition, won 38.5 per cent of votes, a figure which rose to 50.1 per cent in the capital, while his party became the largest force in parliament, winning 40 out of 96 seats.
Mr Jorge Battle, candidate for the ruling centre-right Colorado Party, won 31.3 per cent of votes, earning him the right to compete in a second round run-off on November 28th. Dr Vazquez and Mr Battle must now court the supporters of the third-place National Party, who won 21.3 per cent of votes, a margin which will be decisive in the second round.
"No one can govern now without taking us into account," said Dr Vazquez, as he climbed onto an improvised stage in the Artigas Boulevard, to address his jubilant supporters on election night.
"The choice is no longer between party colours but between those who want change and those who wish to continue with failed policies," he said.
Second-placed Mr Battle, whose Colorado Party enjoyed a slight increase in its total vote, was optimistic about the run-off, calling on "sensible" Uruguayans to vote for stability. Mr Battle, a 58-year-old lawyer who has unsuccessfully stood four times for the presidency, comes from one of the most distinguished Uruguayan families, with three presidents in the past three generations.
"I call on all Uruguayans to wrap themselves in the national flag," said Mr Battle, addressing a thousand supporters at his party HQ. The third-placed National Party lost almost 10 per cent of voters to the Broad Front in these elections, a sign that the second round will be an extremely close contest.
Dr Vazquez and other party leaders will visit Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina and Chile next week, while a delegation will also travel to the EU and meet representatives of international financial institutions, to highlight their commitment to economic stability. "We propose a progressive government, not a socialist government," Dr Vazquez said at a press conference yesterday morning.
The Colorado Party has accused the Broad Front of being a "Marxist-Leninist beachhead" which "generates divisions" within the country. Outside the Colorado Party HQ the atmosphere was subdued on election night. Ms Antonia Herrera, an Uruguayan pensioner living in Argentina, explained why she had taken trouble to travel home to vote. "They [Broad Front] want another Cuba here," she said, sounding genuinely worried.
Uruguay's television and radio stations have highlighted the presence of former Tupamaro guerrillas in the Broad Front, claiming that once they take power they will instal a Stalinist regime. The Broad Front message received scarce media coverage, particularly in rural areas, where the traditional Colorado and National parties enjoy control over local media.
The Tupamaro guerrillas were a popular urban guerrilla force, fictionalised in the political thriller State of Siege, directed by Constantin Costa Gavras. The former guerrillas doubled their vote in these parliamentary elections, with former political prisoners winning seats in the senate and congress.
Dr Vazquez's own brother, now one of his closest advisers, was an anarchist guerrilla who spent years in prison. Uruguay suffered a military dictatorship from 1973 to 1985, in which this small country (population 3.2 million) at one stage had the unenviable record of the highest per capita prison population in the world.
Uruguay had previously enjoyed the reputation of being the "Switzerland" of Latin America, and since 1985 has again become one of the most prosperous and stable countries in the region. It is a founder member of the Mercosur common market, which also includes Brazil, Argentina (which had a similar shift to the left in last week's elections) and Paraguay.