Costa Rica Elects First Black Female vicepresident in the Americas

Carlos Alvarado won Costa Rica's presidential election Sunday by a large margin against evangelical singer Fabricio Alvarado (no relation), who ran an anti-same-sex-marriage campaign. But equally important was the election of Alvarado’s running mate, Epsy Campbell Barr, as the first black female vice president in the Americas. She will join the ranks of such other trailblazers as Victoria Garrón, the country’s first female vice president (1986-90); Thelma Curling, the first Afro-Costa Rican legislator (1982-86); and Laura Chinchilla, who became the first female president in the Central American nation (2010-14). More…