Uruguay's Sunday election: Five key facts about a nation of liberal firsts, high costs and football glory

Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - Supporters of Uruguay's presidential candidate for the Republican Coalition, Alvaro Delgado, attend his campaign closing rally in Montevideo on November 20, 2024. Alvaro Delgado of outgoing President Luis Lacalle Pou's ruling coalition and Yamandu Orsi of the left-wing Frente Amplio party will go head-to-head in the November 24 election run-off. — AFP pic

Uruguay election: five things to know about the nation of liberal firsts, costly living, and football glory

Here are five things to know about the small Latin American country.

MONTEVIDEO, Nov 22 — Here are five things to know about the small Latin American country.

Progressive politics

Home to 3.4 million people and squeezed between regional giants Brazil and Argentina, Uruguay has long been a pioneer of liberal reforms.

In the early 20th century, it was the first country in the largely Catholic region to approve divorce, and one of the first to abolish the death penalty and introduce voting rights for women.

The leftist Broad Front alliance, ruling uninterrupted from 2005 to 2020, legalized abortion and same-sex marriage and made Uruguay the first country in the world to allow recreational cannabis use.

It was also the first Latin American nation to ban smoking in public spaces.

Rich, but expensive

According to the International Monetary Fund, Uruguay is Latin America’s second wealthiest country, behind Guyana, with a per-capita GDP of over $23,000.

It is also the most expensive, according to the Numbeo cost-of-living database.

Economists say a general VAT rate of 22 percent and duties of 25-35 percent on imports are partly to blame.

Products such as petrol face additional taxes.

After Barbados, Uruguay has the most expensive petrol in the Americas, according to the Global Petrol Prices database.

Renewables leader

Uruguay is a regional leader in the use of green energy, with over 90 percent of its electricity generated by renewables in 2022, according to the government.

Most of its electricity comes from hundreds of wind turbines installed across the country.

Uruguay met its targets on renewables despite increased use of fossil fuels in 2022, during a severe drought which affected its hydropower facilities.

Agriculture accounts for 75 percent of Uruguay’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Mate and meat mad

Much of Uruguayan social life revolves around the sharing of a traditional hot herbal infusion called mate, pronounced “mah-tay.”

Many Uruguayans carry with them a gourd containing mate leaves, a thermos of hot water and a metal “bombilla” straw, allowing them to sip the energy drink throughout the day.

First produced by the indigenous Guarani people, mate is also popular in Argentina, Paraguay and parts of Brazil.

Uruguay is cattle country: beef is its main export commodity and there are four cows for each human inhabitant—the highest number per capita in the world.

Uruguay also vies with neighbor Argentina for the position of top beef consumer per capita—at more than 40 kilograms per person per year.

Football mad

Uruguay won the Football World Cup twice, in 1930 and 1950.

Its two top goal scorers, Luis Suarez (of Atletico Madrid, Barcelona and Liverpool) and Edinson Cavani (of Paris Saint-Germain), ended their international careers in 2024. — AFP

Football mad -

Uruguay won the Football World Cup twice, in 1930 and 1950.

Its two top goal scorers, Luis Suarez (of Atletico Madrid, Barcelona and Liverpool) and Edinson Cavani (of Paris Saint-Germain), ended their international careers in 2024.