The exit polls of the first round of the presidential vote in Uruguay have given the lead to the leftist candidate Yamandu Orsi.

Presidential elections in Uruguay will see a leftist history teacher and a center-right veterinarian face off next month in a probable second round, according to projections based on exit polls.

Yamandu Orsi of iconic ex-president Jose Mujica’s Frente Amplio and Alvaro Delgado of the ruling center-right coalition would compete to win in the November 24 election run-off, the projections showed.

What do the exit polls suggest?
Early exit polls suggested that 57-year-old Orsi is ahead of his conservative rival Delgado. Orsi bagged 44% of the vote whereas Delgado secured 27%, according to the exit polls conducted by polling firm Cifra.

Ahead of the first round of elections held on Sunday, polling firms had indicated that no presidential candidate would be able to get more than 50% of the vote.

In Uruguay, a second round of elections is held when no candidate wins a clear majority of over the 50% threshold.

Orsi and Delgado beat off nine other candidates competing to replace Lacalle Pou, who has a 50% approval rating but is barred from seeking a second five-year term due to a constitutional ban on consecutive re-election.

The electoral body in Uruguay is expected to release final results in the early hours of Monday.

Uruguay would see a leftist government after five years of conservative rule if Orsi secures a win in the run-off elections.

Credit: DW News