According to initial information from exit polls after the end of election day in Uruguay's center-left opposition candidate Yamandu Orsi is leading his conservative rival Alvaro Delgado, but a second round is likely to be needed to determine a final winner, Reuters reported, citing BTA.
According to the exit poll of the agency "Cifra" Orsi received 44% of the vote, followed by Delgado of the governing coalition with 27%, and the young conservative Andres Ojeda received 16%.
Before the election, Ojeda pledged to support Delgado to prevent the left from returning to power if he were to be removed.
Sociologists had predicted that none of the presidential candidates was likely to receive more than 50% of the vote, meaning a runoff would take place on November 24.
Meanwhile, it became clear that according to information from the first exit polls, Uruguayans rejected the referendum on the reform of the country's pension system, which will dispel the fears of investors and politicians that the economy may suffer.
According to data from the local sociological agency "Cifra" 61% of those eligible to vote rejected the proposal to reform Uruguay's private pension system, to increase pensions and to reduce the retirement age by five years to 60. Thirty-nine percent of voters supported the referendum.