Right-wing populist Laura Fernández won Costa Rica’s presidential election in a landslide on Sunday after running a campaign centered on aggressive security policies modeled on El Salvador President Nayib Bukele’s hard-line approach to crime, including a proposed mega-prison similar to the CECOT facility used to detain tens of thousands of suspected gang members, according to Reuters.

With nearly all ballots counted, Fernández’s Sovereign People’s Party secured about 48% of the vote, far ahead of her closest rival from the National Liberation Party, based on preliminary results released by Costa Rica’s Supreme Electoral Tribunal.

Right-wing populist Laura Fernandez won a commanding victory in Costa Rica's general elections, while her ruling party is set to gain a majority in Congress https://t.co/rgNjbzFPW9 pic.twitter.com/IbyqPPq1OT

— Reuters (@Reuters) February 2, 2026

Rising drug-linked violence dominated the campaign after Costa Rica recorded its highest homicide rate on record last year, driven largely by cocaine trafficking routes passing through the country, according to InSight Crime. Analysts say voter anxiety over security reshaped the election and weakened traditional parties.

Fernández has openly praised Bukele’s security strategy and said Costa Rica must adopt similarly forceful measures to restore order. She has promised to declare states of emergency in high-crime districts, expand police powers and complete construction of a high-security penitentiary modeled after El Salvador’s CECOT mega-prison, where thousands of suspected gang members have been transferred under Bukele’s crackdown, according to Reuters. The proposal became a centerpiece of her campaign as security eclipsed economic issues, according to The Tico Times.

El Salvador's government moved thousands of suspected gang members to a newly opened ‘mega prison,’ the latest step in a controversial crackdown on crime that has caused the Central American nation's prison population to soar https://t.co/IUL4xjinr5 pic.twitter.com/c7pYyNASBR

— Reuters (@Reuters) February 25, 2023

Bukele congratulated Fernández on her victory on Monday, calling her the president-elect and wishing her success, writing on social media. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also said Washington looked forward to working closely with her incoming administration.

(Translation) “I have just congratulated by phone the President-elect of Costa Rica, Laura Fernández.

I wish her the greatest success in her Government and all the best for the dear brotherly people of Costa Rica.”

Acabo de felicitar vía telefónica a la Presidenta electa de Costa Rica, Laura Fernández.

Le deseo el mayor de los éxitos en su Gobierno y todo lo mejor para el querido pueblo hermano de Costa Rica.

— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) February 2, 2026

Congratulations to President-Elect @laurapresi2026 and the people of Costa Rica. The U.S. looks forward to working with her administration to advance prosperity and security in our hemisphere.

— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) February 2, 2026

Fernández, 39, rose to prominence under outgoing President Rodrigo Chaves, serving first as planning minister and later as his chief of staff. Lawmaker Pilar Cisneros, a key Chaves ally, said Fernández was selected by a small circle close to the president to carry forward his political project.

Opposition candidates accused Fernández during the campaign of being a proxy for Chaves and questioned whether she would govern independently. In her first news conference after the vote, Fernández said her cabinet would remain open to Chaves’ allies while insisting she would be the one in charge.

Speaking to supporters after declaring victory in San Jose, Fernández promised a sharp political break with Costa Rica’s post-1948 political order. “Change will be deep and irreversible,” she said. “It is time to build a third republic.”

Her victory adds Costa Rica to a broader regional shift toward right-wing and hardline security-oriented leaders, including El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele, as crime and migration reshape politics across Central America and weaken traditional parties, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

Fernández will become Costa Rica’s second female president when she takes office in May.