DESALINEAMIENTO ELECTORAL EN COSTA RICA

Abstract

The results of the last two general elections (1998 and 2002) in Costa Rica, suggest
that the country’s electoral dynamics have exited their apparent stability and entered a
process of electoral change. The present article evaluates the main signs of this change
(rising levels of absenteeism, ticket-splitting, electoral volatility, and support for third
parties), and defines it as an “electoral dealignment” process. Moreover, it argues that
there is evidence to conclude that “electoral dealignment” in Costa Rica seems to be a
result of a process of “partisan dealignment.”