World
Yamandu Orsi wins Uruguay’s run-off presidential election
Yamandu Orsi, the candidate for the left-wing Broad Front coalition, is projected to emerge victorious in Uruguay’s run-off election for the presidency.
He bested Alvaro Delgado of the ruling National Party to win the tightly fought race, though public opinion polls showed the two candidates in a dead heat in the lead-up to Sunday’s vote.
Orsi’s supporters took to the streets in the capital of Montevideo, as the official results started to show the former mayor and history teacher surging ahead.
Many waved the party banner: a red, blue and white striped flag with the initials FA for “Frente Amplio”, which translates to “Broad Front”.
“Joy will return for the majority,” the coalition posted on social media as Orsi approached victory. “Cheers, people of Uruguay.”
Orsi’s win restores the Broad Front to power in the small South American country, sandwiched on the Atlantic coast between Brazil and Argentina.
For 15 years, from 2005 to 2020, the Broad Front had held Uruguay’s executive office, with the presidencies of Jose Mujica and Tabare Vazquez, the latter of whom won two non-consecutive, five-year terms.
But that winning streak came to an end in the 2019 election, with the victory of current President Luis Lacalle Pou, who led a coalition of right-leaning parties.
Under Uruguay law, however, a president cannot run for consecutive terms. Lacalle Pou was therefore not a candidate in the 2024 race.
Running in his stead was Delgado, a former veterinarian and Congress member who served as a political appointee in Lacalle Pou’s government from 2020 to 2023.
Even before the official results were announced on Sunday, Delgado had conceded, acknowledging Orsi’s victory was imminent.
“Today, the Uruguayans have defined who will hold the presidency of the republic. And I want to send here, with all these actors of the coalition, a big hug and a greeting to Yamandu Orsi,” Delgado said in a speech as he clutched a large Uruguayan flag in his hand.
He called on his supporters to “respect the sovereign decisions” of the electorate, while striking a note of defiance.
“It’s one thing to lose an election, and another to be defeated. We are not defeated,” he said, pledging that his right-wing coalition was “here to stay”.
The outgoing president, Lacalle Pou, also reached out to Orsi to acknowledge the Broad Front’s victory.
“I called [Yamandu Orsi] to congratulate him as president-elect of our country and to put myself at his service and begin the transition as soon as I deem it pertinent,” Lacalle Pou wrote on social media.
Orsi had been considered the frontrunner in the lead-up to the first round of the elections.
Originally from Canelones, a coastal regional in the south of Uruguay, Orsi began his career locally as a history teacher, activist and secretary-general of the department’s government. In 2015, he successfully ran to be mayor of Canelones and won re-election in 2020.
In the 2024 presidential race, Orsi – like virtually all the candidates on the campaign trail – pledged to bolster Uruguay’s economy. He called for salary increases, particularly for low-wage workers, to grow their “purchasing power”.
He also called for greater early childhood education and employment programmes for young adults. According to a United Nations report earlier this year, nearly 25 percent of Uruguay’s children live in poverty.
But the economy was not the only issue at the forefront of voters’ minds. In a June survey from the communications firm Nomade, the largest share of respondents – 29 percent – identified “insecurity” as Uruguay’s “principal problem”.
That dwarfed the second-highest ranked topic: “Unemployment” was only picked by 15 percent of respondents.
As part of his platform, Orsi pledged to increase the police force and strengthen Uruguay’s borders, including through the installation of more security cameras.
As he campaigned, Orsi enjoyed the support of former President Mujica, a former rebel fighter who survived torture under Uruguay’s military dictatorship in the 1970s and ’80s.
Mujica remains a popular figure on Uruguay’s left, best known for his humble living arrangements that once earned him the moniker of the “world’s poorest president”.
In the first round of voting, on October 27, Orsi came out on top, with 44 percent of the vote to Delgado’s 27 percent. But his total was far short of the 50 percent he needed to win the election outright, thereby triggering a run-off.
The race got tighter from there forward. Only two candidates progressed to the run-off – Delgado and Orsi – and Delgado picked up support from voters who had backed former Colorado Party candidate Andres Ojeda, a fellow conservative who was knocked out in the first round.
Nevertheless, Orsi quickly pulled ahead after the polls closed for the run-off election on Sunday.
“The horizon is brightening,” Orsi said in his victory speech. “The country of freedom, equality and also fraternity triumphs once again.”
UPDATE, 12/25, 4:30 p.m. PT: Netflix said it will provide on-demand access to the full halftime performance of “Beyoncé Bowl” as a stand-alone special “later this week.” The 20-minute spectacle — her first live TV performance in four years — featured Post Malone, Shaboozey and her daughter Blue Ivy Carter to debut tracks from “Cowboy Carter” for the first time in a live setting.
EARLIER:
Beyoncé will light up the Houston night on Christmas with a halftime performance during the Ravens-Texans game on Netflix. To watch it, you’ll have to tune in live on Dec. 25 — otherwise, you’ll have only a few hours to catch the replay on Netflix.
Queen Bey’s Xmas performance will feature her first live performances of songs from “Cowboy Carter.” She’ll take the stage in her hometown during halftime of the Baltimore Ravens-Houston Texans matchup at NRG Stadium in Houston.
Netflix, as part of its accelerating push into live sports, snagged global rights to the NFL’s two Christmas Day 2024 games: the Kansas City Chiefs at the Pittsburgh Steelers (starting at 1 p.m. ET), followed by the Ravens-Texans game (4:30 p.m. ET).
