On January 8, 2010 (November 24, 2009 in the lunar calendar), Costa Rica elected the first female president in history. On January 8, 2010, the Supreme Electoral Court of Costa Rica announced the results of the majority of votes in the presidential election on the evening of the 7th local time (the morning of the 8th Beijing time). Laura Chinchilla, the presidential candidate of the ruling National Liberation Party, defeated her opponent overwhelmingly and will become the first female president in Costa Rica's history. On February 7, Laura Chinchilla delivered a speech after her election victory. On February 7, Laura Chinchilla (center) greeted her supporters after winning. Chinchilla announced that he had won the presidential election that night and vowed to fulfill his campaign promise. Her two main rivals had previously admitted defeat and congratulated Chinchilla on his election as president. The advantage is obvious. The Supreme Electoral Court of Costa Rica announced the results of 84% of the votes that night. Chinchilla won 47% of the votes. The main opponent, Civic Action Party presidential candidate Orton Solis, won 25% of the votes. The Liberal Movement Party presidential candidate Otto Guevara won 21% of the votes. According to Costa Rica's electoral law, presidential candidates will be elected president if they have a vote rate of more than 40% in the first round of elections. Chinchilla won the election with almost no doubt and will become the first female president in Costa Rica's history. Costa Rica became the fifth Latin American country to have a female president after Nicaragua, Panama, Chile and Argentina. Chinchilla held a celebration with supporters in the capital San Jose that night and announced her victory in the presidential election. She said at the celebration: "Today we made history. For me, this is obviously a happy moment, but a humbling moment... I will not betray your trust." Many voters supporting Chinchilla were extremely excited. Alfredo, 77, said he has always been a staunch supporter of the National Liberation Party, but this vote was unusual because "it is an honor for a woman to be elected president." Hazel Arias, a 24-year-old single mother who is serving a sentence in prison, said: "I voted for Laura Chinchilla because of her commitment to fight for women. She is the only one who has visited us (candidate) and told us about her policy plans, and I believe her. Chinchilla's two main opponents, Solis and Guevara, declared the election defeat earlier in the day. "We accept this reality with full respect," Solis told his supporters. Guevara congratulated Chinchilla and called her "our president." Governance philosophy Chinchilla was once the deputy of current President Oscar Arias and is regarded as the latter's favorite student. Political analysts say she will inherit the mantle of Alias when she takes office and will not change much in policy. Chinchilla will continue to promote free trade and economic development, sign free trade agreements with more trading partners, support the government in appropriately "letting go" in key areas such as electricity and communications, and accelerate the pace of investment promotion. When Chinchilla ran for president, he promised to create more job opportunities, increase scholarships to students from poor families, and improve the living conditions of children and the elderly. Chinchilla advocates increasing investment in education and plans to increase education expenditure to 8% of GDP. She also promised to increase funding to law enforcement agencies and establish an anti-drug surveillance agency to curb the increasingly rampant criminal activities of drug smuggling. Political analysts believe that the National Liberation Party may not be able to win a parliamentary majority in the election and Chinchilla's reform proposals may be blocked in the future. Chinchilla is 50 years old and was born in a political family in San Jose. He went to the United States to study for several years in his early years. Since 1990, Chinchilla has served as an adviser to several international organizations in Latin America and Africa, and has participated in reform projects of international institutions such as the United Nations and the Inter-American Development Bank. Chinchilla became Costa Rica's first female Minister of Public Security in 1996. In 2002, she was elected to the Legislative Assembly (Parliament) of the National Liberation Party and became Vice President of Costa Rica in 2006. Chinchilla resigned as vice president in November 2008 and ran for the presidential candidate of the National Liberation Party. He won with a high vote, allowing him to represent this party in the 2010 Colombian presidential election. Costa Rica is located in southern Central America, bordering the Caribbean Sea to the east, the Pacific Ocean to the west, Nicaragua to the north, and Panama to the southeast. It covers an area of approximately 51,100 square kilometers and is divided into 7 provinces. Costa Rica is one of the richest countries in Central America, with developed tourism and high per capita income and education levels.