MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Paraguay's opposition takes Asunción from the Colorado Party and holds Ciudad del Este

In Ciudad del Este, Daniel Pereira Mujica of the opposition Yo Creo party won with 72.83%, keeping the city in the hands of the party previously led locally by Miguel Prieto

Paraguay's opposition won the mayoralty of Asunción and held that of Ciudad del Este, the country's two most populous cities, in Sunday's municipal elections, according to preliminary results from the electoral authority. The ruling Colorado Party, however, won the vast majority of districts.

With 99.92% of polling stations counted, civil engineer Soledad Núñez of the Alianza Juntos por Asunción won 47.78% of the vote to 45.98% for Colorado candidate Camilo Pérez, president of the Paraguayan Olympic Committee, a margin of 5,024 votes. Núñez was backed by the Patria Querida and Authentic Radical Liberal parties. “Asunción voted, Asunción won. Today the people who don't give up, who resist, who can't be bought, won,” she said on election night.

In Ciudad del Este, Daniel Pereira Mujica of the opposition Yo Creo party won with 72.83%, keeping the city in the hands of the party previously led locally by Miguel Prieto. Prieto has expressed interest in running for president in 2028.

The Colorado Party, to which President Santiago Peña belongs, was winning in 187 of 263 districts and 11 of 17 departmental capitals, and regained the mayoralty of Encarnación. The figures from the preliminary results transmission system must be confirmed by the official count.

After the vote, Núñez said the opposition would file a complaint with prosecutors over the publication of exit polls during election day. A consultancy posted trends for several cities on social media an hour before polls closed, without naming candidates. The Electoral Code prohibits publishing such polls until an hour after closing. “This goes against electoral participation,” said Núñez, who argued the publication may have discouraged voters. Liberal senator Celeste Amarilla called the poll “illegal” and said she would file a complaint if no one else did. The consultancy was not publicly identified and did not comment. Turnout in Asunción was 61.75%, up from 59.65% in 2021.

Municipal elections serve as a political barometer ahead of the 2028 general election.