MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Uruguay ex-guerrilla leader nominated presidential candidate

Senator Jose Mujica

Uruguay's former guerrilla leader and currently Senator Jose Mujica was chosen by an overwhelming majority as the ruling coalition's presidential candidate for next year's elections, but he will first have to face another challenge from other hopefuls in June.

Although in the Broad Front coalition congress held over the weekend Mr. Mujica with the support of his group MPPS and Communists allies managed 71% of the congress delegates' votes, opinion polls suggest that among the file and rank of the coalition his standing is almost equalled by that of Senator Danilo Astori (former Economy minister) in the range of 40%. The congress delegates have proved to be more radical than the rest of the coalition since the program draft wants an end to the commercial opening of President Tabare Vazquez administration (and ex minister Astori) policies and prefers a closer alignment with the governments of Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador and Argentina. The program also advocates a greater role in the economy for the government in detriment of the private sector. Mujica's runner up in the coalition's congress was a last minute entry, Marcos Carambula, mayor of the second most important county of the country with 42%, while the other strong hopeful Astori merely managed 23% support. However the moderates in the congress managed to introduce a clause saying that "all those who wish to participate in the primaries can do so in equal and fair conditions". It was also decided that the presidential ticket will be completed in June, after the primary, and later on a national plenary would make the official proclamation for October 2009. Once nominated Senator Mujica addressed the congress calling for unity, reconciliation and thanked all the delegates who had turned up. "Unity is not an objective by itself but a powerful instrument", said Mujica. "We all need to embrace because we are all companions and it's the people that are going to vote and decide". Finally he again thanked the support but recalled that as "a republican nobody is above nobody, without the support from all of us, it's not possible. And that is why united, united we must stand if we are to win".