Under Netflix’s agreement with the NFL, in the U.S., the two Christmas games expire three hours after the livestream ends (meaning Beyoncé’s performance and the Ravens-Texans game will no longer be available to rewatch on Netflix as of around 11 p.m. ET). Outside the U.S., the games expire on Netflix 24 hours after the livestream ends. The NFL livestreams will include ad breaks, even for Netflix subscribers on no-ads plans.
Few details are available for Beyoncé’s Christmas halftime show, but according to Netflix she is expected to bring along some “special guests” who are featured on “Cowboy Carter.” She’s a veteran of two Super Bowls: Beyoncé was the halftime performer for the 2013 game in New Orleans, which featured a Destiny’s Child reunion; and in 2016, she sang “Formation” when Coldplay was the headliner act.
On Christmas Day, Netflix’s pregame coverage will kick off at 11 a.m. ET, from NFL Network’s studios in L.A. and Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh. The streamer has tapped Mariah Carey to deliver a recorded performance of her record-breaking holiday hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You” before both of the day’s two games.
If you missed the window for Netflix’s NFL livestreams, you still have the chance to catch the reruns. As it stands right now, NFL Network is scheduled to re-air Ravens-Texans on Wednesday, Dec. 25, at 11:30 p.m. ET and Thursday, Dec. 26, at 5 a.m. ET. The channel will re-air Chiefs-Steelers on Dec. 25 at 8:30 p.m. ET and Dec. 26 at 2 a.m. ET. There is the possibility for additional re-airs but portions of the NFL Network’s programming schedule are still being determined. In addition, replays of both games will be available with NFL+ Premium ($14.99/month) in the U.S. and via DAZN internationally.
Note also that the two Netflix Christmas Day games will air on broadcast TV in the competing teams’ local markets and will be available live on U.S. mobile devices with an NFL+ subscription.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy excoriated Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday for launching attacks against energy infrastructure on Christmas Day.
Zelenskyy suggested the attacks were “inhumane,” but said they would not ruin Christmas.
“Today, Putin deliberately chose Christmas for an attack. What could be more inhumane? Over 70 missiles, including ballistic ones, and more than a hundred attack drones. The targets are our energy infrastructure. They continue to fight for a blackout in Ukraine,” he declared in a post on X.
The Russian Defence Ministry acknowledged a “massive strike” on its part, saying it hit energy facilities that supported Ukraine’s “military-industrial complex,” Reuters reported.
“The aim of the strike was achieved. All facilities have been hit,” the ministry said.
RUSSIA BATTERS UKRAINE POWER GRID AMID RISING CONCERN PUTIN COULD ORDER BALLISTIC MISSILE ATTACK THIS WEEKEND
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy talks with the media during the European Council Meeting in Brussels on Thursday. (Pier Marco Tacca/Getty Images)
Strikes against Ukrainian fuel and energy sources involved 78 air, ground and sea-launched missiles, in addition to 106 Shaheds and other kinds of drones, Ukraine’s air force claimed, according to The Associated Press.
“Unfortunately, there have been hits. As of now, there are power outages in several regions. Power engineers are working to restore power supply as soon as possible,” Zelenskyy noted.
Still, the Ukrainian leader declared that “Russian evil will not break Ukraine and will not spoil Christmas.”
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Russian President Vladimir Putin holds his annual end-of-year press conference in Moscow on Thursday. (Alexander Nemenov/AFP via Getty Images)
The U.S. has provided billions of dollars’ worth of aid to help Ukraine fight the Russian onslaught that erupted in 2022, but Americans and their congressional representatives have been divided regarding whether the U.S. should continue supplying aid to Ukraine.
President-elect Trump, who will take office on Jan. 20, has called for a cease-fire and negotiations.
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President-elect Trump looks on during Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest at the Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix on Sunday. (Rebecca Noble/Getty Images)
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In a post on Truth Social this month, Trump declared that “Zelenskyy and Ukraine would like to make a deal and stop the madness. They have ridiculously lost 400,000 soldiers, and many more civilians. There should be an immediate ceasefire and negotiations should begin.”
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
Journalists from Al-Quds Today were covering events at al-Awda Hospital when their vehicle was struck.
Five journalists have been killed in an Israeli strike in the vicinity of a hospital in central Gaza, according to Palestinian authorities and media reports.
The journalists from the Al-Quds Today channel were covering events near al-Awda Hospital, located in the Nuseirat refugee camp, when their broadcasting van was hit by an Israeli air strike, Al Jazeera’s Anas al-Sharif reported early on Thursday morning.
Footage from the scene circulating on social media shows a vehicle engulfed in flames.
A screenshot taken from a video of the white-coloured van shows the word “press” in large red lettering across the back of the vehicle.
The deceased journalists have been named as Fadi Hassouna, Ibrahim al-Sheikh Ali, Mohammed al-Ladah, Faisal Abu al-Qumsan and Ayman al-Jadi.
Al Jazeera’s Anas al-Sharif said that Ayman al-Jadi had been waiting for his wife in front of the hospital while she was in labour to give birth to their first child.
Breaking: Five journalists lost their lives after their vehicle was incinerated in an Israeli airstrike targeting the broadcasting van of “Al-Quds Today” channel while covering events near Al-Awda Hospital in the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip. pic.twitter.com/oiAmxgZwO5
— أنس الشريف Anas Al-Sharif (@AnasAlSharif0) December 26, 2024
Civil defence teams retrieved the bodies of the victims and extinguished a fire at the scene, the Quds News Network said.
There was no immediate comment from Israeli authorities.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) earlier this month condemned Israel’s killing of four Palestinian journalists in the space of a week, calling on the international community to hold the country accountable for its attacks against the media.
At least 141 journalists have been killed in Israel’s war in Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to the CPJ.
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