CAFTA holdout Costa Rica votes Sunday
Voters in Costa Rica, the only signatory to the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement with the United States that has yet to ratify the agreement, will go to the polls Sunday to decide if they want to participate in the pact.
There has been a contentious debate over CAFTA for the last four years in Costa Rica, with the country's legislature deadlocked over endorsement. Costa Rican President Oscar Arias decided in April to call a referendum election to decide the issue.
Although there was widespread support for CAFTA in Costa Rica as recently as last spring, there has been a surging campaign against the agreement. A crowd estimated at 100,000 turned out in the capital of San Jose last week, and a survey by the newspaper La Nacion, a major daily in San Jose, projects voters would defeat CAFTA by more than 10 percentage points. According to a report in the Miami Herald, the pro-CAFTA movement had a lead of as much as 20 points just two weeks ago, so the outcome is considered to be up in the air.
Arias has pushed hard for approval of CAFTA, and a defeat would be seen as a serious blow to his administration, which will be in power for another year and a half.
If voters do approve CAFTA, the legislature would have to pass implementing legislation by February.