Elections in Paraguay

On the 30th of April, Paraguay held its 2023 General Election, selecting a new President and representatives of its Chamber of Deputies, Senate and other levels of government in a single round of voting. This election marked the eighth time Paraguayans have gone to the polls since the fall of the 35-year dictatorship of General Alfredo Stroessner in 1989. Since one-party rule in the 1950s, Paraguay's ruling Colorado Party has dominated government in Asunción for eight decades without interruption, except for Fernando Lugo's truncated presidency (2008-2012) that ended in impeachment.

In the vote, which came down to a contest between former Finance Minister, Santiago Peña, candidate for the ruling Colorado Party and former Public Works Minister, Efrain Alegre, the candidate for the Concertación coalition and president of the Partido Liberal Radical Auténtico (PLRA), Peña emerged victorious with 42% of ballots, to Alegre's 28%. Mario Abdo Benítez, Paraguay's incumbent president, was ineligible from seeking re-election after his single five-year term.

At a moment of political polarisation in the country, Paraguay’s institutions and electoral process were under the spotlight as the election approached. Also at stake were Paraguay’s long diplomatic ties with Taiwan, the renegotiation of the Itaipú Binacional hydroelectric dam, as well as the fight on crime and drugs, social welfare programmes, employment and judicial reforms, and other issues.

Join Canning House for this seminar discussing the election's outcomes and significance for Paraguay.

SPEAKERS

Chair: Jeremy Browne

CEO - Canning House

Andrew Nickson

Honorary Reader in Public Management and Latin American Studies - University of Birmingham

Daniel Zovatto

Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean - International IDEA

Marie Claire Burt

Directora - Colmena and PhD candidate - University of Sussex

Julieta Heduvan

Universidad de Salamanca, Paraguayan foreign policy analyst and author of Paraguay, Política Exterior e Integración Regional. Un recorrido hacia la contemporaneidad

Questions?

Please contact us with any questions about this event.