© 2025 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Ortega Is Likely Winner of Nicaraguan Vote

Supporters of presidential candidate Daniel Ortega celebrate in the streets of Managua.
Miguel Alvarez / AFP/Getty Images
/
AFP/Getty Images
Supporters of presidential candidate Daniel Ortega celebrate in the streets of Managua.

Daniel Ortega appears to be headed for victory in Nicaragua's presidential elections, as partial election results show the former revolutionary holding a substantial lead over his rivals.

With returns in from nearly 50 percent of polling stations, the Sandinista Party candidate has just over 40 percent of the vote. If Ortega maintains that gap, he would win outright.

Ortega has said he is not the Marxist revolutionary that he was when he led the country in the 1980s. In his campaign, Ortega has sought the favor of Nicaragua's business community. And his vice-presidential candidate is a former Contra rebel leader.

But Ortega's victory would mark another step in South America's leftward drift, a development that Nicaragua's neighbors -- and the United States -- have sought to influence.

Officials in the Bush administration have promised to cut off aid and limit trade with a Sandinista government.

And Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez has embraced Ortega, sending cheap fuel and fertilizer to Nicaragua, the poorest country in Latin America.

So, far, international election observers have raised no questions about the legitimacy of the vote.

Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Lulu Garcia-Navarro is the host of Weekend Edition Sunday and one of the hosts of NPR's morning news podcast Up First. She is infamous in the IT department of NPR for losing laptops to bullets, hurricanes, and bomb blasts.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

Related Content